Cardinal James M. Harvey enjoys gelato on his 74th birthday in 2023 with Rome pilgrims Randy and Deanna Tritz of Immaculate Conception (St. Mary), Burlington, at the cafeteria at St. Paul Outside the Walls, the basilica he heads there. (Photo courtesy of Deanna Page Tritz)

Cardinal James M. Harvey has lived in Italy for 45 years but retains a big place in his heart from Milwaukee, so we couldn’t resist getting his take on a few differences.

Walking is a way that you spend time relaxing. What is the walking situation in Rome?

They have a public park right next door to St. Paul’s Outside the Walls. There’s a lot of space there. (In Milwaukee) I would stay at the archbishop’s house, so I would regularly walk along the lake.

The archbishop’s house is not far from Lake Michigan on the grounds of Saint Francis de Sales Seminary, which is now closed for construction.

Custard vs. gelato?

You’re going to get me in trouble there. I do think frozen custard is home, so …

American football versus fútbol/soccer?

(Football/soccer) it’s more like their national religion. (Americans) have a greater kind of variety of different sports that people get involved in. People (in Italy) identify themselves with a team that they like.

Cardinal Harvey was a teenager during the Vince Lombardi Packers dynasty of the 1960s, and said he was a big fan of the team at the time.

What about the weather?

(In Rome) we have the Mediterranean currents, so that kind of moderates the temperature considerably. It’s much milder. Our winters, we don’t have nearly the severe weather.

Brats vs. pasta?

That’s a tough one. I’m very much used to eating pasta. Twice a year, we have all the Wisconsin guys — Wisconsin seminarians and young priests (studying in Rome) — and we have a fish fry. This past year, we broke the tradition and had a brat fry. I certainly appreciated it.

Is cheese a big deal in Italy?

Very much so. We have different types of cheddar here. They have a whole different, wider variety of cheeses, and when they see yellow or orange cheese, they think there is something wrong with it.

Italian cheese is mostly white.