NEW: PC Student Hands Pope a Hat With Note Sending Love from Prov.

NEW: PC Student Hands Pope a Hat With Note Sending Love from Prov.

Providence College loves Pope Francis and the Pope now knows it. On Wednesday, Providence College junior Joe Day, who is spending the fall semester in Rome, managed to give Pope Francis a white zucchetto, or hat, during the morning’s Papal Audience meeting. The hat had a note inside that read, “Providence College loves Pope Francis.” Pope Francis took the hat, read the note, handed it back to Day after trying it on and remarked, “It’s too big!”

Due to his interaction with the Pope, Providence College dubbed yesterday “Hats off to Joe Day ’15.” Day, of Rehoboth, Massachusetts, is currently in Rome as part of the PC/CEA Rome Program, which allows students to go on site visits, participate in cultural experiences, and attend a monthly Academic Colloquia.

The Pope and PC

In April, Pope Francis made worldwide headlines when he hugged and kissed an 8-year-old Rhode Island boy named Dominic Gondreau in St. Peter’s Square following an Easter Mass. Interestingly, Dominic’s father, Paul, is a theology professor at Providence College.

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PC and Rome

Providence College / CEA Center for Theology & Religious Studies CEA Global Education has partnered with Providence College to offer the Center for Theology and Religious Studies at CEA’s Global Campus in Rome, Italy. The Center opens the door to semester-length study abroad opportunities to study theology and religion in the heart of Rome, a cultural and religious crossroads for today’s Roman Catholic Church.

Students attend classes at the recently restored Villa Ferretti (the location of CEA’s Global Campus) and significant sites in and near the Eternal City, including the Vatican Museums, St. Peter’s Basilica, and the Catacombs of San Callisto. Classes are taught by Global Campus faculty (including local experts and scholars), as well as a Providence College Faculty Resident Director.

Read more about PC in Rome: http://blogs.providence.edu/rome/