Buried Beneath Rome Lies Treasures of the Faith – and Inspiration for Us All ROME – “Follow the saints, because those who follow them will become saints.” Attributed to Pope St. Clement I, the third successor of St. Peter as bishop of Rome, few quotes better express the simple path to holiness that is found in modeling the Christian virtues lived by those who make up the Communion of Saints. Scott WardenBishop Rhoades preaches during Mass at the Basilica of San Clemente in Rome on Saturday, October 5. Also pictured, from left, are Patrick Ernst, a seminarian for the diocese, Father Jonathan Norton, and Father Paolo Degasperi. Equally – and more practically – few quotes provide better guidance for pilgrims trudging through the worn, weathered cobblestone streets of Clement’s Eternal City, where these very saints walked and worshiped, lived and died. For the Catholic pilgrim, Rome is alive with the tangible traces of these holy men and women, as their relics and remains seemingly bless every church and chapel within this historic city. Even in Rome, few places exhibit this Christian anthropology more than the church that bears Clement’s name. Located between two colossal landmarks – St. John Lateran to the east and the Colosseum to the west – the simplicity of the exterior of the Basilica of San Clemente makes it stand apart from other well-known, more ostentatious Roman churches. Odds are, passersby wouldn’t pay it any mind unless they knew the treasures contained within. From the street, visitors enter the basilica through a simple walled-in courtyard. It’s only when you pass through the doors of the church that you get a sense of its magnificence and its history. Dominican Father Paul Murray, center, gives a tour of the order’s private library at San Clemente in Rome on Saturday, October 5. Built in the early 1100s, centuries before masters of the Renaissance and Counter-Reformation made Rome what it is today – before Michelangelo touched the Sistine Chapel, before Bernini designed the colonnade embracing St. Peter’s Square, before Caravaggio used shadow and light to evangelize through the lives of the apostles – the Basilica of San Clemente stands apart because of the stories it tells and, quite literally, the depths of its history. In early October, I had the good fortune to join three other Catholic journalists, each from OSV News – Gretchen Crowe, editor-in-chief of OSV News; Peter Jesserer Smith, national news editor; and Maria Wiering, senior writer – for a private tour and Mass at San Clemente. We were joined by Bishop Rhoades, who had arranged for the tour, along with two priests of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Father Jonathon Norton and Father Paolo Degasperi, as well as Deacon Andrew Barnes and Patrick Ernst, a seminarian for the diocese who is studying in Rome. The tour was led by Father Paul Murray, an Irish Dominican priest who is well known in the field of spiritual theology as a writer, professor, and lecturer. To begin, Father Murray gathered our group into the unique, elevated choir that sits in the middle of the nave of the church. We took our seats in worn wooden pews that run parallel to the main aisle, and Father Murray began to tell us about the history of San Clemente. Dominican Father Paul Murray begins the tour of the Basilica of San Clemente in Rome on Saturday, October 5. Pictured are Patrick Ernst, Gretchen Crowe, and Bishop Rhoades. The 12th-century basilica is adorned with beautiful frescoes throughout and a staggering mosaic above the main altar, including an image of St. Clement surrounded by angels. Two impressive side chapels bookend the left side church – one dedicated to Our Lady at the front and the other to St. Catherine of Alexandria at the back. In the mid-1800s, it was being cared for by the curious Father Joseph Mullooly, who served as rector of the basilica and superior of Irish Dominicans in Rome from 1850 until his death in 1880. In 1857, Father Mullooly began exploring the grounds after noticing the difference in elevation at street level between the nearby Colosseum and San Clemente. His hunch was proved correct when he noticed what looked to be a Corinthian capital on the floor of the basilica’s sacristy. Only partly exposed, Father Mullooly had laborers remove rubble from around the subterranean column. That initial work led to the discovery of an underground passageway beneath three 14-foot-tall columns. Within just 10 years, Father Mullooly and his team had unearthed not only a fourth-century Christian basilica but, below that, the remains of a first-century Roman village – including a pagan temple – that dates nearly to the time of St. Clement, who is believed to have been elected as pope in A.D. 92 and who died at the turn of the second century. Frescoes ranging from the eighth to the 11th centuries adorn the walls of the lower basilica, including depictions of the Madonna and Child and the ascension of Christ, as well as a striking image that recounts the transfer of the remains of St. Clement to his namesake basilica from nearby St. Peter’s Basilica. Tradition holds that Sts. Cyril and Methodius brought Clement’s body from Crimea to Rome, where it was presented to the pope and then carried in procession to San Clemente. To this day, the basilica contains the remains of both St. Clement and St. Cyril. Level by level, Father Murray joyfully told the story of the ancient basilica, sharing with us the details of each painting and artifact along the way. He also took us through his order’s priory, including the refectory – which, apparently, was Pope Benedict XVI’s favorite dining hall in Rome – and a staggeringly beautiful library lined with tall wooden shelves containing books that dated back to the 13th and 14th centuries. Following the tour, Bishop Rhoades celebrated a remarkable vigil Mass at the basilica’s main altar, with assistance from Father Norton, Father Degasperi, Deacon Barnes, and Ernst. The four of us journalists sat in a semicircle along the back wall, perched under one of Christendom’s most magnificent mosaics. We all were in Rome covering the opening of the second session of the 16th ordinary assembly of the Synod of Bishops, and while we were in the Eternal City, our press credentials afforded each of us several opportunities to see and experience the history of Rome in a unique way. That being said, the Mass and tour at San Clemente will certainly stand out as the highlight of our visit to the Eternal City. The only thing that marred the beauty of the church was the evidence that the Irish Dominicans who are still entrusted to its care are taking that charge seriously, as scaffolding covered portions of the main basilica. A year or so ago, the order began raising money for much-needed repairs and restoration work. This past spring, that work began, and the scaffolding was erected to help heal the wounds of time – paint peeling off the walls, priceless frescoes becoming dull and dingy, among others. It’s merely a continuation of the undertaking that began under the direction of Father Mullooly, who, fittingly, is buried beneath the high altar of the lower basilica. Like the holy men and women whom St. Clement urged us to follow, Father Mullooly’s work serves as a reminder that when we dig a little deeper for the glory of God, incredible things await. Scott Warden is editor-in-chief of Today’s Catholic. The post Following in the Footsteps of Saints appeared first on Today's Catholic.