A Journey from La Trappe to Rome

Letter I

Departure from Lyons— Sickness at Colmar — Arrival at the monastery of Mount Olivet of Our Lady of La Trappe — Reflections — The prior and his brother— Their death— Fire at Mount Olivet— Trial of the incendiary— The influenza —Death of two monks. — Pages 1—8.

Letter II

Sickness aud sufferings — Leaves the monastery for Rome— Passes through Switzerland — Convalescence — Our Lady of Hermits' pilgrimage—Reflections on Switzerland— Letter to M. De la Mennais — Arrival at Paris. — Pages 9 — 15.

Letter III

Vincennes— Recollections— Arrest at Husum, in 1812 — Aix la Chapelle — Baron Despres des Coudrais — Admirable trait — Captivity — Change of prison — The Abee de Boulogne, Bishop of Troyes — Monsignore de Gregorio — Father Fontana — Abbate Pedicini — Entry of the Allies into Paris — Delivery.— Pages 15 — 23.

Letter IV

Church of Notre Dame de Lorette — The Madeleine — Obelisk of Luxor — Louis XVI. — Marie Antoinette — Expiatory monument — Triumphal arch — Versailles — National museum — Fieschi — French church of Chatel— St. Sulpice— St. Roch — St. Genevieve — Departure from Paris.— Pages 24-40. * CONTENTS.

Letter V

Journey to Lyons— Banks of the Saone— He Barbe— Faith and charity of the Lyonese— Fourvieres — First martyrs of Gaul — St. Blandina — Church of St. Irenæus. — Pages 41 — 49.

Letter VI

Departure from Lyons— Steamboat — Valence— Avignon — Porters, the pest of travellers —Chapel of Za Misericorde— Beautiful ivory crucifix — Picture and poetry by the good king Rene— Vaucluse— Laura- Petrarch — Pius VI. — La Glaciere. — Pages 50—59.

Letter XXIII

Congregation of Roman ladies— Hospital of Santo Spirito in Sassia Hospital of Santo Salvatore— Hospital of the Santa Trinita — Conservatorii for young women — Santa Maria in Aquiro — Hospital of Santo Spirito— Ospizio of St. Michael— Of St. Louis, for women without a home— Confraternity della Morte.— Pages 209—217.

Letter XXX

Departure from Rome. — Pages 265 — 267. ArrENDix. — Page 268. TO THE FRENCH CLERGY. Venerable Priests, I have already dedicated my Pilgrimage to Jerusalem to you : permit me now to introduce my Journey to Rome to the public under the patronage of your name. Your devoted attachment to the Holy See, and the tender affection of the Sovereign Pontiff for the Clergy of the Church of France, give you a double claim to this new homage of MARIE JOSEPH DE GERAMB, Abbot and Procurator- General of La Trappe. THE AUTHOR'S

Preface

. In the preface to a work, the author generally proposes to make known himself and his performance. I will not now speak of myself, as I have already done this in my " Pilgrimage to Jerusalem." Those who have read it already know by what means it has pleased God to lead me, the circumstance in which I have written, and the motives I have had in appearing before the public. I have then only to speak of this new work ; but what shall I say of it ? Had I undertaken it from a motive of vain glory, I might enumerate the praises so liberally bestowed on my "Pilgrimage;"1 and as this may be considered its sequel, I might hope to excite the same interest, and endeavour, thereby, to ensure for myself the same success. But, far from me be such pretensions! In my former work, I had two means of interesting my readers.

I had to describe places, with which the most sacred recollections will be for ever connected, and had to depict manners, which the hastiness or prejudices of travellers did not always permit them rightly to appreciate or faithfully portray. Thus, while I was able to interest some by the fidelity of my descriptions, I obtained the approbation of those who only seek in the Scripture the secret manna which the author's preface. X it contains, and see in Jerusalem nothing of the mysteries of which it was the theatre. A visit to Rome does not afford the same advantages. For pious readers, Rome is indeed the new Jerusalem : and I am persuaded that such will listen to me with pleasure when I speak of the Sovereign Pontiff; and that they will thank me for having raised my voice against the false imputations which have been devised by hatred, and propagated by indolence and curiosity.

But what shall I offer to supply the place of the varied scenes which the manners of the Arabs and the present state of Egypt afforded me ? Were I to describe ancient and modern Rome, I might thereby compensate myself, and satisfy the greatest number of my readers, by furnishing a still greater treat to their curiosity. Why then have I not done so ? Why have not I embellished this work with detailed descrip tions, instead of briefly noticing the magnificent monuments which my subject brought before me ? I proceed to give my answer; and this answer will unfold the object I have had in view, in the composition of the present work. The monuments of no country in the world have been better studied than those of Italy. Thousands of travellers visit it every year ; and many, if not most of them, favour us with the relation of their journey.

In these tourists we discover men who have made a pro found study of the fine arts : no fault, no beauty, escapes their observation; and we know not which most to admire, the variety of their acquirements, or the delicacy of their tastes. But when they come to speak of customs, morals, and religion, they are no longer the same men. To no purpose do they protest against the THE AUTHOR'S

PREFACE.

. XI imputation of partiality : it appears even in the precau tions which they take to guard against it. This cannot excite wonder. Those travellers are, for the most part, Lutherans or Calvinists, who have been brought up in ignorance and hate of our holy religion ; they look on Rome as a new Babylon, and accumulate on its Pontiffs insults which their better judgment must condemn. Profoundly afflicted at the outrages offered to Jesus Christ, in the person of his Vicar, I have proposed to embody in these letters some observations on the court of Rome, the spirit of the church, and the character of the Italians. I will say nothing that I have not my self witnessed ; nothing which I am not able to maintain by proof. I will esteem myself fortunate if, with out departing from that style which charity always employs, I succeed in eradicating some prejudices, correcting some errors, and establishing some truths. GERAMB, Abbot. TRANSLATOR'S

PREFACE.

. Motives similar to those which influenced the author in the composition of the following work, have induced the translator to present it to the public. He has taken the liberty of adding a few notes, almost entirely extracted from modern publications of merit on the same subject, with the view of illustrating the author's views, and occasionally elucidating points which he but slightly touched upon. The synoptical tables, found at the end of the volume, are also of this description ; and it is hoped that few readers will be displeased at an addition, which affords them minute and authentic details on a subject so little known as are the charitable institutions of Rome. While claiming the reader's indulgence for the many imperfections which he fears will be found in his performance, the translator feels himself bound to acknowledge his obligations to an amiable and gifted friend, for the poetical translations that occasionally relieve the dulness of his own prose.

Letter I. God Alone

Departure from Lyons — Sickness at Colmar — Arrival at the monastery of Mount Olivet of Our Lady of La Trappe— Reflections — The prior and his brother — Their death — Fire at Mount Olivet — Trial of the incendiary — The influenza — Death of two monks. Mont des Olives de Notre Dame de la Trappe, April 3d, 1837. When I returned, dear Charles, from my pilgrimage to Jerusalem, I was induced to publish an account of it, with the hope that it. might promote tlie greater glory of God. Having then no other view than to return to the solitude I had, for a while, quitted, I determined on leaving Lyons, where I had spent upwards of a year ; and, accordingly, directed my steps towards La Trappe. When I arrived in this province, which the Rhine sepa rates from Germany, and which, in the manners and language of its inhabitants, retains the impress of its subjec tion to a foreign power, I was only a few leagues distant from my monastery.

Already did I begin to congratulate myself on reaching the object of my desires, when I per ceived myself somewhat indisposed. Still I continued my journev ; but on coming to Colmar, I became seriously ill. God, whose justice exposed me to this trial, had, however, in his mercy, provided for me abundant consolation and support. In the worthy pastor of the place, I discovered an old friend. He received me with generous hospitality, and my pains were alleviated by the kindness and attention which he ceased not to exhibit to me. His assistant clergymen manifested the same spirit, and seemed to rival him in zeal. Such is the priest of Jesus Christ; his charity extends to all, and on all the wounds of humanity he is ever ready to pour a soothing and salutary unction. As soon as I thought myself able to continue my journey, I did so, despite the remonstrances of my physi cian and the pressing solicitations of my hosts.

I soon repented of this precipitation, for, on coming to Cernay, I was obliged to have recourse to the physician of the place. The remedy he applied was successful ; and on the same day, the 15th of September, I reached, with some difficulty, Mount Olivet. How sweet it is, on returning from a long pilgrimage, after so many incidents and dangers, to find one's-self again in the calm, the silence, and even the monotony of La Trappe ! I need not describe what I felt when, from Reiningen, I discovered the walls of this holy monastery, where I had suffered so much, and had been so happy. Shall I meet with all the religious that I left there ? Do those venerable men yet live — those angels, those models of perfection, who, even in their austerities, seem to regain their pristine vigour ? While putting this question to myself, I passed by the cemetery ; for our fathers had placed it at the entrance of the convent, that the image of death might conduct us to penance, and enable us to undergo its rigors.

I cast my eyes on the spot where, one day, I am to repose. In more than one place the earth had been recently disturbed. How many of my brethren have been laid there since my departure ? This agitation increases when I find myself before the couch, whereon I repose only for a few hours, even in the longest nights, and on which, however, I seek for sleep, whicli refuses itself to my wearied eyelids — when I take my place in the common refectory to partake of some vege tables only, seasoned with a little salt, and eat of bread which we bake but once in ten days. All this is very hard, you will tell me, and ought to cost nature much. My dear Charles, this is the language of the world : but the world, which censures the austerities of the religious life, knows not the sweetness by which they are accompanied.

How my heart beat — what was the impression I experienced when, in the middle of the first night, the bell called me to prayer ! The darkness of the cloister, illumined by the pale glimmer of a lamp — the heavy and measured steps of the religious, who advanced towards the church — the slow and profound salutations at the entrance of the sanctuary — those vaults which resound with the singing of the inspired canticles, and the sighs which interrupt the words of the royal penitent — all this penetrated my soul, and inundated it with a delight I had not enjoyed for a long time. If grace, which, doubtless, in this moment, spoke to my heart, does not always produce so powerful an effect, I must not, therefore, for get that I am a soldier of Jesus Christ, and that heaven suffers violence.

Permit me here to record the reflection which was made on this subject by another Trappist, who had, like me, served his prince and his country in the rude profession of arms, and ended his days in a monastery of Spain : " When I think," says he, " of the enter prises of the conquerors of America, of their passages from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, through the Isth mus of Panama, and of what they must have suffered in making their way, through trees and shrubs which had u JOURXEY TO ROME. intertwined since the creation — of what they must have endured in those desert vallies, under the excessive heat of an equatorial sun — and their sudden transition to the snow-covered mountains by which they were inclosed, and all this merely for the purpose of acquiring the treasures of the Indians — when I remember that all these efforts were for the sake of deceitful goods, and consider, on the other hand, that the hope of those who labour for God will not be disappointed, I am forced to exclaim, ' alas ! how little we do for heaven !'" This is true, my dear Charles ; but although I am persuaded of this truth, and am accustomed to make it the subject of my meditation, I still find that human nature is not entirely dead within me, and that it some times wishes to dispute the victory with God.

Shall I speak to you of the combat I had to sustain, when I was obliged to resume the observances of the convent ? What recollections, what images, what illusions did not then awake ! Grace inclined me to mortification and subjec tion ; and told me to regard myself as the last of my brethren, to give to God all the glory, and heap up trea sure only in heaven, where nothing perishes. Nature, on the other hand, having no other end in view than present gratification, was unwilling to be constrained or humbled — experienced difficulty in submitting to the rule — claimed certain exemptions ; and, reverting to the past, smiled, occasionally, at vain distinctions and transitory goods. Such were the sentiments which then divided my soul. In this perilous moment I besought of God to sus tain me by his grace ; for his grace will suffice, even were I to obtain nothing that nature covets.

Scarcely had I arrived at the monastery, when the Prior, accompanied by another religious, came to visit me. They both cast themselves at my feet, which they frequently kissed. " We kiss," said the holy Prior, as he rose, and made a profound inclination befort me, " we kiss the feet which have so lately traversed the land in which the Saviour of the world, the only begotten Son of God, dwelt for thirty-three years, and which he bedewed with his blood." This act of humility affected, although it did not surprise me ; for the Prior was one of the most venerable men I had ever seen. Alas, we were soon to lose him ! Full of days and of merits, he went, some months afterwards, to partake of the glory of the saints, whose example he had imitated on earth. This good father spent forty years in La Trappe : he had had a brother, who was a religious of the same monastery.

They were twins ; they came into the world together, and they never separated. They had been nourished with the same milk, they were taught by the same preceptors, and they imbibed the same prin ciples. Education, perfecting the work of nature, had developed in them the same inclinations. Obedient to the same inspiration, they had entered La Trappe at the same time ; had pronounced their solemn vows on the same day, and before the same altar, one beside the other ; and for more than thirty years, the choir never resounded with the chaunting of the religious, without bearing to the foot of heaven's throne their united accents. Death alone was able to separate them. Father Charles, brother of the Prior, was the first vic tim ; and the Prior, in the absence of the Abbot, in terred him. With what resignation did he render dust to dust ! — with what emotion did he pronounce the accustomed prayers !

Some tears, indeed, fell from his eyes, when the remains of one he so tenderly loved disappeared under the earth, which the religious shovelled on them ; but through those tears glistened the smile of hope. This good father, as prior, had the permission to converse occasionally with me. His greatest pleasure was to speak on death. His words penetrated my soul, for death, which, even for the most just, is always accompanied with something that affrights, was, however, for him nothing more than the end of his earthly course. He expected it, he desired it ; and this desire, anima ting all his actions, made him experience delight in his privations and joy in his sufferings. During his illness, he manifested an heroic patience ; and when his last hour approached, he received extreme unction, asked pardon for the bad example he might have given, and expressed his wish to die on the floor strewed with ashes.

There, tranquilly looking on death with the same eye that he had ever regarded it, and dying to himself, as he had been daily accustomed to do, he closed his eyes with holy joy, and gave back his soul to God, surrounded by the community on bended knees> who hesitated whether to pray for him, or invoke his memory. Some time before, a distressing event spread terror in the two monasteries of Mount Olivet. I say the two houses, for not far from our house is another, be longing to nuns of the same order. On Sunday, the 13th of November, while both communities were singing vespers in their respective churches, a violent fire broke out in the convent. We ran to the scene of conflagration, but notwithstanding our efforts — notwithstanding the exertions of the inhabitants of Reiningen <-** O and the environs, who flew to our relief, in the space of two hours the destructive element consumed the barn, the harvest which had been gathered in it, and the stables.

The flames, rising to the clouds, spread dismay far around, and, aided by the wind, enveloped the two monasteries, and menaced them with destruction. Judge what must have been the situation of the nuns. The confused voices of those who gave the aid of their assistance — the tolling of the bell — the action of the engines — the hissing of the water which overwhelmed the flames — the crash of the burning beams which fell — the falling of the walls — in a word, the tumult insepa rable from such circumstances, filled with terror those spouses of Jesus Christ — those timid doves, habituated to the silence of the sanctuary, which is rarely disturbed by any other sound than that of the aspirations, which hourly ascend from their innocent hearts. There was but one gate by which they could escape ; it was the principal entrance, a door which was only opened to receive those who came to dedicate themselves to penance or to admit the minister of God when he came to administer the last sacraments to the dying, or commit their remains to the earth.

The flames however pre cluded approach to this gate ; and there was reason to apprehend that the progress of the destructive element would prove fatal to these poor creatures, many of whom, being old and sickly, could only employ sighs and prayers for their delivery. These prayers were heard ; the wind lost its strength, the fire its activity — the con flagration was gradually subdued, and finally extinguished. One choir-sister, however, soon after fell a victim to the consequences of its destructive influence. Meanwhile, some of the peasants, who had come to our relief, perceived a young man flying through the fields, from the scene of destruction. They arrested and questioned him. He replied that he came from La Trappe, that he had passed there some hours, and that the fear of the fire had forced him to flee from it.

When on the point of being liberated, other peasants came up, who conceived it proper that he should be brought before the magistrate of the district. This functionary found nothing in his case that could warrant his detention ; still he thought that too much care could not be employed in the investigation of an accident, of which the cause was unknown. By a just judgment of God, he began to perceive some trouble in the countenance of the accused, and ordered, as a measure of precaution, until further information, that he should be imprisoned in Alkirch. Alas ! this young man had set fire to the convent ! He was born of Christian parents, and brought up in sentiments of piety. Wishing to become a Trappist monk, he had sought admission into our house, and had actually passed eight months in the noviceship, from which he was dismissed, as he not had manifested the necessary qualifications for a religious life.

Could we have thought that pride would have hurried him to the commission of so great a crime, did we not know that this vice has, on more than one occasion, concealed itself under the cloak of religion, and that it has enkindled flames which yet endure, and which, probably, never will be extinguished ? Judicial inquiries were made into the causes of this serious conflagration, and the Abbot was cited before the Assize Court of Colmar. He went there, accompanied by two monks. On his return he brought with him that singular malady, called the influenza,* which then ravaged Alsace. In the space of three days, thirty of the community were attacked with it. Two of them died, one on entering the infirmary ; the other, who had charge of the clothes, while in the church in the act of supplicating God.

Adieu, my dear Charles, I renew the assurance of the tender and inviolable sentiments, which you know I have so long felt for you, and which attach my soul to yours. * La grippe.

Letter II

Sickness and sufferings — Leaves the monastery for Rome — Passes through Switzerland— Convalescence— Our Lady of Hermits, pilgrimage—Reflections on Switzerland— Letter to M. de la Mennais — Arrival at Paris. Paris, nth of July, 1837. I have been suffering all the year, my dear Charles : to my ordinary distempers was united the present general malady.* Since my detention in the Tower of Vincennes, where I only heard the unbolting of doors and the steps of jailors, I am easily affected by the least sound, and I have found myself unequal to the austerities of La Trappe. By a particular disposition of Providence, who, doubtless, wished to increase my difficulties and my merits, the cell which I occupied in the intervals between the various duties of the house, was exposed to all the noise that was heard in the community.

At my right, was the brother-shoemaker, whose hammer seemed his most favourite tool ; on my left, the carpenter's saw was always in operation ; and above me was the Abbot's cell, which seemed never vacant. Add to this two mastiff dogs, who never ceased to bark, and you will have an idea of my situation and sufferings. Do not, however, be scandalized. I do not complain. I only ask of God to give me patience, as I know that these light and tran sient inconveniences may obtain for me a great degree of glory. On returning from my long pilgrimage, I proposed to go to Rome, to pray at the tomb of St. Peter, and kiss the feet of his successor. Many circumstances hitherto prevented me. The sovereign pontiff being informed of my design, condescended to extend to me his pastoral * The Influenza. b3 solicitude, and permitted me to visit Rome.

I have again left my monastery, and directed my steps to Swit zerland, where some affairs called me. I was so reduced at the time of my departure, that those who had not seen me for a year, could scarcely recognise me ; but when I arrived in that country, when I had inhaled the perfume of the salubrious herbage, with which it abounds, I began to revive. My health was soon re-established. I con tented myself at first with a walk in the verdant valleys, where the shepherds and their flocks afforded me matter for amusement and reflection ; but soon, becoming more invigorated, I passed lakes, climbed up mountains, tra versed different localities, and approached the elevated cascade, the snow-capped rock, and the eternal glacier. I was particularly gratified in visiting the celebrated chapel of our Lady of Hermits, where multitudes of Christians from different quarters succeed each other uninterruptedly, and press round the altar of the Ma donna.

For all that seek her holy shrine, The weak of frame, the sad of heart, She hath a solace ; none depart Unsoothed, uncheered; a smile divine For ever seems to tell the band Of pilgrims meek, who round her stand, How prompt her will to succour all Who on her name in sorrow call. Ah ! think how few beneath the sun, Need no repose from grief or care — No resting-time, to breath a prayer For days mispent, or victories won. How many tears in silence shed Have dewed the sacred ground we tread — How many hearts, by anguish riven, Unknown to men, beloved by heaven, Have bowed them in this holy cell, Then murmur not, " it is not well." — From the most distant parts of Alsace and Lorraine, numerous pilgrims arrive each year at our Lady of Her mits. They are, for the most part, poor matrons, or young girls, who come to ask or thank Mary — those for the preservation of a sick child — these for the recovery of an aged parent.

They may be seen silently marching in companies, occasionally barefooted, always with the beads in their hands. A piece of brown bread is gene rally their only food, and the water of the clear fountains, which they meet on their route, suffices to quench their thirst. Follow them to the foot of the altar : who would not be touched by the vivacity of their faith ! who would not desire to partake of their consolations ! All that is bold, grand, and sublime — all that can in spire admiration, fear, and terror — whatever Providence has impressed on his works of the graceful, the sombre, and the touching character — in a word, whatever nature, in its immensity, affords of regular or romantic, smiling or sad, pastoral or terrific scenery, all seem to be united in Switzerland. It is an epitome of the whole earth.

With the exception of volcanic and sea-scenery, there is no kind of natural beauty which the eye beholds not in it. Its broad lakes sometimes even present maritime views, especially when slight tempests disturb the usual placid tranquillity of their waters. This made an inge nious observer say that the ocean had sent its miniature portrait to Switzerland. In Switzerland, more than elsewhere, the Christian traveller should participate in the enthusiasm of Daniel, and sing with him : " Works of the Lord, bless the Creator ; praise and exalt him for ever. " Ye Heavens, bless the Lord. " Ye Stars of Heaven, bless the Lord. " Rain and dew, winter and hoar-frosts, snow and ice, lightnings and clouds, mountains and hills, herbs and plants, which germinate in the earth, springs and fountains, bless ye the Lord, praise and exalt him for ever."

Time, indeed, leaves no impression of its transit on external nature in Switzerland ; but the manners of its inhabitants, heretofore so renowned for their sweetness, their fidelity, their attachment to old customs, have felt its touch. Alas ! all is changed, even their national cos tume : that costume which was so becoming, so varied and so picturesque, that strangers never observed it without admiration. Now may be seen young peasant girls, dressed a la Fran^aise, humming some new air, while they lazily walk behind their hay-carts. But what most afflicted me, and most poignantly wounded my soul, was to see the Catholic religion obstructed in its worship, persecuted in its ministers, and even insulted in the person of the re presentative of the Head of the Church. I have seen poor Catholics persecuted by the clamours of prejudice, and the invectives of calumny, for no other crime than that of asserting rights which had been legitimately acquired for them, and which ages of possession had guaranteed to them.

I have seen the followers of Calvin take possession of ancient monasteries, profane those sacred asylums of piety, seize on their property, and entrust to greedy and ignorant administrators the precious fruits of taste, of labour, and of economy. Finally, I have seen the troops which had been raised for the main tenance of order and the defence of the country, march against the peaceful inhabitants of a city, whose only guilt consisted in attachment to the religion of their fathers, and, regardless of the most solemn treaties, raise against them the swords which ought to have protected them. And all this took place in the nineteenth century — the age of illumination and of progress — upon the classic soil of liberty, in the abused name of liberty itself, and under the specious pretext of accelerating the happiness of the people, and of conducting them to a new age of imaginary light, but of real barbarism.