The Obelisk

THE 85-FOOT-TALL EGYPTIAN OBELISK IN ST. PETER'S SQUARE IN ROME RECALLS THE MARTYRDOM OF MANY EARLY CHRISTIANS.  
More than 2,000 years later,  many Christians are still being persecuted and massacred  in Iraq, Syria, Africa, migrant Christians thrown overboard off the coast of Sicily, and the latest that of 31 Ethiopian Christians beheaded by ISIS on the beach of Libya.
The solid granite obelisk marks the center of a grand arena built in 37 AD by the Roman emperor Caligula.  Later, emperors introduced the execution of Christians as a form of entertainment there and St. Peter was among those martyred in the arena.  

In 1586, to mark the place where many early Christians shed their blood, Pope Sixtus V ordered that the same obelisk Caligula brought to Rome from Egypt be erected in the square.  It took 900 men and 140 horses working 44 winches to move and hoist it into place.  Because of the difficult nature of the task, Pope Sixtus forbade onlookers from making any noise as the obelisk was being pulled upright; those who failed to comply would face the death penalty.  One of the onlookers that day was Captain Benedetto Bresca, an experienced northern Italian seafarer.  He saw the hemp ropes supporting the obelisk giving way from the excessive strain.  Defying the pope's orders for absolute silence, Bresca shouted out in his Ligurian dialect, "Aiga ae corde," (water on the ropes) - to make them shrink, become stronger and keep them from fraying and snapping.  The workers did as they heard and the obelisk did not come crashing to the ground and remained in its upright position to this day.  
Bresca was arrested on the spot but was immediately pardoned by Pope Sixtus.

In commemoration of the martyrdom, Palm Sunday at the Vatican begins with a procession of young people carrying olive branches and large green palm fronds, followed by the clergy holding tall, intricately woven palm leaves.  The participants circle the base of the obelisk, while the pope blesses them with holy water.

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Published  4/3/10  altgroup multiply
Web Page:  Easter The Joy Of (Animation)