The Italian People

One of the most incredible things about Italy are the people there. They are arguably the most passionate, loving, accepting, kind, genuine, hospitable, and just down right amazing people on the planet. When I was in Italy, I was doing ministry on a college campus, Universita Degli Studi di Salerno, and the love those students had for people and their passion for everything were absolutely amazing to see. I feel in love with the Italian people. That is the main reason why I love it there so much. It was not uncommon, while we were there, for a group of us to be invited over to a student's house for dinner with his or her family. Now that may not seem like a big deal, but to Italians, it is a huge deal. They cook so much food (sometimes as many as 7 courses!) and they serve it to you as if you were a king. What a treat too! They make the best food in the world and when they serve you they are so hospitable. They just love people. They love doing this for friends (even ones they just met) because food is a huge part of the Italian culture. It is not uncommon for dinner to last 2 or 3 hours. They just love eating and they love being with each other during this time.

I remember when I was there, we had a friend, Gianluca Durante, who was one of the coolest people I have ever met. He invited our whole group of 18 people back to his apartment for dinner. 18 people!!! Not all of us went but most of us did, probably around 15 or so decided to go. Gianluca lives by himself in his apartment with his AWESOME dog Seth (which is pronounced "Set" because 'h' is silent in Italian, which I thought was awesome. We name our dogs Italian names like Massimo and they name their dogs American names like Seth. haha anyway). He personally cooked an enormous bowl of salad (or "l'insalata"), a huge bowl of pasta (or "pasta" haha), a ton of meat which if I remember correctly was some type of sausage, and a dessert. He made enough of each for all of us to have plenty!! It was unbelievable! That is just how the Italian people are though. They are passionate about people. They love people. They love meeting and getting to know new people. That is just how they are.

Now I pose a question to you....what would happen in that country if that passion and that love for people was used to glorify and bring people to Christ?? What would happen in that country? I am almost afraid to find out because I think some people would spontaneously combust or something. But man, how awesome would that be? Christ would erupt like a nuclear bomb in Italy and then throughout Europe. If only they knew the freedom and joy and fullness that comes from Him, they would no doubt tell everyone they knew about his amazing, saving grace. People would start loving people to show Christ's love. Their passion would be focused on those people for the sake of the Gospel. If they would do everything they do now for the sake of the Gospel, Jesus would be everywhere in Italy. Let me give you an example of this passion.

Multiple times on our trip, we would be talking with students about the Gospel (which, by the way, they LOVE hearing what we believe and they will sit and talk to you as long as they possibly can because they are so interested in it. They are amazed by the fact that young people like us went to Church and worshiped and loved Christ because in Italy, the view of Christianity is, "its for old people like my grandparents." That is the effect the Catholic Church [now I'm not bashing Catholicism here, but in Italy, the Catholic Church is very different than in the United States. It is very closed off to youth] has had on that country.) and they would talk with us and some would eventually accept Christ into their hearts. Now usually in America, we would talk about it with people who are also believers and begin to grow. In Italy, these students went straight home and told their entire family how amazing Jesus is and what salvation his grace brings. They told their whole families!!!! Hearing about that while I was over there was such an incredible experience because it just completely altered my perception of boldness. I have been following Christ since I was in 11th grade, like 2003, and I have yet to do anything like that. It scares the crap out of me because in America, the subject causes huge rifts in relationships if taken negatively. But in Italy, they are just excited and loving and passionate and they just want everybody to know, and its okay to talk about.

That is why the harvest is so ripe in Italy. That is why the Gospel is spreading through Salerno as we speak. Christ is making Himself known there. He is using the culture and people to spread his Good News through the country.

I'm reminded of this parable from Jesus.

Matthew 13:1-9. "The Parable of the Sower"
1 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. 2 And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. 3 And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears, let him hear.”

Now I leave you with this thought, what kind of soil do you think Italy has?