An (not very in-depth) interview with Charleston seminarian Jeff Kirby, who gave us our tour of St. Peter’s this past spring.

Q. Do you live in Vatican City – or in Rome, which surrounds it?

A. Actually in Vatican City, on the Janiculum Hill, the hill next to what was Vatican Hill. The Republic of Italy built a highway that separates us from the rest of Vatican City: When you walk into St. Peter’s Square, look to the left and you’ll see a high building with a hill. We’re next to that. We’re sort of like a Vatican colony.

Q. Is Vatican City much different from Rome?

A. It is. The Holy See – the official name for the government of Vatican City – is adamant about this distinction. Before you enter St. Peter’s Square, you see a series of markers and barricades. That’s the international boundary. This is to stress that the church’s teachings, and the See, are not based on any form of government but rather the teachings of the Catholic Church. Besides our own euro and stamps, the Vatican has its own helipad, its own train station and its own local government. The Vatican exchanges its own ambassadors and has a permanent ambassador at the United Nations, which it could join as a sovereign state if it wishes.

It is the smallest sovereign state in the world; you could fit eight Vatican Cities into New York’s Central Park.