A Dream Has Become a Reality: A Parish in Rome

On September 1^st, Father Gerardo Cárcar Will Become Pastor of "Santi Francesco e Caterina, Patroni d’Italia" (Sts. Francis and Catherine, Patrons of Italy)

Frente de la Iglesia y entrada al teatro parroquial Other view of the church Aus einer anderen Perspektive, mit Eingang zum Gelände
Vista posterior de la Iglesia Approaching the back side of the church Von der Straße aus ein Blick auf das Kirchenschiff
Otra vista posterior de la Iglesia Closer view Blick aus der Nähe auf das Kirchenschiff Fotos: P. Gerardo Carcar © 2007

ITALY, Fr. Gerardo Cárcar / mkf. On September 1st, a dream of the Schoenstatt Fathers in Rome will become a reality and at the same time it is a big step forward for Schoenstatt in Italy. Cardinal Ruini assigned a parish to the Community of the Schoenstatt Fathers and Fr. Gerardo Cárcar will assume the task of pastor.

Five years ago, Fathers Alberto Eronti and Ludovico Tedeschi arrived to begin the foundation of the Schoenstatt Fathers in Rome, Italy. They began from ground zero, from the very bottom. They sought jobs to sustain themselves economically. They rented a house and began to furnish it with the necessary things. They made strides to make themselves present in the eternal city and people started coming forward, associating themselves with them and even formed Schoenstatt groups with a strong Italian Schoenstatt identity. About two years ago, the community decided that it would probably be best to establish themselves in a parish with the aim of being of service to the local church and at the same time take deep roots in the Roman mentality and culture. The General Superior, Fr. Heinrich, formally asked Cardinal Ruini for the assignment of a parish. Due to the great existing demand last year, it was not possible for them to receive a parish. They were asked to be patient and to wait for one more year.

Last year they established the first affiliation of the community with Fathers Ludovico Tedeschi, Martín Gómez (Argentineans) and Felipe Bezanilla (Chilean). They were joined by Fr. Hans Werner Unkel, a German Schoenstatt Father who most recently had resided in India. He is on a sabbatical - year doing post-graduate studies in Rome.

During the year, with the hope and anxiety for a parish increasing, obvious questions came forward: Would the place be adequate for our community needs? Would the place be close by or far away? Ultimately, would this be a confirmation that Divine Providence was ratifying what we thought we should do? On April 30^th, Father Gerardo Cárcar had an audience with Cardinal Ruini. Cardinal Ruini – called Cardinal Vicar because he heads the Diocese of Rome in representation of the Pope who is in reality the local bishop – blessed the Matri Ecclesiae Shrine in Belmonte on September 8, 2004.

The Holy Patrons

Fr. Gerardo recalls the scene – in the first place, he was interested in the correct pronunciation of my surname. He also asked for my nationality. I am not surprised that he asked me these questions. Sometimes other bishops know more details about the priests who collaborate in their dioceses. Rome has 360 parishes, approximately 700 diocesan priests and some 7,000 priests in total living and working there….. He then asked me if I was going to be the pastor designated by my community. He then told me the name of the parish which would be assigned to us: Santi Francesco e Caterina, Patroni d’Italia (Sts. Francis and Catherine, Patrons of Italy) located in the Circonvallazione Gianicolense, # 12. He wrote down some essential facts about the parish and told me that I could clear up details by contacting the auxiliary bishop. He told me that my assignment as pastor would begin this September 1^st and he also gave me the good news that our community would be entitled to two salaries: one for pastor and one for parochial vicar. For those who know the development of our community in Rome during the last two years, will know that this news is of great importance! He was then interested somewhat in the communities of the Schoenstatt Movement. He knew there were some Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary in Rome and that one of them collaborated closely with the Pope. When I told him that they have their house on the Via Aurelia Antica, he remembered that he had been there with the then Cardinal Ratzinger. When I told him that in Schoenstatt there is an institute for diocesan priests, he remembered Bishop Sanna, former vice-rector of the Lateran University whom he himself ordained a bishop approximately one year ago. Lastly, he asked me about the connection of Cardinal Francisco Javier Errázuriz with Schoenstatt. At the end of the meeting, I told him that our community believed that Divine Providence was asking us to take this step in coming to Rome and now that he had opened the doors of the Roman church to us we were very grateful to him and we would do all on our part to provide excellent service to the community he was assigning to us.

Near the Shrine of the Sisters

The parish has presumably 12,000 inhabitants in the Gianicolense area. The location is excellent. It is in the area closer to the center of the Western section, not closed-in into the ancient city and not far from downtown. The Fathers are very near the Vatican (about 10 minutes by car), and also very near to the historical monuments. They are also very close to the Shrine of the Sisters – it is the neighboring parish – and also near to the Gregorian (about 15 minutes by trolley and a bit more by foot). It is almost the same distance to the Lateran and the Roman Vicarage. Villa Pamphili, one of the most beautiful parks in Rome, is very close to the parish. They are not so far away from the Shrine in Belmonte and although not nearby – it is about 10 kilometers in distance. They are in front of the Trastevere Train Station, some twenty minutes from the airport and a large number of taxicabs go by the parish as does a trolley car.

Within the parish territory, as happens in the entire Western section, there are a great number of established religious communities which are mostly for women.

The parish church was built in 1942 by the architect, Tullio Rossi, who built some 40 Roman churches between 1934 and 1957. It is simple architecture, a classical expression with a façade of five very high arches covered in Travertino marble. The interior is very large and illuminated by large windows.

Auxiliary Bishop Benedetto Tuzia, the bishop of this Western section, assures us that it is a very good community with the excellent presence of youths. However, a parish consecrated to the patrons of Italy (colloquially they all call it the parish of the Holy Patrons) is an excellent omen for taking a giant step in this project to begin our pastoral work in Rome.

Translation: Carlos Cantú Family Federation La Feria, Texas USA 090107