Giornale II

Thomas Cane

The excursion to Santa Maria in Trastevere began by meeting Em in the common room and heading over to the bus stop to catch the 230 to the Trilussa.  As the ride continued we exchanged brief words about the necessary stop and other logistics, but mostly sat in silence.  They continued to keep tabs on our location as to not miss the stop and I sorted out my personal time frame for the trip.  Reaching our destination Trastevere was swarming with tourists looking at the last sites for the day and locals sat in the open air caffes enjoying aperitivo. 

As we approached the church we gazed up at the statues and exterior frescoes displaying symbols of Marian devotion.  In the entrance to the church the walls were lined with inscriptions in Latin, Greek, and Italian each looked like some form of graffiti.  I was initially confused why the church would decorate with art that was stereo-typically thought to detract from beauty.  Then understanding hit, and they had decorated the exterior as such in order to show the level of community and invitation that these inscriptions brought to the space. 

Upon entering the church the space opens up before us drawing the eyes upwards and outwards, scanning the vast scenery before us.  The right aisle looms before us with a small gift shop on the right, the rest of the church to the left, and a roped off section of the aisle directly in front.  The rope was curious for a brief moment, but as we entered further there was a mass being conducted at the time with the ropes barring tourists from diminishing the value of the service by clomping around the artwork.

The mass seemed explicitly foreign at first, but soon reminded brought up memories from Episcopalian service years prior.  The worshipers stood and began singing Johanna on the Highest which immediately brought back a flood of memories from the different hymns I sung years ago.  The classic rise and fall of the crowd with silent open prayer, and the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer resurfaced memories with family during the holiday service on Christmas Eve.  The mass concluded with the participants receiving the body and blood of Christ through communion, and conducting the last prayers and readings. 

Immediately after the service ended and the worshipers left the ropes were moved to the side and the aisles became fully accessible to tourists.  Moving the now completely public area the grandeur was much more appreciable.  While everything had been beautified, it was not for vain reasons, but to draw focus to the religious commemorations that gave immense praise to a myriad of biblical figures.  At the end of each aisle was a small chapel dedicated and constantly available as a place for prayer.  As the time in the church ended I began thinking about whether or not this space should be available to tourists in any capacity during a mass, or does the constant flux of non-worshiping peoples diminish the sanctity of an active site of worship. 

Meeting back up with Em we left and headed across the Ponte Sisto where we saw the band “The Orange Funky” jamming out and raising money to tour together.  Reaching the other side of the bridge we simply waited for our bus and headed back to St. John’s with minds swirling with so many perceptions on the religious process we had experienced.