I Can't Imagine God is that Pleased

I suppose you could go to Rome without a visit to the Vatican, but we really wanted to see it. We booked the tour online yesterday so we wouldn't have to stand outside in line for hours. We arrived in Rome about 4 hours before the tour. We bought tickets for one of the "hop on - hop off" open air tour buses and headed for the Vatican early. We decided it would be best to determine where we were supposed to be for the tour before we were actually supposed to be there and then not be able to find it for some reason.

Easy to find! Now we're wandering somewhat aimlessly looking for a coffee shop. I'm thinking - "We are in Rome. There are so many beautiful things to see. Why on earth are we wandering around this mucky street?" Did I say anything to that effect? No, of course not. At least not until lunch time. I saved the conversation for our somewhat 'less than mediocre' lunch at a sidewalk cafe near the Vatican.

"You know I rarely question your sightseeing strategies, but I've been thinking that we are in Rome and there are so many beautiful things to see and we are roaming up and down these not so beautiful streets."

"It's because the Vatican tour is going to wear us out. It will be three hours or longer and we will be on our feet the whole time. Also, I don't want us to be wandering around the Coliseum, lose track of time and not be here for our tour."

"That's fine. It makes sense. I was just wondering."

We walked around for a bit and then went to the steps where we were to meet and saw that a number of people were already there. We were told that we would be in Michaela's group.

"Michaela is over there. She has a beer."

I asked, "What does she have?"

"A beer".

Well, Michaela does not have a beer. She has a bear. English can be such a difficult language. (Deer and Dear are the same - Beer and Bear are not.) Michaela has a bear on a stick that she's named Moses. We are given radios so we can hear her and we are to follow Moses through the Vatican. The group is limited to twenty people. Our group includes a couple from Oklahoma City with grandchildren in Dallas. (We're from Dallas with grandchildren in Oklahoma City.) There is a couple from Arkansas, some people from the Philippines and some folks from Canada and a family with two teenagers from parts unknown. We set off behind Moses.

We were on our feet for three and a half hours. We went upstairs and downstairs - no elevators. We definitely got our money's worth. There is so much to see. I sometimes forget that the Vatican is a country unto itself. But Michaela kept reminding us of the dual role of the Pope - as both a religious and political leader.

The paintings are fabulous, Michelangelo, Botticelli, Raphael...All so beautiful. I managed to fire off a shot in the Sistine Chapel before I was informed that no photography was allowed - by order of the Japanese company who funded the restoration. Unfortunately, it wasn't a particularly clear shot.

St. Peter's is the biggest church in the world. You could probably put St. Paul's in London inside it. There is untold wealth and beauty within the walls of the Vatican.

But here's my problem with it - each Pope, (and as I understand it, there have been over 200 of them) have each put his own stamp on it, and according to Michaela , have made their nephews cardinals. The Vatican is a memorial to the Popes, not to God, not to Jesus Christ. And that's where I think they've missed it - they've built monuments to themselves. It is incredibly beautiful, but I can't imagine God is all that pleased.

But here are some pictures...