St. John Lateran in Rome, Italy
Another group of ICC singers (ten of them) made it into Rome today in time to sing at the 12:00 noon Mass (6:00 a.m. EST here in the States) in the Basilica of St. John Lateran with the group already there. St. John Lateran is the official ecclesiastical seat of the Pope and is the oldest basilica in the world. It holds the title of Mother Church of the Whole Inhabited World, and ranks above all other Catholic churches, even St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. (The building itself was first constructed in the 300's and then underwent renovations, re-buildings, etc. throughout the years due to fires, vandals, etc., so what you see now is a compilation of different periods and years.) What an honor for the kids to be able to sing at Mass there today! The Mass was beautiful, the songs were beautiful, prayers were said, candles lit, all joining with the thoughts and prayers from us back here in the U.S. How excited the singers all were at being reunited...now, just one more group to travel over, hopefully tonight!
