Rome Part 1

Alright everyone. It is way past due for some madness. We have literally been running around with our heads cut off since we landed. In the past 3 days I have seen more history than I have probably seen in my entire life. So I am going to try and do my best to give you the short and sweet, but like I said….Buckle Up!!!

The first day we got late after a long day of flying and died in our beds. The next morning we got up early and had lecture for a few hours. After our lecture time we went in the afternoon and saw the Milvian Bridge.

This bridge was the place where the epic battle between Constantine and his brother Maxentius took place in 312 AD. Constantine’s army approached from the north, just after Constantine had encountered his vision of Jesus and dedicated his army to the Lord. Maxentius made the foolish decision to cross the bridge and engage Constantine with his back against the river. Constantine’s army defeated Maxentius and entered triumphantly into the city. There is an arch right next to the Coliseum, which the Senate and the people of Rome dedicated to Constantine and his victories. On the archway it reads Instinctu Divinitatis, which means by the prompting of the divinity. Many people believe that this is a reference by Constantine to his military victories as a result of God’s sovereignty.

On the next day we toured the Coliseum. This was one of the heaviest things that I have ever witnessed. I climbed up on one side of the stairs and just sat there for a half hour in total silence.

It is hard to describe the experience. I tried to imagine all the death that took place. I tried to imagine myself as one of the ancient spectators, watching Christians eaten alive by wild beasts, watching innocent slaves being paraded into the arena as nameless gladiators. It was overwhelming just imagining all of the shocking history that took place in one location.

The structure itself was awe-inspiring. It is amazing to think that such an immense and intricate structure was built by people without any sort of technology that we possess today. The structure of the building was built by slaves and prisoners of war in 72-80 AD. It was built with brick, and overlaid with marble or plaster. During the dark ages much of the iron reinforcement in the columns was stolen and over half of the high wall of the structure has fallen due to earthquakes.

After the Coliseum we went on a church tour and saw some of the ancient churches of Rome. We saw some incredible churches, but the most astounding was that of St. John’s Basilica.

Many people think that St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican city is the official church of the Pope, however this Church is the place where the Pope actually has Papal authority. When he “speaks from the chair” in this church, everything he says is claimed to be infallible. The church itself was built by Constantine after he entered the city in 312. He went to this location, which was originally the location of Maxentius’ horse camp for war. He leveled the camp and had the Pope build a church there, dedicating it to St. John and to Christ. The church was rebuilt in 1600-1700 during the baroque era. The design and artwork is incredibly innate. They say that the walls and ceiling of the church are covered with beautiful artwork as a way of drawing people’s eyes heavenward as soon as they enter the church.

It is the catholic tradition that church apostles and saints can intercede for believers, and many of the Roman church are claimed to contain some of the original apostles bones underneath the alters. This church was claimed to contain the skulls of Paul and Peter. Along the walls of the church are all of the 12 apostles, with paintings of prophets above them and reliefs of biblical narratives.

The scenery of the church was absolutely breathtaking. Although I am not Catholic, there is much to the Catholic Church that is part of my history as a Christian. I was almost in tears coming out of this church. This is my roots! It was out of these places that history developed to give us the orthodoxy that we know and appreciate today. What a gift to witness these things. My favorite part of this church was the inscription above the door. The inscription reads CHRISTO SALVATORI, meaning to Christ our Savior.

If all that isn’t enough to blow your mind than I have one more thing to make you expire. Today we went and visited the ancient ruins of the Roman port city, Ostia Antica. The city was located where the Tiber River met the sea, and was a place of intensive commerce in the ancient period. Because of a great earthquake in 1557 that rerouted the Tiber, Ostia is now located inland a few miles. We got to spend the day roaming around the ancient cities ruins.

This was one of the most fun things that I have done since being here. We got to just explore an ancient city in ruins! A buddy and I found an old aqueduct and crawled through it on our hands and knees to the end where we found some undiscovered pottery in a cave. We pulled some of the pots out which were probably hundreds of years old. Unfortunately I don’t have pictures of them yet because they are on a friend’s computer. But I promise more to come!!

Anyways, sorry to overload you all with so much insanity. It has been such an amazing trip so far…and I have only been here for 3 days!!! More to come!