Rome: The "Eternal City"

This is my blog for our Rome. I'm a little pressed for time right now since I'm leaving for a family vacation in a few minutes, but I did want to get pictures up - they're worth a thousand words, right? :-)

I'm hoping to do one more blog to wrap everything up - reflections, etc. Maybe in the next week or so. Until then, enjoy this blog's and the last blog's pictures!


St. Paul Outside the Walls, where St. Paul is buried!


Nuns venerating the chains which are believed to have held Paul in prison in Rome


Gladiator fighting in the Roman Colosseum!


This cross was erected to remember the Christian martyrs in the Colosseum. In 1749, Pope Benedict XIV declared the Colosseum (officially, the "Flavian Ampitheater") as a sacred site.


Group in front of the Colosseum


The Arch of Titus - built to commemorate Titus' sack of Jerusalem in 70 AD. We have come full circle! Titus used funds from the destruction of Jerusalem to build the Flavian Ampitheater (Colosseum).


The inscription on the top of the Pantheon - "M. Agrippa," which stands for Marcus Agrippa, who commissioned construction of the Pantheon.


The inside of the Pantheon with its recognizable hole at the top of the dome. Absolutely stunning!


Throwing coins over our shoulders into the Trevi Fountain to ensure our return to Rome!


Getting my caricature drawn! It ended up being a little scandalous in the end!


Some friends in front of the Fountain of Four Rivers in the Piazza Navona - the center of Rome nightlife. Get some gelato, relax in the Navona, stroll the streets - we were told that's a very "Roman" thing to do! So when in Rome...
We also got to see Bethany and Abby Wilson while we were in Rome! (on the right - Bethany is a college friend, not in our program)


Piazza Navona at night


Vatican Museum entrance


Laocoon statue - stunning. This figure inspired Michelangelo in his painting of the Sistine Chapel, which is located at the end of the Vatican Museums (you can't take pictures in the Sistine Chapel, but it was absolutely marvelous!).


The Map Room in the Vatican Museums


The dome of St. Peter's!


The canopy over the tomb of St. Peter - only the Pope can officiate Mass from this altar.


Jumping in St. Peter's square


A sign that explains the Christian fish symbol as an acrostic - "Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, Θεοῦ ͑Υιός, Σωτήρ" means "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior." Taking the first letter of each of those five words in Greek, we spell out "ichthys," the Greek word for fish. The ☧ symbol that you see on the right hand side of the sign is the "chi-rho" symbol. "Chi" (X) and "rho" (p) are the first two letters of the word "Christ" in Greek. If you superimpose a X (chi) on the p (rho), you form the chi-rho symbol. This symbol has been used massively throughout history as a symbol of Christianity. Constantine is said to have chosen the symbol after he won the Battle of Milvian Bridge in 312 AD, giving him control of Rome. (The Milvian Bridge was over the Tiber River, which flows through what is now the heart of Rome.) Pope John Paul II (who died in 2005) has one and only one symbol on his grave: the chi-rho.


Eating pasta as a group at a great restaurant (Pastini) just across from St. John in Lateran, the cathedral of the Church of Rome.


On our free day, we ran into Meredith Melby, another friend from school that is not in the program. But this was totally unplanned - in the middle of Rome! Crazy! God is so good. So seven of us took a day trip to Tivoli, about an hour outside of Rome, where we visited the Villa D'Este, a 16th century villa with hundreds of fountains and organized gardens. It was absolutely beautiful! And very relaxing and nice to get away from the all the heat and tourists in Rome. Whenever I travel, I love to see the surrounding countryside - and I'm always glad I do! The next 5 pictures are all from Villa D'Este.










This flower inspired the development of the Corinthian column!


We ended our free day by visiting the crypt of the Church of the Immaculate Conception in the Barberini area of Rome. The church is unique because they preserve all the bones of monks who have lived there/served the church. In fact, they've made chapels in the crypt area out of the bones of the monks! It creates an eerie atmosphere, as you might imagine. This and the next two pictures show how they use these bones! What do you think?!






Last night in Rome - the seniors say goodbye!


Peace.

Corinth, the "Company of Poseidon," and the Oracle of Delphi

Hello everyone! I'm so sorry for my lack of posts in the past week and a half. Athens got a little hectic, then we didn't have internet in Rome! I'm actually safely back home in West Des Moines now, but I am going to blog about my remaining experience, starting with the rest of Greece!

So, I left off in Athens!


We took a two-day trip to the Corinth area. Here we find the Temple of Apollo, unique for its one-piece columns (as opposed to multiple pieces comprising one column). One of the biggest cities in the ancient Greco-Roman world, Corinth contained approximately 150,000 people within 10 km (about 6 miles) of city walls. For a first century city, that's huge!


The city is also famous for the Erastus inscription, which is an inscription near the theater that reads "Erastus laid the pavement at his own expense for return of aedile." The aedile was essentially the public works director. This inscription not only establishes Erastus as the aedile of Corinth, but it verifies 2 Timothy 4:20, which mentions Erastus. Erastus was unique because in a position appointed directly by Caesar, his power could have led to corruption. Instead of taking advantage of the city, he becomes one of Paul's helpers, and in the inscription, we learn that he was actually a benefactor of the city.


Acrocorinth is the acropolis of Corinth - basically, the fortress on a hill protecting Corinth. From here we're looking through an opening in the fortress and down onto the valley opposite of the city of Corinth.


We spent the night in Nafplion, a city on the SE coast of the Peloponnese (the large peninsula to the W of Athens). While sitting at a cafe in Nafplion, watching the sunset and having some wonderful Greek desserts, lots of bikers rode by.


The next morning, we went up to a fortress overlooking Nafplion and got this view of the city jutting out into the water. The city is actually on the other side, along with the harbor. This is the side where a couple of friends and I had gone the night before to listen to the waves on the rocky shore.


The theater of Epidaurus, one of the best acoustical sites in all of Ancient Greece. You could hear the striking of a match from the very top, 45 rows up! The theater seats about 15,000 people. It was incredible! As a group, we sang the doxology and let our praises ring, imagining ourselves in company of the ancients!


On Friday (June 25), we had a free morning. A friend and I went down to this fruit and vegetable market in Athens and walked around a little. We decided to buy a watermelon from this guy - watermelon is very popular in Greece!


Waiting for the metro ride back to where we stayed, Bethel, about an hour outside Athens center.


That afternoon, we got to visit the Athens Archaeological Museum - incredible, as you might expect! My favorite part was learning about the development of statues throughout Ancient Greece. In this picture, we see from the Archaic Period a kouros (male) figure that was huge - 2 meters (about 6.5 feet)! Notable elements of these statues include the left foot forward, large eyes, and a big mouth with a "sly smile" (though you can't see the mouth well in this picture!). As statues developed, their eyes became smaller, ears more natural, and hair shorter. Moving into the Classical Period, sculptors emphasized more muscle definition, and the art of balancing the statue in a more realistic, human-like was developed. The next two pictures are most likely from the Classical period.


Young jockey (on top of a horse, out of the picture ) - motion, passion, realism!


A bronze statue from the Classical period. If you look closely, you can see that eyes were made from a different material.


After the Archaeological Museum on Friday, we made our way down to Cape Sounio, on the Southern tip of the mainland. We got to partake of the "company of Poseidon" (swimming - Poseidon is the sea god) for a couple of hours, then watch the sunset from the hill above the beach.


On the hill above the beach is the Temple of Poseidon. Standing among these ancient ruins, I witnessed one of the most awe-inspiring sunsets of my life! The Temple of Poseidon is appropriately placed right on the sea. The Ancient Greeks weren't illogical! Not at all.








The next day (my birthday!) we went to the ancient oracle of Delphi, where Apollo was believed to reside and give advice to anyone who asked the oracle a question. Here we see theater of Delphi in the foreground and the doric columns of the Temple of Apollo in the middle ground. The spot was considered sacred by people worldwide, so many civilizations would bring their treasures to Delphi - no one would dare plunder a holy place, irregardless of whose treasure it was! So we're left with many treasuries at Delphi.

The oracle was the place where Apollo would speak, and a woman called the "pythea" would voice mumblings, which a priest would then interpret as an answer to a question that someone would ask. The site was considered the "navel" or the "center" of the earth. We also made the parallel (as crazy as it sounds!) between Apollo and Jesus Christ. The only son of the chief god, Zeus, Apollo fought with a snake and won and could not stand anything impure; he was a god of purification. In essence, this cult of Apollo showed the desire of the Ancient Greeks to find the truth and the true God. Even Constantine, the Roman emperor who made Christianity the official religion of the state and issued the Edict of Milan in the early 4th cent. AD, was a devotee to Apollo. In fact, we see that Christianity developed as a type of syncretism between "pure" Jewish monotheism and Greek mythology - a "Greek religion with a Jewish accent." And at Delphi, the priests would interpret the words of God - how much has changed? The basic questions are still the same: what's in my future? Our desire to know and have a connection with the divine persists through millenia. Is this a triumph? I think it's more of a testament to our innate longing for the Lord, for a Savior, for a Rescuer.


The beach on the southern coast of Greece (Varkiza) where we spent the day relaxing and enjoying the company of Poseidon! We ended the day with dinner on the beach - octopus and a seafood pasta!


Our group at Bethel right before leaving for our flight to Rome (on Tuesday June 29).

As a camp and retreat center, Bethel is an important hub of the evangelical presence in Greece. With a 95% Greek Orthodox population and very few evangelical Christians, it is encouraging to see such a strong ministry like Bethel. Our tour guide, Voula, and her husband, Socrates, head up Hellenic Scripture Union, which is housed at Bethel, as well. Bethel also contains a home for the elderly, which provides a place for many elderly people to live where they won't be the target of snide and degrading remarks (being Protestants), and where they can be treated with dignity. We can praise God for the ways He works through Voula, Socrates, and the people at Bethel. Seeing the joy on their faces and in their hearts was an encouragement to me and the rest of our group. In fact, one of our professors, who is from Greece, grew up going to Bethel! So it was certainly an important place to stay in our trip. And what a blessing it was to travel through Greece with a tour guide like Voula who is passionate about the Gospel and the historical significance of the land.

Athens: First Impressions

In front of the Parthenon, the famous temple to Athena, after whom Athens is named. Literally breathtaking. The Parthenon is located on top of the Acropolis, the hill which literally means "edge of the city," or the citadel of the city. Is this the wrong country for that pose?!


The Temple of Hephaestus and Athena Ergane through a pomegranate vine. Best preserved temple in Athens!


Changing of the guard in front of the Greek Parliament - playing footsie?


Athens at night from the top of the building where we're staying in the suburbs. Gorgeous!

Off to Corinth tomorrow morning for a one-night, two-day trip! Back to Athens on Thursday night.