One good reason to thank God the Church is not a democracy

ONE of the many interesting churches which you will find in Rome is that of Domine Quo Vadis (Latin for ‘Lord, where are you going?’).

It’s on the ancient military road, the Appian Way, near the Catacombs. Inside are two footprints where Jesus once stood, supposedly - recalling a story cherished in Church tradition but not found in the Acts of the Apostles: St Peter, now an old man, is fleeing Rome and persecution. He meets Jesus. “Where are you going, Lord?” he asks. “I’m returning to Rome to be crucified” is the response. This reminds Peter of the day he got upset when the Lord asked him three times if he loved him - three times, it seemed, to overcome his three earlier denials in the courtyard of the High Priest’s house.

Christ had made a prediction: “When you were young, you would gird your own belt and you walked where you liked. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will put a rope around you and take you where you would rather not go.”