Remembering the devastating fire at St. Paul Outside the Walls 200 years later

Vincenzo Randazzo  By Vincenzo Randazzo for CNA

July 14, 2023 Catholic News Agency News Briefs 0 Print

 

Illustation of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, before the fire that destroyed it in 1823. / Photo courtesy of Professor Nicola Camerlenghi, from his book “St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era,” 2018

Rome, Italy, Jul 14, 2023 / 03:00 am (CNA).

As the bicentennial anniversary of the devastating fire at St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome draws near, the profound significance of the July 15, 1823, event is recalled among those who love the basilica. The tragic incident left an indelible mark on the architectural landscape and the hearts of believers.

Illustration of the destruction of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome in 1823, depicted in Professor Nicola Camerlenghi, from his book "St. Paul's Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era," 2018. Photo courtesy of Professor Nicola Camerlenghi, from his book "St. Paul's Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era," 2018
Illustration of the destruction of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome in 1823, depicted in Professor Nicola Camerlenghi, from his book “St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era,” 2018. Photo courtesy of Professor Nicola Camerlenghi, from his book “St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era,” 2018

To commemorate this solemn anniversary, a series of events are planned in collaboration with various embassies, universities, and choirs.

On July 11, the Benedictine friars residing in the monastery at the basilica offered a special vespers service open to the public. Additionally, a community event organized by the nearby university Roma Tre will take place in Rome’s Ostiense neighborhood on July 14 and 15 in the Parco Schuster, a small neighborhood park in the shadow of the iconic basilica. The gathering aims to honor the memory of the great fire and pay tribute to the enduring spirit of the basilica. It provides an opportunity for Catholics, architectural enthusiasts, and community members to come together and reflect on the profound impact of the fire and the subsequent reconstruction efforts, complete with 3D imaging technology developed to show what the basilica used to look like.

Cardinal James Michael Harvey, the appointed archpriest of St. Paul Outside the Walls, expressed the importance of commemorating the tragic event, stating: “We want the future to know that the memory of this event was taken seriously during its 200-year anniversary.”

Harvey also noted that the basilica is organizing an assembly of 19th-century scholars, experts, and historians to visit the basilica and discuss the significance of the tragedy sometime in November. The announcement of this event is still pending.

To gain deeper insights into the fire and its aftermath, Nicola Camerlenghi, assistant professor of Art History at Dartmouth College and a renowned expert in architectural history, shared his expertise during an interview with CNA. According to Camerlenghi, “The fire at St. Paul’s Basilica was a great tragedy. What was lost was the last imperial basilica built in Rome and one of the few monumental buildings from early Christian times that had survived relatively untouched by subsequent alterations.”

Color illustration of historic fire at St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, 1823, depicted in Professor Nicola Camerlenghi's book "St. Paul's Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era," 2018. Photo courtesy of Professor Nicola Camerlenghi from his book "St. Paul's Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era," 2018
Color illustration of historic fire at St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, 1823, depicted in Professor Nicola Camerlenghi’s book “St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era,” 2018. Photo courtesy of Professor Nicola Camerlenghi from his book “St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era,” 2018

Reflecting on the decisions made during the meticulous reconstruction process, Camerlenghi emphasized the faithful restoration of the basilica. The architects and artisans recreated its original state while adapting to the loss of certain materials and using materials that are more fireproof. As a result of Camerlenghi’s research, 19th-century French writer Stendhal’s journal entry from his time in Rome surfaced, providing a glimpse into Rome after the fire. Stendhal wrote: “I found in it a severe beauty and an impression of calamity such as only the music of Mozart can suggest. The terrible painful traces of the misfortune were still alive… Thus perished the most ancient basilica not only of Rome, but of all Christianity. It had lasted 15 centuries.”

The fire was ruled an accident, caused by a distracted welder named Giacomo who unknowingly left a pan of coals burning on the roof. Despite initial suspicions of arson, conspiracy theories involving revolutionary movements and even the prominent Rothschild family failed to gain traction.

Lithograph image of fire at St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, 1823, depicted in "St. Paul's Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era," by Professor Nicola Camerlenghi, 2018. Photo courtesy of Professor Nicola Camerlenghi from his book "St. Paul's Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era," 2018
Lithograph image of fire at St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, 1823, depicted in “St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era,” by Professor Nicola Camerlenghi, 2018. Photo courtesy of Professor Nicola Camerlenghi from his book “St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, A Roman Basilica, from Antiquity to the Modern Era,” 2018

The reconstruction of St. Paul Outside the Walls proved to be a formidable undertaking amid the political and cultural turmoil of Rome at the time. To honor the basilica’s historical significance, Pope Leo XII decided to restore it to its former glory, without the architectural modifications and additions that had accumulated over the centuries.

At the bicentennial anniversary of this devastating fire, one is reminded of the enduring faith and unwavering spirit that define St. Paul Outside the Walls and even St. Paul himself. As Camerlenghi noted: “In turn, the reconstruction that ensued was a testament to the importance of the figure of St. Paul to the Catholic Church and indeed to the Christian community at large. No figure has been quite as ecumenical as Paul, the Apostle of the Gentiles.”

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Polish nun who helped saved Jews during Holocaust dies at 110

November 21, 2018 CNA Daily News 2

Krakow, Poland, Nov 21, 2018 / 01:45 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Believed to be the “oldest nun in the world,” Polish Dominican nun Sister Cecylia Maria Roszak has died at the age of 110, the Archdiocese of Krakow has announced.

<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”pl” dir=”ltr”>W Krakowie zmarła najstarsza siostra zakonna na świecie – Matka Cecylia Maria Roszak z klasztoru sióstr dominikanek „Na Gródku”. Z okazji 110. urodzin, które obchodziła 25 marca tego roku, odwiedził ją <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/abpMarekJ%C4%99draszewski?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#abpMarekJędraszewski</a>.<a href=”https://twitter.com/EpiskopatNews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@EpiskopatNews</a> <a href=”https://t.co/tUH8x8vvmW”>https://t.co/tUH8x8vvmW</a> <a href=”https://t.co/vPj7CA0tyX”>pic.twitter.com/vPj7CA0tyX</a></p>&mdash; Archidiecezja Krakowska (@ArchKrakowska) <a href=”https://twitter.com/ArchKrakowska/status/1063448762725662724?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>November 16, 2018</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>

Sr. Cecylia was born Maria Roszak on March 25, 1908 in the town of Kielczewo in west-central Poland. After graduating from trade school at the age of 21, she entered a cloistered convent of Dominican sisters in Krakow, at the “On Gródek” monastery, as it is commonly called.

In 1938, she traveled with a group of her sisters to Vilnius (now in Lithuania, but at the time a part of Poland) where the nuns were hoping to establish another convent. However, the outbreak of World War II prevented them from doing so.

For two years, Vilnius was under Soviet occupation, and then under German occupation after the invasion of the Nazis. During this time, Sr. Roszak and her sisters, led by their superior, Mother Bertranda, hid 17 members of the Jewish resistance in their convent, risking their lives to do so.

According to The World Holocaust Remembrance Center, the Jewish people who found refuge in the convent were members of the illegal Jewish Zionist underground movements.

“Despite the enormous difference between the two groups, very close relations were formed between the religious Christian nuns and the left-wing secular Jews. The pioneers found a safe haven behind the convent’s walls; they worked with the nuns in the fields and continued their political activity. They called the mother superior of the convent Ima (Mother in Hebrew),” the Center states in a biographical page on Mother Bertranda, who eventually left the convent and became known as Anna Borkowska.

In 1941 the Jewish refugees decided to leave the convent and return to the Jewish ghetto to help establish the resistance there. Borkowska begged them to stay, and then begged to join them in the ghetto, and helped her friends smuggle weapons and supplies inside.

In September 1943, Mother Bertranda was arrested, the Vilnius convent was closed and the nuns were dispersed. Sr. Roszak returned to Krakow, although due to the war, her sisters had been expelled from their motherhouse “On Grodek” and were staying with some other sisters at the time.

In 1947, Sr. Roszak and her fellow Dominican sisters returned to their motherhouse, where Sr. Roszak would serve as porter, organist and cantor over the years, and as prioress several times.

In 1984, Borkowska and the nuns who had been at her Vilnius convent were awarded the honor of “Righteous Among the Nations” by Yad Vashem, which recognizes non-Jews who risked their lives, freedom or positions to help Jewish people during the Holocaust.  ‘

At the age of 101, Sr. Roszak underwent hip and knee surgery but was still able to join in many of her usual activities, including joining her sisters for prayer and visiting sick sisters.

On March 25, 2018, Sr. Roszak celebrated her 110th birthday at her convent, where she was visited by Archbishop Marek Jedraszewski of Krakow.

She died on November 16, 2018.

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