Archbishop Sample on Facebook today October 30th.
I am just heartbroken this morning in Rome. Another earthquake has struck central Italy. Reports are that it was 6.6. I was awakened in Rome by the tremor that was felt even here. The chandelier in my room was swaying. But this is nothing compared to the destruction in Norcia. The Basilica of St. Benedict has collapsed. I was just there a few short days ago, and although badly damaged, it was still standing. Please pray for the monks of Norcia and all this affected by these earthquakes.
US archbishop, pilgrims were celebrating Mass in Norcia when earthquakes struck
US Archbishop Alexander K. Sample was preparing to celebrate
Mass with Benedictine monks in Norcia on 26th October when the first of
two powerful earthquakes struck.“I had no sooner finished (the vesting) prayer to be protected from the assaults of Satan when bang: It just hit and it hit with a vengeance. It didn’t last very long, but it really shook the building we were in,” Archbishop Sample of Portland, Oregon, told Catholic News Service.
No casualties were reported from the quakes. According to the US Geological Survey, an earthquake measuring 5.5 struck shortly after 7pm local time and a 6.1 magnitude quake followed two hours later. Both were centred in Italy’s Marche region, not far from Norcia.
Archbishop Sample and other Portland pilgrims were visiting Norcia, the birthplace of St Benedict, during a trip to Italy for the fifth annual Populus Summorum Pontificum pilgrimage, an international gathering for Catholics devoted to the extraordinary form of the Mass.
Picture: The Archbishop of Portland, Oregon, Alexander K. Sample, poses with Benedictine monks after celebrating Mass at the San Benedetto in Monte monastery overlooking the town of Norcia, Italy, on 27th October. Archbishop Sample said he was preparing to celebrate Mass when an earthquake struck in Norcia on 26th October. (CNS photo/courtesy Populus Summorum Pontificum).
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