Ovid’s Metamorphoses was about the fascinating fictional tale of Rome’s founding. The book went through the world’s birth from chaos, the creation of humans, battles between gods and men, Romulus and Remis, and the death of Julius Caesar. It was a gripping tale of deplorable dissension and cunning bravery. The book painted a very vivid … More Ovid’s ‘Metamorphoses’: A Tale of Gross Misconduct
After Rome’s Imperial Crisis during the 3rd century, when emperors were repeatedly assassinated and deposed, the empire was weak by the 4th century. Diocletian implemented reforms in 284 AD to stabilize the Roman Empire, such as forming the tetrarchy, with two augusti (emperors) in the East and West and two caesars (vice-emperors). The caesars … More The Visigoth Invasion and Rome’s Destruction
A prior essay addressed the similarities between Christianity and Roman/Greek philosophy. This essay will focus on the differences and how Christianity represented an alienation from Roman ideals—stoicism, in particular. Where the Stoics and Christians agreed that fate/Godly providence would have its course on destiny (i.e., that a greater power governs our future), … More Ethical Dissensions Between Christianity and Ancient Rome
The church expanded after the reign of Emperor Constantine. It was an age when Greek literature was popular. But with the Canon of the Bible finished and pagan literature flourishing, an honorable question arose: What was the church’s view on pagan literature? Were Plato, Socrates, Livy, and all the other classics ignorable since the world … More The Church and Pagan Classics
Unbeknownst to most people, the monks did more than pray and read scripture in seclusion. Beneath the world’s eyes, the monasteries secretly held the world together after Rome collapsed. Through the Classical Period and into the Middle Ages, the monks’ contributions permeated Europe. This essay is about those contributions. Monasticism developed when zealous … More The Monks and Their European Contributions
Livy and Ovid were Roman historians who lived under the reign of Octavian Augustus. I use the word “historian” loosely, as Livy’s sections on how Rome was founded are dubious at best. Ovid is on another matter entirely. Regardless, they are still Roman classics, recommended under Dr. Gary North’s literature course, not Tom Wood’s history … More Livy and Ovid on Roman Optimism and Mass Bloodshed
The Christian condition worsened as Roman emperors escalated their persecutions. History remembered Nero and Domitian unfavorably as bloodthirsty tyrants, but their persecutions were dwarfed by Diocletian. For the first time in Roman history, he launched an empire-wide, proactive campaign to smite every Christian and run the religion into the ground. However, in some respects, the … More God’s Providence in Rome’s Emperors
Catiline launched his famous conspiracy in Rome to consolidate personal power. After losing the consulship to Cicero, he assembled an army to march on the Republic’s capital. In response, Cicero gave four orations to the Senate. All of them were masterful works of rhetoric. Through speech alone, Catiline was persuaded to leave Rome. He … More Cicero and the Power of Fear
Cicero was the most renowned orator in Rome. When Catiline launched a conspiracy to overthrow the Roman government, Cicero attacked him vehemently. His first speech against Catiline was before the Roman Senate in the Temple of Jupiter. It became one of his most famous orations, forcing Catiline to flee Rome. Dr. Gary North asked the … More A Defense For Catiline
Rome inherited the Greek’s polytheistic religion, but in the first century AD, a new religion emerged. Christianity took the world by storm. Eventually, it made the ancient Greek religion obsolete. Nero, Titus, and Domitian were a few of the emperors who persecuted the Christian Church because it undermined their gods. Eventually, Rome, Christianity’s biggest persecutor, … More Conflicting Religions: The Difference Between Christianity and Greek Religion
Asher Sisneros 