Reflections by: Jonah Kwek, Ashwin Pandiyan, Eden Leow, Aaron Dhavanar
Cathedral of Bagnoregio (in Lazio)
Today we say goodbye to the majestic city of Rome and move on to Assisi. Leaving behind the grandeur of the High Baroque and intricate artworks, we carry on to the humility of St. Francis, and the simplicity and radicality of his faith. An early start and a 2-hour bus ride later, we first passed through the Town of Bagnoregio, the birthplace of St. Bonaventure, the Seraphic Doctor.
The Cathedral of Bagnoregio is situated in Piazza Cavour. Previously, the edifice was a humble church dedicated to the Madonna of the Snow placed across from the Collegiate Church of St. Nicholas of Bari. As we entered the compound, it was a little worse for wear compared to the grand churches in Rome. Nevertheless, it was a small and cozy church, with beautiful stained glass and beautiful paintings. In one of the chapels, the gold plated hand of St. Bonaventure stood. Unfortunately, the rest of St. Bonaventure’s body was thrown in the river in Lyon during protests, and is lost forever. We celebrated Mass there, and learnt a little bit about the life of St. Bonaventure. This church was a perfect way to start our journey outside of Rome as I had time to settle down my heart and prepare myself for the journey ahead, to try and experience the humility and joy that St. Francis himself so carried with him. The inspirational story of St. Bonaventure was a great reminder of the need to connect the intellect and the heart to experience God and receive what He has to offer.
The Homily was especially powerful, hearing about the theology of St. Bonaventure. For him (and for St. Francis), things exist around us (in God’s Creation) that are vestiges of God’s goodness. These things exist as a mirror, to show the wisdom and goodness of God. Too often, I find myself skimming through life, focusing on only the tasks that I have to complete (which is endless…) and forgetting to appreciate the goodness of God in everything around me. As I held this idea of the goodness and providence of God, my heart started to open up (even in just a tiny way), and I felt more free, as I gazed at the beauty of nature around me that St. Francis and St. Bonaventure were so free to experience. What was binding me was expectations of myself to need to accomplish something, and I forgot the most basic Truth – that we are human BEINGS, not human DOINGS (as mentioned by Fr. Derrick on the last trip), and I was not setting aside the time and space to recognise God in all things. This is why for St. Francis, nature was so important (as he wrote in his Canticles such as the Canticle of the Sun), as all of Creation, when looking at it with spiritual eyes and not human eyes, can become a ladder to perceiving God with a greater Truth and freedom in everything around us. Thus, Bonaventure says that there are 3 things – Happiness, Support from God, and Prayer. These 3 allow us to grow in Holiness and reliance on the Lord, and allow us to put Him in the throne of our lives.
Bonaventure also asks, and it is a question that is ever relevant: knowing all this, what is the SUPREME GOOD? There are many good things around us, but what is the Supreme Good that brings eternal fulfilment? For me, I have only but a foretaste of this Supreme Good that is Christ, but seeing the life of St. Francis, it is evident that, having tasted and embraced the Supreme Good, no other ‘goods’ could fulfill the way that God does. It is a call for me to stop searching for fulfilment in smaller goods, but to find and ask truly: who and what is the Supreme Good, and where is He? And this is something that I have to know not only with my mind, but also with my heart. Happiness is thus nothing else than the pure enjoyment of the Supreme Good! I am thus called to allow myself to be, to spend more time in contemplation, which is to see things the way God sees, not with our human eyes, but with spiritual eyes.
Following that, we had lunch in a small restaurant in a cave in the small town of Bagnoregio. It was a sumptuous lunch with amazing pasta and different types of bread. The restaurant even hosted a wine cellar with a collection of wines, old and new. The groups shared intimately about their experiences during lunch and it was evident that the Spirit was moving in our midst through the stories and encounters shared.
With our bellies full, we headed to St Bonaventure’s home town. On greatly uneven terrain with many highs and lows, we climbed up to the town on top of the hill. Oh what a contrast it was to the city life of Rome! A small quaint town with very homely vibes, small shops and small cozy buildings littered the sides of the street. It was a larger than life experience, almost as if we had entered into another place in time. There we visited the church of St. Donato. However, it was the image of our blessed Mother that caught my eye.
Mary was depicted in the capacity of her title “Our Lady, Liberator”. This icon of hers was one that profoundly captivated me. Knowing that I had my Mother praying and fighting for me and for my freedom, in faith and in life at large was unbelievably comforting. Despite the little time that we had in the town, I could not pull myself away from Our Lady’s icon. It was almost an invitation of sorts, to put my faith in Mary’s love and prayers for me. I left the church with 3 new rosaries and a love for Our Lady, Liberator.
We ended off the day with a nice dinner at the hotel. It was a great time for laughter and fellowship and it was time truly treasured. This day was an extremely blessed day, that called me to look beyond myself, to look beyond the limits of my physical eyes and self, and to allow myself to be loved, to be God’s beloved. In the next few days, we hope and pray with certain faith that the Lord will move us, replacing our hearts of stone hardened by the expectations of society and ourselves with a heart of flesh, that calls us to just BE in His presence, to BE His beloved, and to BE loved by Him, carrying this radical love to others.
