{"id":1314,"date":"2017-12-17T12:17:48","date_gmt":"2017-12-17T12:17:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/?p=1314"},"modified":"2017-12-17T12:17:48","modified_gmt":"2017-12-17T12:17:48","slug":"mass-tourism-x","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/2017\/12\/17\/mass-tourism-x\/","title":{"rendered":"Mass Tourism X"},"content":{"rendered":"

See introduction to Mass Tourism series\u00a0here<\/a>\u00a0for the motivation behind these essays<\/em><\/p>\n

The train to Regensburg was different\u2014an old \u201ccattle car\u201d model with too many people. It was amazing we got a seat let alone two in the first-class cabin.<\/p>\n

Disgorged at the Regensburg Hbf, we marched our way with the crowd of visitors to the town center in search of the entitlement City Pass that would provide free bus transportation. The swell of people explained why we could only get accommodations on the outskirts of town and the bus was our means there.<\/p>\n

Before schlepping to the hotel, we toured the Christmas markets and narrow cobblestone lanes of the medieval city\u2014the only one in Germany not bombed to smithereens during WWII. The terrifying St. Peter\u2019s Cathedral was one of those treasures preserved in all its antiquity, with stained glass windows some of the oldest in the world. Even older is the Domspatzen boys choir\u2014the oldest choir in the world started in 965 AD—whom we came to hear at the 10 AM Mass the next morning. The logistics of arriving via bus route did not appeal to us but what other choice did we have?<\/p>\n

We toured the Cathedral during the day and exited out the side door into a courtyard. Across the way was a hotel, one that Kimberly supposedly considered but was booked solid. As we walked by the front door, Kimberly wondered if they just happen to have a vacancy.<\/p>\n

Now this is classic Kimberly\u2019s faith at work. In my head, I\u2019m thinking, \u201cStick with the original plan, don\u2019t screw with it or we\u2019ll be out on the street.\u201d In her head, \u201cGod will provide\u201d On her suggestion to go in and inquire I relented—I recognized the pattern and somehow knew what was about to happen. Oh surprise, they had a vacant room available: double occupancy, on the quiet side near the cathedral. Indeed, when we checked into our very large room with 12-foot ceilings our entire view outside the window was eclipsed by the cathedral so close you could almost reach out and touch it. Kimberly was giddy: “God is good!”<\/p>\n

We went back out to the crowded Christmas markets to get the Knacker sandwich for which Regensburg was famous. Night settled, and we decided to wander back to our most convenient hotel passing the cathedral on the way.<\/p>\n

A young man working the front Domplatz gave us each a votive candle and invited us in to what was some sort of youth oriented Eucharistic adoration called Night Fever. Inside: On the central altar was a monstrance surrounded by kneeling people and candles on the steps. Young vocalists and a keyboardist stood next to one of the massive pillars to provide a ethereal, contemporary,l yet reverent musical atmosphere. At some point we approached and placed our candles on the steps, kneeling and pausing for a moment to pray, reflect, give thanks. To think that moments ago we were gawking American tourist interlopers; then as Catholics rightfully worshiping with our German brothers and sisters in an ancient Cathedral—the patrimony of all Christians should they come to the fullness of faith in the holy Mother Church.<\/p>\n

This sentiment continued the next morning where we got to Mass early \u2013 or at least we thought it was early. All seats in the nave not obstructed by a massive pillar were firmly occupied. Oddly, the seats on the transepts were mostly empty and so we took a couple with a clear view of the altar. Eventually it was standing room only and a moment of guilt perturbed my conscience as many had to stand the entire Mass while I sat comfortably in the heated pew of the transept. The guilt was short lived as I recalled how every week I stand for the entire and lengthier divine liturgy as is customary for the Eastern Catholics. It\u2019ll build character.<\/p>\n

I learned later why our seats were so available at first: we could only see a sliver of the choir which was positioned way behind the altar down the back-corridor part of the cathedral appropriately called \u201cthe choir\u201d. Nevertheless, our hearing was not at all impaired and with the first singing of the Kyrie I felt a shudder upon the beauty of such sound.<\/p>\n

Although it was Novus Ordo, the Credo was sung in Latin with the same neumes as at St. Catherine but alternating stanzas between choir and congregation. Sunlight beamed down from the pointed arch windows and the smoke of the incense during offertory could be seen to rise higher and higher into the limitless vault like\u00a0prayers of the saints rising up to heaven. The smells, the bells, and Kapelle of the Mass made it altogether awe inspiring. I must say that this Mass Tourism experience is ranked one of the highest and I thank Kimberly for supernaturally setting it up.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

See introduction to Mass Tourism series\u00a0here\u00a0for the motivation behind these essays The train to Regensburg was different\u2014an old \u201ccattle car\u201d model with too many people. It was amazing we got a seat let alone two in the first-class cabin. Disgorged at the Regensburg Hbf, we marched our way with the crowd of visitors to the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1314"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1314\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1315,"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1314\/revisions\/1315"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/accipite.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}