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Gay marriage and homosexuality were part of the moral landscape faced by the first Christians in Ancient Rome.Given that the gay marriage agenda will be increasingly pressed upon Catholics by the state, we should be much more aware of what history has to teach us about gay marriage—given that we don’t want to be among those who, ignorant of history, blithely condemned themselves to repeat it. Contrary to the popular view—both among proponents and opponents—gay marriage is not a new issue. It cannot be couched (by proponents) as a seamless advance on the civil rights movement, nor should it be...

In the middle of Rome's trendiest neighborhood, surrounded by sushi restaurants and nightclubs with names like Rodeo Steakhouse and Love Story, sits the ancient world's biggest garbage dump--a 150-foot-tall mountain of discarded Roman amphorae, the shipping drums of the ancient world. It takes about 20 minutes to walk around Monte Testaccio, from the Latin testa and Italian cocci, both meaning "potsherd." But despite its size--almost a mile in circumference--it's easy to walk by and not really notice unless you are headed for some excellent pizza at Velavevodetto, a restaurant literally stuck into the mountain's side. Most local residents don't know...

The story is familiar by now. Nine years ago, a young football coach at Penn State walked into the locker room and heard odd noises from the showers. He peeked in, and claims to have seen a young boy with his hands placed on the walls, and a retired coach, Jerry Sandusky, embracing him from behind.  He reported this to his superiors, and, after a perfunctory investigation, they let the matter drop. Other young men now claim that Sandusky recruited them through his charity, The Second Mile, and seduced them or pressured them into sexual activity.
Sandusky maintains that he is...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TivVcfSBVSM

The Illinois Department of Revenue has substituted the whim of a bureaucrat for the written law, in commencing a groundless project to strip non-profit status from Illinois hospitals.... Watch as we travel from Ancient Rome to modern-day Springfield, Illinois... Roman life in the 5th century B.C. was pretty good, relatively speaking. Roman society had freed itself from the tyranny of Etruscan kings; the people had representation in the Council of the Plebs, and the nation was at peace. And a merchant class was rising from the fields; no longer was the society entirely made up of farmers, soldiers, and rulers....

Like so many “lost” civilizations, her rollercoaster ride history is hard for politically-correct elites to process. But why ignore or edit her lessons? One clue: Professor Anthony Esolen of Providence College says, “In some ways ancient Rome, especially during the centuries of the Republic, was as politically incorrect a place as you can imagine.” To Christians, Rome strengthened the church through persecution. That said, not all Romans were bloodthirsty tyrants, and Christians and Jews weren’t always at odds with warring imperialists. Table-turning Christ (no pacifist) openly applauded the Centurion. In the Bible, “righteous pagans” (even turnaround prostitutes) were given credit,...

LONDON, (CAIS) -- Almost 2,000 years ago, 19 Roman soldiers rushed into a cramped underground tunnel, sent to defend the Roman-occupied Syrian city of Dura-Europos from an army of Persians digging to undermine the city's mudbrick walls. But instead of Persian soldiers, the Romans met with a wall of noxious black smoke that turned to acid in their lungs. Their crystal-pummelled swords were no match for this weapon; the Romans choked and died in moments, many with their last pay of coins still slung in purses on their belts. Nearby, a Persian soldier — perhaps the one who started the...

Ultra millionaire sponsorship deals such as those signed by sprinter Usain Bolt, motorcycle racer Valentino Rossi and tennis player Maria Sharapova, are just peanuts compared to the personal fortune amassed by a second century A.D. Roman racer, according to an estimate published in the historical magazine Lapham's Quarterly.According to Peter Struck, associate professor of classical studies at the University of Pennsylvania, an illiterate charioteer named Gaius Appuleius Diocles earned “the staggering sum" of 35,863,120 sesterces (ancient Roman coins) in prize money.Recorded in a monumental inscription erected in 146 A.D., the figure eclipses the fortunes of all modern sport stars,...

The Jewish people, according to archaeologists, originated in Babylon and Persia between the 4th and 6th centuries BC. The modern-day Jews most closely related to that original population are those in Iran, Iraq and Syria, whose closest non-Jewish relatives are the Druze, Bedouins and Palestinians, the study found. Sometime in that period, the Middle Eastern and European Jews diverged and the European branch began actively proselytizing for converts. At the height of the Roman Empire, about 10% of the empire's population was Jewish, although the bulk of them were converts. Some Khazars were also incorporated during this period. "That explains...

For centuries many of the world's distinguished philosophers have assaulted Christianity as being irrational, superstitious and absurd. Many have chosen simply to ignore the central issue of the resurrection. Others have tried to explain it away through various theories. But the historical evidence just can't be discounted. A student at the University of Uruguay said to me. "Professor McDowell, why can't you refute Christianity?" "For a very simple reason," I answered. "I am not able to explain away an event in history--the resurrection of Jesus Christ." After more than 700 hours of studying this subject, I have come to the...

Dating from 211 BC and found near the Leicestershire village of Hallaton, the coin was uncovered with 5,000 other coins, a helmet and a decorated bowl. Unearthed in 2000 by a metal detectorist, staff at the nearby Harborough Museum have only just realised its significance. One side of the coin depicts the goddess Roma wearing her characteristic helmet while mythical twins Castor and Pollux sit astride galloping horses on the reverse. David Sprason, Leicestershire County Council cabinet member for communities and well-being said: 'Leicestershire boasts the largest number of Iron Age coins ever professionally excavated in Britain. 'To also have...

Bones in togas puzzle Vatican archaeologists By Nick Pisa in Rome (Filed: 21/05/2006) Archaeologists exploring one of Rome's oldest catacombs are baffled by neat piles of more than 1,000 skeletons dressed in elegant togas. The macabre find emerged as teams of historians slowly picked their way through the complex network of underground burial chambers, which stretch for miles under the city. They say the tomb, which has been dated to the first century AD, is the first known example of a "mass burial". The archaeologists are unable to explain why so many apparently upper-class Romans - who would normally have...

Scotland already has more identified Roman camps than any other European country -- reflecting Rome's repeated attempts to stamp its rule on the troublesome north. Now the number is set to increase. The first comprehensive survey of Roman remains for 30 years will boost the total of officially recognised sites and give them greater legal protection, officials said yesterday. Traces of at least 225 Roman military camps dot the Scottish countryside from the Borders to Aberdeenshire... They can be spotted today mostly from the air, where the distinctive bank and ditch defences thrown up by the legionaries still mark the...

ROME – Archaeologists on Tuesday unveiled what they think are the remains of Roman emperor Nero's extravagant banquet hall, a circular space that rotated day and night to imitate the Earth's movement and impress his guests. The room, part of Nero's Golden Palace, a sprawling residence built in the first century A.D., is thought to have been built to entertain government officials and VIPs, said lead archaeologist Francoise Villedieu. The emperor, known for his lavish and depraved lifestyle, ruled from 37 A.D. to 68 A.D. The dig so far has turned up the foundations of the room, the rotating mechanism...

WIESBADEN, Germany — A team of archaeology students and experts believe they have unearthed remnants of a Roman settlement from the second or third century near the construction site of an Army housing project, but the discovery isn’t expected to affect the project. The team, from nearby Mainz University, discovered a Roman coin, pieces of pottery, roof tiles, decorated bricks and 23 pieces of raw lead. The students also believe they have found the wall outlines of a building. "We think it’s from the first to third century after Christ," said Dr. Guntram Schwitalla, a district archaeologist in Hessen. "If...

ROME (Reuters) – Vatican archaeologists using laser technology have discovered what they believe is the oldest image in existence of St Paul the Apostle, dating from the late 4th century, on the walls of catacomb beneath Rome. Vatican newspaper Osservatore Romano, revealing the find on Sunday, published a picture of a frescoed image of the face of a man with a pointed black beard on a red background, inside a bright yellow halo. The high forehead is furrowed. Experts of the Ponitifical Commission for Sacred Archaeology made the discovery on June 19 in the Catacomb of Santa Tecla in Rome...

Rome catacomb reveals "oldest" image of St Paul Sun Jun 28 ROME (Reuters) – Vatican archaeologists using laser technology have discovered what they believe is the oldest image in existence of St Paul the Apostle, dating from the late 4th century, on the walls of catacomb beneath Rome. Vatican newspaper Osservatore Romano, revealing the find on Sunday, published a picture of a frescoed image of the face of a man with a pointed black beard on a red background, inside a bright yellow halo. The high forehead is furrowed. Experts of the Ponitifical Commission for Sacred Archaeology made the discovery...

Oldest known icon of St. Paul discovered! http://singinginthereign.blogspot.com/2009/06/oldest-icon-of-st-paul-discovered.html

The Ancient World's Longest Underground Aqueduct Roman engineers chipped an aqueduct through more than 100 kilometers of stone to connect water to cities in the ancient province of Syria. The monumental effort took more than a century, says the German researcher who discovered it. When the Romans weren't busy conquering their enemies, they loved to waste massive quantities of water, which gurgled and bubbled throughout their cities. The engineers of the empire invented standardized lead pipes, aqueducts as high as fortresses, and water mains with 15 bars (217 pounds per square inch) of pressure. PHOTO GALLERY: ROME'S LONGEST PIPE In...

Recent evidence that Druids possibly committed cannibalism and ritual human sacrifice—perhaps on a massive scale—add weight to ancient Roman accounts of Druidic savagery, archaeologists say.After a first century B.C. visit to Britain, the Romans came back with horrific stories about these high-ranking priests of the Celts, who had spread throughout much of Europe over a roughly 2,000-year period.

They came. They saw. They slaughtered. And now, almost 2,000 years after fighters and wild animals last entertained the rabble, gladiators are set to return to the Colosseum. Umberto Broccoli, the head of archaeology at Rome city council, said it was time that the five million people who visited the Colosseum annually saw the kind of shows originally staged there. They should also experience “the sights, sounds and smells” of Ancient Rome. Mauro Cutrufo, the deputy mayor, said that a series of events would be held next year to mark the two thousandth anniversary of the birth of the Emperor...

History buffs can now visit Ancient Rome using Google's "Virtual time machine." Here are two video reports on the new technology available to users of Google Earth. . . . (Watch Video)

The complete text is at: http://www.cato.org/pubs/journal/cjv14n2-7.html Here are some highlights: Augustus, emperor of Rome 27 B.C. to 14 A.D: An expansion of economic freedom. Augustus clearly favored private enterprise, private property, and free trade. The burden of taxation was significantly lifted … a period of "almost complete freedom for trade and of splendid opportunities for private initiative. Tiberius, emperor of Rome (14-37 A.D.) extended the policies of Augustus. It was his strong desire to encourage growth and establish a solid middle class (bourgeoisie), which he saw as the backbone of the Empire. High level of economic prosperity, made possible by...

Italian archaeologists have discovered the tomb of the ancient Roman hero said to have inspired the character played by Russell Crowe in the film "Gladiator." Daniela Rossi, an archaeologist based in Rome, said the discovery of the monumental marble tomb of Marcus Nonius Macrinus, including a large inscription bearing his name, was "an exceptional find." She said it was "the most important ancient Roman monument to come to light for twenty or thirty years." The tomb is on the banks of the Tiber near the via Flaminia, north of Rome. Cristiano Ranieri, who led the archeological team at the site,...

An expert in the history of the Catholic Church, Domingo Ramos-Lissón, explained in an interview that the preparation of the early Christians for baptism could last up to three years, and that many professions prohibited a person from registering as a catechumen. "If we follow the path taken by someone who wanted to become a Christian in the fourth century, initially we will see a thorough examination of his life, family conditions and aspiring profession," Ramos-Lissón said in an interview with the website PrimerosCristianos.com (First Christians). In that regard, he explained, "some family situations, such as polygamy and concubinage, or...

Parts of a giant, exquisitely carved marble sculpture depicting the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius have been found at an archaeological site in Turkey... at the ancient city of Sagalassos. So far the statue's head, right arm and lower legs have been discovered... The partial statue was unearthed in the largest room at Sagalassos's Roman baths. The cross-shaped room measures 1,250 sq m (13,500 sq ft), is covered in mosaics and was probably used as a frigidarium -- a room with a cold pool which Romans could sink into after a hot bath. It was partially destroyed in an earthquake between...

The head is 0.76 m in height (2.5 feet). It has large, almond-shaped eyes (only the tear ducts are rendered, not the iris or pupils as became usual during the reign of Hadrian) and fleshy thick lips. Its hair is parted in the middle of the front and taken in wavy strains below and around the ears toward the back. The rendering of the hair was done with only sparing sparing use of the drill, a feature characteristic for portraits of empresses in this, the Antonine, dynasty, in sharp contrast with the beards and curly hairs of their husbands. On...

Roman shops unearthed under Corn Hall By Andy Woolfoot Workers unearthed the remains during renovation work THE remains of an ancient Roman shopping parade, hidden for centuries under the floorboards of Cirencester's historic Corn Hall have been unearthed this week. Workers came across the remains of what archaeologists claim is the most significant Roman discovery in the town in the last 50 years while carrying out refurbishment work. A series of walls were discovered 10 feet below the level of the floorboards in the main room of the 19th Century building along with evidence the site used to house shops...

ARCHAEOLOGISTS in Germany have found a 2,000-year-old glue Roman warriors used to repair helmets, shields and the other accessories of battle. "Caesar's superglue" - as it has been dubbed by workers at the Rhine State Museum in Bonn - was found on a helmet at a site near Xanthen on the Rhine River where Romans settled before Christ. Frank Welker, a restorer at the museum, said: "We found the parade cavalry helmet had been repaired with an adhesive that was still doing its job. "This is rightly called some kind of superglue because air, water and time have not diminished...

ROME - Archaeologists on Tuesday unveiled an underground grotto believed to have been revered by ancient Romans as the place where a wolf nursed the city's legendary founder Romulus and his twin brother Remus. Decorated with seashells and colored marble, the vaulted sanctuary is buried 52 feet inside the Palatine hill, the palatial center of power in imperial Rome, the archaeologists said at a news conference. In the past two years, experts have been probing the space with endoscopes and laser scanners, fearing that the fragile grotto, already partially caved-in, would not survive a full-scale dig, said Giorgio Croci, an...

ROME - Computer experts on Monday unveiled a digital reproduction of ancient Rome as it appeared at the peak of its power in A.D. 320 — what they called the largest and most complete simulation of a historic city ever created. Visitors to virtual Rome will be able to do even more than ancient Romans did: They can crawl through the bowels of the Colosseum, filled with lion cages and primitive elevators, and fly up for a detailed look at bas-reliefs and inscriptions atop triumphal arches. "This is the first step in the creation of a virtual time machine, which...

Lessons from Carthage Elyakim Haetzni August 22, 2006 Carthage was an empire that ruled from Libya in North Africa to Sicilia to Sardinia to parts of Spain. It was the center of world finance. Rome stood in opposition, but encountered Carthage's naval superiority. The fighting between them continued for 200 years and ended with the destruction of Carthage. Theodor Mommsen, in his classic "The History of Rome", describes the people of Carthage as a nation not driven by freedom, or even by power. All they cared about was money. And they tried to use their money to buy peace and...

Feet have trodden on a stretch of Roman road for the first time in 1,600 years. A section of the road has been fully uncovered in the final stages of an archaeological excavation on the former Shippams factory site in Chichester city centre... Jo Taylor, of Pre-Construct Archaeology, which has been carrying out the project with Gifford Archaeology, said the road probably dated from the late first century AD. Postholes on the southern side indicated some form of settlement, which was probably domestic. District council archaeological officer James Kenny said it was a privilege to stand on a Roman street....

Sabine chariot rewrites history'Exceptional' find proves independence of ancient city (ANSA) - Rome, May 12 - An ancient king's war chariot found in a tomb near Rome has helped rewrite the history of the Romans and their Sabine rivals . "This chariot is an exceptional find," said archaeologist Paola Santoro. "It shows that the city of Ereteum remained independent long after the Sixth Century BC." "In other Sabine cities like Custumerium, conquered by the Romans, the custom of putting regal objects in king's tombs had died out by that time". "We can say that Eretum kept its independence until the...

THE archeologists could barely hide their excitement. Beneath the main square of Ecija, a small town in southern Spain, they had unearthed an astounding treasure trove of Roman history. They discovered a well-preserved Roman forum, bath house, gymnasium and temple as well as dozens of private homes and hundreds of mosaics and statues — one of them considered to be among the finest found. But now the bulldozers have moved in. The last vestiges of the lost city known as Colonia Augusta Firma Astigi — one of the great cities of the Roman world — have been destroyed to build...

The Portraiture of Caligula in Right Profile- AR Denarii: The Imagery and Iconography By Joe Geranio For photos at portraitsofcaligula.con under basesclaudius tab For some time now I have been fascinated with the portraiture of Caligula in the round! He has typically been portrayed in the round (typology)1 , and his physiognomy. as follows, but first Most of these portraits are based upon official portraits, we can assume as Caligula (Princeps) wished to be portrayed some twelve to 30 sculptural likenesses of Caligula have survived,2 but these identifications can be quite subjective due to familial assimilation. Caligula’s characteristics typical are:...

for 10 years, an Italian team has been beavering away underground to reveal the wonders of Pozzuoli, once the port of ancient Rome, which is buried under a 16th century city. Excavators at Pompeii, entombed in ash and toxic debris by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, were able to remove the volcanic material and expose the city to the open air. But in Pozzuoli, whose beauty was such that the great Roman orator Cicero called it "little Rome," the ancient streets were encased in the foundations of a new city built by the Spanish in the 1500s,...

Scholars unearth mysteryVilla of Roman emperor raises new questions for researchers on dig in Italy Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maxentius is depicted on a coin. Print By Jim Erickson Rocky Mountain News February 13, 2006 In The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Edward Gibbon portrays the pagan emperor Maxentius as a licentious youth and "a tyrant as contemptible as he was odious." Historians have long assumed that the reviled Roman emperor lived part-time at an 80-acre suburban villa complex until he was killed by his rival Constantine at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge in A.D. 312....

ROME - Archaeologists digging beneath the Roman Forum have discovered a 3,000-year-old tomb that pre-dates the birth of ancient Rome by several hundred years. State TV Thursday night showed an excavation team removing vases from the tomb, which resembled a deep well. Archaeologists were excavating under the level of the ancient forum, a popular tourist site, when they dug up the tomb, which they suspect is part of an entire necropolis, the Italian news agency ANSA reported. "I am convinced that the excavations will bring more tombs to light," ANSA quoted Rome's archaeology commissioner, Eugenio La Rocca, as saying. Also...

Experts believe they have unearthed a Roman road in the heart of Chichester and now have hopes of discovering a 1st-century fort... [T]eams found a road -- running parallel to East Street -- complete with camber and a ditch alongside it. Experts believe buildings that would have run alongside this road were likely to have been a combination of homes, shops and workshops. Smaller Roman finds, including coins and a pair of tweezers, have also been turned up already. But archaeologists believe they will unearth even more gems -- including the possibility of a Roman fort -- when excavation work...

Episode 9: Utica With Scipio and Cato defeated, Caesar returns home to a hero's welcome. Vorenus and Pullo's showdown with local thug Erastes gets an unexpected reprieve from Caesar. Servilia's plan to use Octavia to unearth a secret about Caesar backfires. Don't miss the all new episode "Utica", Sunday, October 30th at 9PM ET.

'Expert' author claimed sex good for 'nurturing,' 'mentoring' young boys Two days after WND exclusively reported on a new book claiming sex with children "can benefit and even serve a "mentoring function," the publishing company has announced it is canceling the book in light of the public outcry the story prompted. "Same-Sex Desire and Love in Greco-Roman Antiquity and in the Classical Tradition of the West" features "scholarly" treatises by a raft of mostly-Ph.D. academics, all praising earlier civilizations – particularly Greece and Rome – for the role homosexuality played in those ancient cultures. One chapter in particular, titled "Pederasty:...

Ancient roman navy soldier surfacesRavenna Classe site yields his first-ever image of imperial officer The first-ever image of a soldier in the Ancient Roman navy has surfaced on 17th September 2005 at the major imperial naval base at Ravenna Classe. The armour-clad, weapon-bearing soldier was carved on a funeral stone, or stele, in a waterlogged necropolis at Classe ('Classis' in Latin means Fleet), the now silted-up Ravenna port area where Rome's Adriatic fleet was stationed. Previous finds at the site have only shown people in civilian garb (toga). An inscription on the soldier's funeral slab says he was an officer...

ROMAN FINDS RE-WRITE HISTORYBy Suzanne Pert AMAZING finds by archaeologists during recent excavations at Brading Roman Villa mean history will have to be re-written, not just there but at other important mosaic sites around the country.Archaeologist Kevin Trott with some of the pieces of pottery found at the Brading Roman Villa site. Picture by PETER BOAM Although his findings are still to be published, archaeologist Kevin Trott has compiled a 400-page report, which has dispelled some long-held myths and is set to take the archaeological world by storm. This week he gave the County Press an insight into the archaeologically-explosive...

Archaeologists stumble on brickworks of ancient Rome By Nick Pisa in Rome (Filed: 02/10/2005) Two thousand years ago its furnaces must have been working around the clock, turning out the bricks that built ancient Rome. Now archaeologists have discovered the site of the brickworks that provided Rome with its most famous monuments, including the Colosseum and the Pantheon. One of the inscribed bricks used to build the Colosseum in Rome It lay 50 miles north of Rome, near the village of Bomarzo and close to the Tiber - enabling the red bricks to be loaded onto boats and transported down...

Certainly, it's hard to know whether to trust the allegations in the writings of Tacitus. Yet, what about the explanation offered by Nero, that the Christians were to blame? At least one scholar believes Nero was on the mark. Professor Gerhard Baudy of the University of Konstanz in Germany has spent fifteen years studying ancient apocalyptic prophecies. His studies have shown that in the poor districts of Rome, Christians were circulating vengeful texts predicting that a raging inferno would to reduce the city to ashes. "In all of these oracles, the destruction of Rome by fire is prophesied," Baudy explains....

For over three hundred years the rulers of the Roman Empire worshipped the god Mithras. Known throughout Europe and Asia by the names Mithra, Mitra, Meitros, Mihr, Mehr, and Meher, the veneration of this god began some 4000 years ago in Persia, where it was soon imbedded with Babylonian doctrines. The faith spread east through India to China, and reached west throughout the entire length of the Roman frontier; from Scotland to the Sahara Desert, and from Spain to the Black Sea. Sites of Mithraic worship have been found in Britain, Italy, Romania, Germany, Hungary, Bulgaria, Turkey, Persia, Armenia, Syria,...

The woman's head is therefore without doubt that of an important member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty (14-68 AD), but there is still a slight question mark as to whether it is Agrippina, daughter of the Emperor Claudius.

The Works' Division and the heritage authorities have had to find the middle ground between building a water canal to alleviate flooding problems and exploiting one of the most important historical finds in recent years. The area consists of a stretch of about 125 metres along the northern half of the water channel near Jetties Wharf, Marsa, which may be dated from the ceramics recovered from site to the Roman and Early Medieval periods... He said the anti-flooding development in the area had now been redesigned in such a way as not to cause any long-term damage to the Roman...

Ancient Rome's fish pens confirm sea-level fears 09:30 16 August 04 Exclusive from New Scientist Print Edition. Subscribe and get 4 free issues. Coastal fish pens built by the Romans have unexpectedly provided the most accurate record so far of changes in sea level over the past 2000 years. It appears that nearly all the rise in sea level since Roman times has happened in the past 100 years, and is most likely the result of human activity. Sea-level change is a measure of the relative movement between land and sea surfaces. Tide-gauge records show that the sea level has...