Fountains of Rome

One afternoon, I went on a tour walking the streets of Rome and visiting the different fountains and buildings.

This really had nothing to do with Biblical history, other than that fact that a lot of the fountains were commissioned by the Church to be made.

Honestly, Rome herself is a work of art.

Mamertine Prison

So, aside from the Colosseum, the 2nd biggest reason was because I wanted to see Mamertine Prison.

Said to be the place where both Peter and Paul were imprisoned (and the place where Paul wrote several New Testament letters), it was foremost in my mind. I'd hoped my tour guide would point it out, however, he was unable to—just the general area where it was located.

Not to worry, I thought. I'll find it tomorrow.

After my tour of the Vatican (posts to come!), I walked across Rome in hopes of finding this place. I didn't have cell phone service; I only had a map given to me by the hotel and a general area of where the prison might be.

However, it was not to be. All the tours I went on meant I'd been walking and standing for too long. I have some kind of undiagnosed foot problem where I can't stand/walk for too long without extreme pain... which I was already in.

Halfway there, I started having to stop and sit in shop windows and on benches, just to take pressure off my feet. Finally, I gave up and hailed a taxi, even though I knew it would be expensive. It was worth it to be able to walk around the prison, I thought. I paid 8 euro to go 1 mile. He dropped me in the area, because he didn't know the prison either. So I limped to a tourist booth, where they told me I needed to go back to where the taxi had dropped me and turn right (a quarter of a mile). After resting, I went back and turned right, and walked again, up a cobbled hill and down another. It was clear I was in a residential area. It started to rain. I went inside a Cathedral to rest my feet and sit for a few minutes, and the priest told me I couldn't be there—or even outside leaning against the wall. I had to leave the property, even though I could barely walk... and by now it was raining harder.

Finally, I walked back down the way I'd come and found an empty doorway in a busy area to rest my feet and wait out the rain. It was after 6pm, I was hungry, wet, discouraged, and in pain. Finally, I walked to a taxi stand and took a taxi back to my hotel, where I found a local restaurant and then went to my room. By the end of the night, I couldn't even stand and had to crawl to get anywhere in my room.

It was only then that I was finally able to google Mamertine prison (because I finally had wifi). It turns out I saw it the day before, while I was in the Roman Forum. I even have pictures of it. Basically, when the tourist information booth guy told me to go back and turn right, he should have said left.

(the prison is the white building on the right)

But it wouldn't have mattered, because the prison closed at 5pm, and it was around that time when I arrived.

And, after more research, I found out that it's highly unlikely that that particular building is the prison. Honestly, I didn't need google to tell me that. After speaking to so many people in the tourism industry in Rome who had no clue where the place was (and it is their job to know these things), it means that it isn't the legit place.

I still, however, am very disappointed in the priest who couldn't find the compassion to let a weary, wet traveller in pain find rest just for a few moments in his church. 

Palatine Hill

From the Roman Forum, we made our way to Palatine Hill.

In the center of the 7 hills of Rome, this is where Rome began. From the grounds, you can look down on the Roman Forum and the Colosseum, as well as see a hippodrome in another direction.

At this point, I was pretty tired and hungry, as it had been an incredible, but very long morning. Our tour guide dismissed us and I headed to the train station so I could eat lunch and get to my next tour in time.

A personal gymnasium for the palace

Statues of Rome

The statues of Rome are so beautiful they deserve their own post.

Formed with such grace and beauty, these statues from the Roman Forum caught my eye even more than all the ruins all around. Look at how the robes of these statues drape on their bodies, so much so that they are almost lifelike. 

I'm getting ahead of myself, but this bust of Athena from the Vatican (below) teaches us something very important—many (if not all) of the statues were painted. Check out her eyes. After spending a lifetime reading books and seeing movies about ancient Rome, suddenly I'm picture the statues in the gardens with new—color-filled—eyes. I wonder what vibrant beauty these "ladies" had back in their day?

He is Risen!

“He is not here; He is risen, just as He said. Come see the place where He lay.” Matthew 28:6

Have a wonderful Easter!


📷from the Garden Tomb, 2017 #bestdayever

The Roman Forum

After the Colosseum, we headed towards the Roman Forum.

Walking from the Colosseum, by the Arch of Constantine, and then up into the Roman Forum, at the foot of Palatine Hill....you can just imagine the triumphal parades from generals and their armies returning from war.

And then, almost suddenly, you are in the Roman Forum—the center of commerce, government, and life in the Roman Empire. The very heart of Rome.

Walking amongst the ruins, my tour guide explained many of the important buildings nearby (we didn't have time for them all). The pictures he painted of ancient Roman life were enthralling—suddenly, we could see Julius Caesar, Domitian, Nero, Titus, and so many others in my minds eye.

The Colosseum

My first priority for my trip to Rome was to see the Colosseum—of course! And it did not disappoint.

To say it was... colossal... is pretty redundant. It was so big, I kept having to back up to get it all in my viewfinder. And the truth is, this is only part of the Colosseum; it was actually much taller.

A plaque inside the Colosseum says that it was built by Titus and was funded by the spoils of war (which were the spoils from the war with the Jews) in the first century. The arch of Titus outside clearly shows images of Titus bringing back the spoils from Israel, including the Temple. (Edit on Feb 2020): see Amir Tsfarti's teaching from Behold Israel here for more reference)

this is my friend, Julius

The inside was just as impressive. From the second tier, you could see all the way around and across of the amphitheater, as well as down into the area below the partially reconstructed arena floor (the areas where the gladiators and the animals stayed). As my tour guide talked about the different types of "shows" that were here and described the customs of the day—from how the games were sponsored to some of the rituals, it was incredible to imagine what it had been like.

It was also very sobering. These games were games of death. Those fighting for their lives were prisoners fighting for their freedom (if it was possible at all). And for those who weren't fighting, who were being crucified or eaten by animals or some other horrible thing, endured the worst of nightmares in front of a yelling, taunting crowd.

I specifically asked my tour guide if he knew if Christians were martyred here, since I know they were in other arenas throughout the empire... and also the Nero liked to light his garden parties with their burning corpses. He said that to his knowledge, none were ever killed here, but I honestly am not sure I believed it.

We'll talk about this more in another post, but the Colosseum is just steps away from the Roman Forum (the center for commerce and governing of the day, as well as prisons) and Palatine Hill. It's too convenient for me, when we know that Christians were martyred here—and Peter and Paul were imprisoned here in the city—to think that this didn't happen. 

ROME

Okay, I'm going to change gears here just a little. As I mentioned in my first post, I love any and all kinds of history, especially when it comes to Israel and the Bible.

In fact, outside of actual Biblical history, my favorite time period is definitely the Roman Empire—which influenced and impacted the New Testament world in so many ways. You can clearly see Roman remains today in Israel, and of course, the Romans played a huge role in the Gospel story... since Jesus was crucified on a Roman cross.

Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to spend a few days in Rome. It was everything I'd hoped it would be and more. It completely ruined my feet (story to come), filled me with the most delicious food and entranced me with her beauty.

So for the next few weeks, I'm going to share stories of that trip here. But not to worry—more posts about Israel are still to come!

What an incredible trip!

I hope you enjoyed this journey with me to Jerusalem! It was fun for me to relive the trip and all that I learned. 

Israel is a beautiful country and I highly recommend visiting. I'd love to go back! In fact, I really hope I can someday. I saw so much, but there's still so much I didn't see (or even things I forgot). My trip might be over, but I want to keep learning as much as I can. Maybe one day I can even learn Hebrew!

The Isaiah Scroll

The final day of our trip was a free day. My friend and I went to a local shopping area, as well as to the Israel Museum to see the Isaiah scroll. 

It was so neat to see the oldest remaining whole Isaiah scroll—1000 years older than any others' previously found!

The museum also had a model of the Second Temple, which was pretty cool to see!

Via Dolorosa

The Via Dolorosa, or "Way of Suffering", is the traditional path believed to have been taken by Jesus to the cross in the Catholic faith.

Along the way are 14 stations where it's believed certain things happened as depicted in the Bible, like Simon of Cyrene picking up the cross, or where Jesus stopped and talked with Mary.

In addition to going to the Garden Tomb and seeing the possible location of Calvary nearby, we walked the Via Dolorosa to experience this as well. There were different churches along the way, and the road wound through a particularly crowded section of the city. We walked single file through a market in the narrow streets until we reached the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Included in this church were the locations where it is also believed Jesus was beaten, crucified, buried, and then rose again. It was dark, crowded, and difficult to see, and I personally didn't experience the same peace and confirmation as I felt in the Garden. In addition, there are some pretty valid arguments of this location being inside the city walls at the time. However, it was still beautiful to see this place of worship.

The View from the Mount of Olives

The view from the Mount of Olives is beautiful. From the top, you can see down into the Kidron Valley and back up into Jerusalem. We know that this is the road Jesus took when entering the city on a donkey on Palm Sunday. It's also a road lined with important landmarks, like old cemetery, where the first person buried was Absalom, David's son.

Walking down this road, I couldn't help thinking of Jesus and how He wept for Jerusalem as He entered that final time. And, I can't help but notice the sealed gate and the cemetery in front of it.

See, the Bible says that when Jesus returns to stand on this earth, He will first set foot on the Mount of Olives. He'll have to pass through both a cemetery (unclean for a Jew) and a sealed gate in order to get to the Temple Mount. 

Something tells me that won't be a problem.

The Jerusalem Cross

The Jerusalem cross is a beautiful symbol found throughout Israel.

Formed by one giant cross and then 4 smaller crosses in each "quadrant", it symbolized the good news of Jesus reaching all corners of the earth—north, south, east, and west.

This particular image is from a piece of pottery in the courtyard of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.