By Fr. Phillip Brown, S.S.
It’s always a wonderful opportunity to be able to travel to Rome and get back in touch with my own days studying there (I did my license and doctorate at the Pontifical Gregorian University between 1995 and 1999) and to breath in the atmosphere of the Church that fills the air around Rome and its magnificent churches, especially at St. Peter’s and in Vatican City.
I go to Rome in the spring of each year as the General Treasurer (Économe Général) of the Society of St. Sulpice for a meeting of the General Council of the Society. My part of the meeting is usually about as exciting as reading a balance sheet, but it’s always exciting to be in Rome for a few days. This year my time in Rome was extra-special because I was able to take our former seminarians from Theological College who are now at the Pontifical North American College in Rome to lunch (pranzo in Italian).
We met in the piazza just outside the Pantheon and proceeded to a wonderful little trattoria nearby called Armando’s al Pantheone (I recommend it highly when you’re in Rome—but be sure to reserve a table in advance!). What a treat it was to spend a little time with former Basselin scholars and pre-theologians from TC and get caught up on how they’re doing in their studies and seminary formation, and to get “insider” views on happenings in Rome and in the Church. They all seemed to be doing great; it was particularly gratifying to hear how their time at TC prepared them well for studies and formation in Rome.