We honeymooned in Rome and there's never been an overseas trip like it for me. I still ache for Florence and Venice, but I'm glad my first stop in Italy was Rome. It was there I began to fully understand that ancient confrontation between culture, politics and Christianity.
Memories of our stay came rushing back when I saw ABC News' online story of the Lupercale, the grotto where Rome was founded. Archaelogists believe they have found the site, which is buried 52 feet inside Palantine Hill. The grotto is where Romans believed Romulus -- Rome's founder -- and Remus, his twin brother, were cared for by a wolf.
When Oscar and I were in Rome, we woke up mornings with an open hotel window and an unexpected view of Palatine Hill. We walked in the heat through the Roman Forum. We stared open-mouthed when we entered the Coliseum and listened to our Greek tour guide describe Italy's treasure. We walked the halls of the Vatican and observed the devotion of the faithful.
But what took us unawares was how in Rome, you stumble across history at every moment. Ruins and digs became as familiar as walking past a neighborhood Starbucks. Bits of history carved into pillars or chunks of rock or roadway signs forced me to view Rome through the Roman citizen, Paul. (Check out ChristianAnswers.Net's bio of Paul.) Now the book of Romans and its sophisticated pattern of apologetics make more sense because I have seen something of Rome.
And when I view the digital renderings of the city by the Rome Reborn project, my perspective deepens about what a massive call Paul had. God used him to speak truth to an empire.
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