by Joe Pisani
Father Cyrus Bartolome, pastor of the Church of the Assumption in Westport, recently had a chance to visit some of the most sacred sites of the Catholic Church in Rome and study preaching at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, along with nine other priests from the diocese.
It was, he said, “A wonderful and rare opportunity to step away from the pace of parish life and be a regular priest again at the heart of the Church. Looking back and finding yourself in the city of Rome, praying where generations of priests have prayed, and celebrating the Eucharist in such sacred places as the Catacombs of St. Callixtus was both grounding and renewing.”
The ten priests were part of the weeklong Rome Preaching Program of the diocesan St. Jerome Center for Preaching and Biblical Studies. It gave them an opportunity to study preaching at an advanced level under the Dominicans, develop priestly fraternity and appreciate the universality of the Church by visiting holy sites, according to Deacon Patrick Toole, DMin, founder and director of the center and chancellor of the diocese.
Father Miguel Betancur Lenis, parochial vicar at St. Matthew Parish in Norwalk, said he gained “a renewed sense of priestly fraternity and a deeper appreciation for the richness of the Church’s intellectual and spiritual traditions.”
“As priests, we had a unique opportunity to experience Rome from a different perspective, not as leaders of a pilgrimage but as participants, and to enrich ourselves intellectually, culturally and spiritually in an atmosphere of prayer and fraternity,” he said.
“I especially loved the classes at the Angelicum led by the Dominican priests.”
The group also included Fathers Guy Dormevil, Férry Galbert, Chris Ford, David Roman, Claudiu-Gabriel Necularsi, Birendra Soreng, Adriano Biccheri and Jozef Ukaj.
This was the second year Deacon Toole has taken a group to Rome, and it was a busy week. Their day began with morning prayer, followed by classes with Dominican professors, lunch, and an afternoon pilgrimage to sacred sites, where they celebrated Mass, including St. Peter’s Basilica, the Basilica of St. Mary Major, the Basilica of St. Clement and Santa Maria Sopra Minerva.
“Each of the participants had to preach once during the week, either at morning prayer or Mass,” Deacon Toole said. “They also had two private sessions with a Dominican friar who teaches homiletics at Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis.”
The priests each sent a video of a Sunday homily and received feedback, which they will incorporate in future preaching, followed by another round of critiquing.
“The Dominicans are known for their preaching,” Deacon Toole said. “So what better place for priests to learn than at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas.”
The topics the group studied included St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas and Pope Benedict XVI on preaching, liturgical preaching, and artificial intelligence and preaching.
Deacon Toole said the program relates to Bishop Frank J. Caggiano’s renewal efforts and is best illuminated by the Gospel story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus.
“The disciples were distraught leaving Jerusalem, and then Jesus appeared and walked with them, and the first thing he did was explain all that had happened by opening the Word for them. He is the Word,” Deacon Toole said. “He helped them see his death and resurrection in that light … and then in the breaking of the bread, they recognized him.”
Similarly, in the Mass, the Liturgy of the Word leads to the summit of the Holy Eucharist.
“Preaching helps the Word come alive and be meaningful and impactful to a particular people at a particular place at a particular point in time. It prepares us to go to the heavenly banquet and receive our Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament and it’s all integrated into the Sacrifice of the Mass,” he said.
The program, which will go into its third year next April, was made possible through the gift of an anonymous donor, who believes it is important for priests to be immersed in the universality of the Church in Rome, experience fraternity and study preaching at an advanced level so they can proclaim the Word of God more effectively. It was developed in conjunction with Father Patrick Baikauskas, OP, vice president of institutional advancement of Aquinas Institute of Theology, and Father Dominic Holtz, OP, dean of the philosophy faculty at the Angelicum.
Father Bartolome came home re-energized and grateful for being able to participate in the program. He was especially moved by “celebrating the Eucharist in the catacombs and in the historical churches and major basilicas.”
“There is something very powerful realizing you are part of a much larger journey of faith that goes back centuries,” he said. Father Betancur Lenis expressed his gratitude and said he appreciated the daily classes with the Dominicans.
“Father Holtz emphasized that we must trust the Holy Spirit to guide us in preparing homilies that not only catechize our parishioners but also move them to deeper discipleship,” he said. “His talk made me realize that priests do not necessarily need AI to produce meaningful homilies if we continue to fill our souls with God through prayer, reading, study and service to our communities. We should also constantly pray for our priests, that they continue to renew their priesthood through prayer and pastoral service.”
