The seminarians and professors who are part of the Faculty of Theology of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross participated in a pilgrimage to celebrate St. Thomas Aquinas, patron of the Faculty.
The goal of the pilgrimage was the Major Basilica of St. Dominic in Naples, which since the 13th century has been under the custody of the Dominican Order. St. Thomas lived in the convent annexed to the Basilica and, from the cell he used at different periods, he wrote some of the most important works of his legacy. Teachers and students prayed before the crucifix that spoke to the saint and consecrated to the Lord the intellectual task that has the sole objective of knowing Him better in order to love Him more.
We were able to taste the peculiarity of the pizza and the typical neapolitan pastries and, while looking for the tombs of the various saints who rest in that city, we walked through the alleys of the historic center.
Holy Mass was celebrated in the Basilica of St. Mary of Good Counsel, where some seminarians served at the altar. There we greet with joy Mons. Nicola Longobardo, rector of the basilica and old friend of the Seminary since until 2012 he was in Torre del Greco, a parish that to date welcomes seminarians for pastoral activities.
We never imagined the beauty hidden beneath the Sanctuary. In the catacombs of San Gennaro we could touch the continuity of our faith: after 18 centuries the Mass is still being celebrated in the bowels of the neapolitan hill.