Father Laurence

Today we ran into Father Laurence, a priest and our friend. We have a long history with this man. We probably first saw him ten years ago. He used to eat lunch every day at a favorite local trattoria. We would go in there, see the priest, nod a hello and go on with our meal, never actually speaking. After a few years, the trattoria changed hands and cook, so we stopped going, as did Father Laurence.

One day, two years ago, we were having a coffee in a local bar and there was the priest. We introduced ourselves, finally, and started talking. He is from England and entered a monastery when he was about 17 years old. He's well into middle age now. He came to Rome and began teaching at The Venerable English College, a seminary in Rome for the formation of priests for the dioceses of England and Wales. The seminary was founded in 1579 and is located on the site of an old Hospice of St. Thomas which was founded in 1362. This makes The English College the oldest English institution outside England.

Last spring, just as we were about to leave and return to Ohio, we talked with Father Laurence and he told us he'd been diagnosed with terminal cancer and had been told he only had a short time to live. It was such sad news. We'd come to like him so much. We parted that day, sadly, thinking we would never see him again. He told us that he would probably be returning to his home in England during the final days of his illness. Through the summer I often thought of him, wondering how he was doing. But, alas, we had no way of knowing.

But then this year, there he was, walking down the street, carrying out his duties as before. He said he'd been feeling well and was hopeful for his diagnosis.

We see him every month or so, in the piazza or on a street. We always stop and chat. He has a wonderful way of speaking, very British, very deliberate and always interesting and charming.

Today he asked about Pope Benedict's visit to the U.S. He said he liked him very much. He told us the Pope is an introverted man, a brilliant scholar, and an accomplished pianist with a preference for Mozart. Father Laurence is also a pianist and he once performed a concert with the, then, Cardinal Ratzinger. When Ratzinger was elected Pope, Father Laurence was there. As the Pope passed by he suddenly recognized Father Laurence and said, "we played the piano once together." Father Laurence said, "yes, we did." Well, the Pope said, "come, let's play" and took Father Laurence into a beautiful chamber with a lovely piano and the two proceeded to play together.

We thought that was such a great story. We wonder about who Father Laurence really is. Why, for example, was he there when the Pope was elected? We are curious, but respect his humility. Today is gave us his mailing address so we can write him from Ohio.

I regret that we hesitated for so many years before speaking to this man of gentle spirit and easy humor. He's a special person and we are privileged to call him our friend.