The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1899-12-23
Christmas in Rome


with forcemeat This is followed by
! the ''leSso,' or meat of which the soup
has been made, an inevitable feature
on the majority of Italian tables, and
served with piquant sauce and vege-
! tables. The next course is the "'frittC
misto, a dish of brains, liver potatoes
and various vegetables, all fried that
rich golden color which seems to be
only obtainable in a foreign frying pan
| Bologna sausage, a specialize of the
! season, is then partaken of; no Christ
mas dinner being considered complete
without its somewhat garlicly presence
Now appears the capon in all its sub
stantial glory. surrounded by siffets OF
! fried bread and pounded anchovies, and
accompanied by a fresh green salad
/ Then follows the sweets, ices and pan
! ma montata," etc.
I Notwithstanding the fact that Christ
mas Eve is black fast, the evening
meal on that solemn vigil partakes
somewhat of the nature of a fiesta. The
changes are rung on roast, boiled and
friend fish, and the piece de resistance
! consists Of a diss of stewed cells.
Many of the quaint customs which
formerly distinguished a Roman Christ
mas have in these modern days unhap-
PLY fallen into disuse. Time was when
during the nine days Of the novena
which precedes the feast of Christmas
picturesquely clad shepherds from the
Abruzzi mountains made their appear
ance in the City of the Saints to her
aid the birth of Christ The "Pifferi. >
as they were termed. played carols on
their bagpipes before the shrines of the
Madonna which adorns so many
of the old Roman streets, and
on the payment of a few "soldi''
their services could be obtained in pri-
vate oratories for family devotion.
=
We have considered Christmas from
material and gastronomic point of
view; now let US glance at the spiritual
side of things.
1t is Christmas eve, and the broad
flight of steps leading TO ST Peters is
thronged with the cosmopolitan crowd.
Inside the vast basilica the first Yes
pers of the feast are being sung. the
sweet voices of the Sistine Choir rising
and falling in melOdious cadences. and
blending together in waves of harmony
which echo through the lofty done
Now they are singing the 'fMagnificat."
and procession headed by the cardi-
nal-secretary of state with his scarlet
robes and dignified presence, passes on
its way TO the altar of Blessed Sacra-
ment-a gorgeous procession of err
mine-coped canons and students from
the Vatican Seminary in their deep
purple cassocks.
On this Christmas Eve of 1899 begins
the solemn year of Jubilee. and the
molly door, closed for so long space
OF time, is to be thrown open by the
Holy Father, as sign that the Ammo
Santo' has begun to run it's course
There is no Midnight Mass within
the walls of this grand Basilica. but
the office of Lauds is chanted and an
exquisite "Pastorelle.' surg by the Sis
tine Choir in the wee sma' hours"
before the dawn, and the first High
Mass on Christmas morning is cele-
DRAFTED at O'Clock a. m. In every col
lege and convent chapel in Rome. how
ever, and in many of the churches, the
Holy Sacrifice is offered up at mid
night. and the joyful tidinss In terra
pax hominlbus bonae Voluntatis"
sung by the angels-are repeated over
and over on earth and are echoed in !
heaven. 1t is Christmas morn
ing. Rome on her seven hills lies /
bathed in sunshine and overhead /
stretches a canopy of cloudless, un- |
Lathomable blue. Bells are pealing !
saily from many gray old belfry and !
ofty tower: the churches are decked /
With sliken hanGings of gold and GRIM !
son, and waNen tapers CLEAN on every /
altar, and shed their light beside the |
Crib of the Babe of Bethlehem.
Let us ascend the historic flight of
steps leading to the side entrance of I
the Church of Ara Coeh. We are terad- !
ing upon haunted ground-haunted bv +
the spirits of the pagan past. Here !
Tiberius Gracious met his death in
front of the Temple of Jupiter. and at /
the summit is the spot where Valerius /
the consul fought with Herdonius for /
the possession of the Capitol Here. |
llso-but these memories are incongru- /
ous with the joyful fiesta of today.
The picturesque old church is
thronged with worshipers, and the /
brOwn-clad sons of st. Francis are
singing the Gloria in. EXcelsis" There |
IS no touch of modeTnity in this spa /
aious building. where the dust Of cen 4
turtles lies on the medieval tombs and |
time has laid a heavy hand on the once /
sorgeously tinted frescoes of Pesaro 1
and Pinturicchio. and on the rich gild- /
ing Of the lofty roof. Tt presents. in I
fact, certain dim, dingy appearance;
but. as it has. been happily described. .
t is the dimness of faded splendor"
Let us turn to the Chapel of the Pre-
sepio. where the celebrated image of
he Bambino d'Ara Coelf lies in His
Mothers arms, It is but fitting that
he most beautiful crib in Rome should
De found in church of the Franciscan