Ad Limina Visit 2020: Remembering the fallen

Bishop Larry Silva accompanied by Msgr. Gary Secor, vicar general, is in Italy from late January through early February, primarily for his ad limina visit to the Vatican and Pope Francis. Msgr. Secor is sending back regular bulletins on their experiences in the Eternal City. Note the 11-hour time difference between Hawaii and Rome when reading.

MONDAY, Jan. 20, 2020

Bishop Larry Silva (left) and Msgr. Gary Secor (right) in front of the tomb of St. Sebastian. (Photo courtesy Msgr. Gary Secor)

Here we are at the tomb of St. Sebastian on the Via Appia Antica. We especially went here since today, Monday, Jan. 20, is the feast of Sts. Sebastian and Fabian.

As we arrived at the Church of St. Sebastian, they were in the midst of a Mass attended by many of the police of the City of Rome since St. Sebastian is the patron of policemen, having been a member of the Roman guard who converted to Christ.

Later we prayed at this tomb especially for the two Honolulu Police Department officers killed yesterday in the line of duty. May they Rest In Peace.

We also went into the catacombs of St. Sebastian where the relics of Sts. Peter and Paul were kept until after the Christian persecutions and were then moved from this area in the early 4th century.

Plaque at Ardeatine Caves massacre site. (Photo courtesy Msgr. Gary Secor)

After our visit to the Church of St. Sebastian, we went to the Ardeatine Caves, where this plaque is located. Those versed in Italian can translate, but it memorializes the over 300 ordinary Roman citizens rounded up by the Nazis and executed and buried at this site near the Church of St. Sebastian in March 1944.

The burial site of those killed at the Ardeatine Caves. May they Rest In Peace. (Photo courtesy Msgr. Gary Secor)

This was done by the Nazis during the occupation of Rome in retaliation for a bomb set off during a parade that killed a number of Nazi soldiers.

The view of St. Peter’s Basilica from the Pope Paul VI Hotel (Photo courtesy Msgr. Gary Secor)

Later, we took in the view from a terrace area at the Pope Paul VI Hotel where we enjoyed a preprandial drink this evening.

As Bishop and I were having dinner, who arrived unexpectedly but Joan Lewis, EWTN’s Rome bureau chief and a Vatican correspondent for many years. She lives near this restaurant, La Victoria, and joined us. She has made a number of trips to Hawaii and is very devoted to Sts. Damien and Marianne and is also interested in the cause of Joseph Dutton.

Msgr. Secor (left), Bishop Silva (middle) and Joan Lewis (right) at La Victoria restaurant in Rome. (Photo courtesy Msgr. Gary Secor)

The bottle, compliments of the restaurant, is limoncello, the perfect end to any Italian meal.

-Buono Notte, Msgr. Secor