Monday, March 24, 2025

POPE FRANCIS ON THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD

HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS Vatican Basilica Friday, 25 March 2022 ___________________________ In the Gospel reading for today’s Solemnity, the angel Gabriel speaks three times in addressing the Virgin Mary. The first is when he greets her and says, “Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you” (Lk 1:28). The reason to rejoice, the reason for joy, is revealed in those few words: the Lord is with you. Dear brother, dear sister, today you can hear those words addressed to you. You can make them your own each time you approach God’s forgiveness, for there the Lord tells you, “I am with you”. All too often, we think that Confession is about going to God with dejected looks. Yet it is not so much that we go to the Lord, but that he comes to us, to fill us with his grace, to fill us with his joy. Our confession gives the Father the joy of raising us up once more. It is not so much about our sins as about his forgiveness. Our sins are present but the forgiveness of God is always at the heart of our confession. Think about it: if our sins were at the heart of the sacrament, almost everything would depend on us, on our repentance, our efforts, our resolves. Far from it. The sacrament is about God, who liberates us and puts us back on our feet. Let us recognize once more the primacy of grace and ask for the gift to realize that Reconciliation is not primarily our drawing near to God, but his embrace that enfolds, astonishes and overwhelms us. The Lord enters our home, as he did that of Mary in Nazareth, and brings us unexpected amazement and joy – the joy of forgiveness. Let us first look at things from God’s perspective: then we will rediscover our love for Confession. We need this, for every interior rebirth, every spiritual renewal, starts there, from God’s forgiveness. May we not neglect Reconciliation, but rediscover it as the sacrament of joy. Yes, the sacrament of joy, for our shame for our sins becomes the occasion for an experience of the warm embrace of the Father, the gentle strength of Jesus who heals us, and the “maternal tenderness” of the Holy Spirit. That is the heart of Confession. Dear brothers and sisters, let us go forth and receive forgiveness. And you, dear brother priests who are ministers of God’s forgiveness, offer to those who approach you the joy of this proclamation: Rejoice, the Lord is with you. Please set aside rigidity, obstacles and harshness; may you be doors wide open to mercy! Especially in Confession, we are called to act in the person of the Good Shepherd who takes his sheep into his arms and cradles them. We are called to be channels of grace that pour forth the living water of the Father’s mercy on hearts grown arid. If a priest does not approach Confession with this attitude, it would be better for him to refrain from celebrating the sacrament. A second time the angel speaks to Mary. She was troubled by his greeting, and so he tells her, “Do not be afraid” (v. 30). The first time he says, “The Lord is with you”. Now, the second time, he says “Do not be afraid”. In the Scriptures, whenever God appears to those who receive him, he loves to utter those words: Do not be afraid! He says them to Abraham (cf. Gen 15:1), repeats them to Isaac (cf. Gen 26:24), to Jacob (cf. Gen 46:3) and so on, up to Joseph (cf. Mt 1:20) and Mary. Do not be afraid! In this way, he sends us a clear and comforting message: once our lives are open to God, fear can no longer hold us in thrall. For fear can truly hold us in thrall. You, dear sister, dear brother, if your sins frighten you, if your past worries you, if your wounds do not heal, if your constant failings dishearten you and you seem to have lost hope, please, do not be afraid. God knows your weaknesses and is greater than your mistakes. God is greater than our sins. He asks of you only one thing: that you not hold your frailties and sufferings inside. Bring them to him, lay them before him and, from being reasons for despair, they will become opportunities for resurrection. Do not be afraid! The Lords asks us for our sins. This brings to mind the story of a monk in the desert. He had given everything to God and lived a life of fasting, penance and prayer. The Lord asked for more. “Lord, I gave you everything”, said the monk, “what more is there?” The Lord replied, “Give me yours sins”. Do not be afraid! The Blessed Virgin Mary accompanies us: she cast her own anxiety upon God. The angel’s proclamation gave her good reason to be afraid. He proposed to her something unimaginable and beyond her abilities, something that she could not handle alone: there would be too many difficulties, problems with the Mosaic law, with Joseph, with the citizens of her town and with her people. Yet Mary did not object. Those words – do not be afraid – were sufficient for her; God’s reassurance was enough for her. She clung to him, as we want to do tonight. Yet so often we do the exact opposite. We start from our own certainties and, when we lose them, we turn to God. Our Lady, on the other hand, teaches us to start from God, trusting that in this way everything else will be given to us (cf. Mt 6:33). She invites us to go to the source, to the Lord, who is the ultimate remedy against fear and emptiness in life. There is a lovely phrase written above a confessional here in the Vatican that reminds us of this. It addresses God with these words, “To turn away from you is to fall, to turn back to you is to rise, to abide in you is to have life” (cf. SAINT AUGUSTINE, Soliloquies I, 3). In these days, news reports and scenes of death continue to enter our homes, even as bombs are destroying the homes of many of our defenceless Ukrainian brothers and sisters. The vicious war that has overtaken so many people, and caused suffering to all, has made each of us fearful and anxious. We sense our helplessness and our inadequacy. We need to be told, “Do not be afraid”. Yet human reassurance is not enough. We need the closeness of God and the certainty of his forgiveness, which alone eliminates evil, disarms resentment and restores peace to our hearts. Let us return to God and to his forgiveness. A third time the angel speaks to Mary and says, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you” (Lk 1:35). Again, the first time he says, “The Lord is with you”. The second time his words are, “Do not be afraid”. Now, he says, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you”. That is how God intervenes in history: by giving his very Spirit. For in the things that matter, our own strength is not enough. By ourselves, we cannot succeed in resolving the contradictions of history or even those of our own hearts. We need the wisdom and gentle power of God that is the Holy Spirit. We need the Spirit of love who dispels hatred, soothes bitterness, extinguishes greed and rouses us from indifference. The Spirit gives us concord because he is concord. We need God’s love, for our love is fragile and insufficient. We ask the Lord for many things, but how often we forget to ask him for what is most important and what he desires most to give us: the Holy Spirit, the power to love. Indeed, without love, what can we offer to the world? It has been said that a Christian without love is like a needle that does not sew: it stings, it wounds, and if it fails to sew, weave or patch, then it is useless. I would dare to say that this person is not a Christian. This is why we need to find in God’s forgiveness the power of love: the same Spirit who descended upon Mary. If we want the world to change, then first our hearts must change. For this to happen, let us allow Our Lady to take us by the hand. Let us gaze upon her Immaculate Heart in which God dwelt, “our tainted nature’s solitary boast”. Mary is “full of grace” (v. 28), and thus free from sin. In her, there is no trace of evil and hence, with her, God was able to begin a new story of salvation and peace. There, in her, history took a turn. God changed history by knocking at the door of Mary’s heart. Today, renewed by forgiveness, may we too knock at the door of her immaculate heart. In union with the Bishops and faithful of the world, I desire in a solemn way to bring all that we are presently experiencing to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. I wish to renew to her the consecration of the Church and the whole of humanity, and to consecrate to her in a particular way the Ukrainian people and the Russian people who, with filial affection, venerate her as a Mother. This is no magic formula but a spiritual act. It is an act of complete trust on the part of children who, amid the tribulation of this cruel and senseless war that threatens our world, turn to their Mother. It is like what young children do when they are scared; they turn to their mother for protection. We turn to our Mother, reposing all our fears and pain in her heart and abandoning ourselves to her. It means placing in that pure and undefiled heart, where God is mirrored, the inestimable goods of fraternity and peace, all that we have and are, so that she, the Mother whom the Lord has given us, may protect us and watch over us. Mary then uttered the most beautiful words that the angel could bring back to God: “Let it be to me according to your word” (v. 38). Hers was no passive or resigned acceptance, but a lively desire to obey God, who has “plans for welfare and not for evil” (Jer 29:11). Hers was the most intimate sharing in God’s plan of peace for the world. We consecrate ourselves to Mary in order to enter into this plan, to place ourselves fully at the disposal of God’s plans. After having uttered her “Fiat”, the Mother of God set out on a long journey to the hill country, to visit a relative who was with child (cf. Lk 1:39). She went with haste. I like to think of this image of Our Lady going with haste. She comes with haste to help and take care of us. May she now take our own journey into her hands: may she guide our steps through the steep and arduous paths of fraternity and dialogue, along the way of peace. https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/homilies/2022/documents/20220325_omelia-penitenza.html

Tuesday, March 18, 2025

Angelic salutation: Hail Mary

One day Saint Gertrude had a vision of Our Lord counting gold coins. She summoned the courage to ask Him what He was doing. He answered: ‘I am counting the Hail Marys that you have said; this is the money with which you can pay your way to Heaven’. https://www.motherofallpeoples.com/post/heaven-s-greatest-invitation Saint Louis de Montfort - Heaven’s Greatest Invitation Updated: May 30, 2020 The Angelic Salutation is so heavenly and so beyond us in its depth of meaning that Blessed Alan de la Roche held that no mere creature could ever possibly understand it, and that only Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Who was born of the Blessed Virgin Mary can really explain it. Its enormous value is due first of all to Our Lady to whom it was addressed, to the purpose of the Incarnation of the Word for which reason this prayer was brought from heaven, and also to the Archangel Gabriel who was the first ever to say it. The Angelic Salutation is a most concise summary of all that Catholic theology teaches about the Blessed Virgin. It is divided into two parts, that of praise and petition: the first shows all that goes to make up Mary’s greatness and the second all that we need to ask her for and all that we may expect to receive through her goodness. The Most Blessed Trinity revealed the first part of it to us and the latter part was added by Saint Elizabeth who was inspired by the Holy Spirit. Holy Mother Church gave us the conclusion in the year 430 when she condemned the Nestorian heresy at the council of Ephesus and defined that the Blessed Virgin is truly the Mother of God. At this time she ordered us to pray to Our Lady under this glorious title by saying: “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and at the hour of our death.” The greatest event in the whole history of the world was the Incarnation of the Eternal Word by Whom the world was redeemed and peace was restored between God and men. Our Lady was chosen as His instrument for this tremendous event and it was put into effect when she was greeted with the Angelic Salutation. The Archangel Gabriel, one of the leading princes of the heavenly court, was chosen as ambassador to bear these glad tidings. In the Angelic Salutation can be seen the faith and hope of the patriarchs, the prophets and the apostles. Furthermore it gives to martyrs their unswerving constancy and strength, it is the wisdom of the doctors of the Church, the perseverance of holy confessors and the life of all religious (Blessed Alan de la Roche). It is also the new hymn of the law of grace, the joy of angels and men, and the hymn which terrifies devils and puts them to shame. By the Angelic Salutation God became man, a virgin became the Mother of God, the souls of the just were delivered from Limbo, the empty thrones in heaven filled. In addition sin was forgiven, grace was given to us, sick people were made well, the dead were brought back to life, exiles were brought home, and the anger of the Most Blessed Trinity was appeased and men obtained eternal life. Finally, the Angelic Salutation is a rainbow in the heavens, a sign of the mercy and grace which God has given to the world (Blessed Alan da la Roche). The Hail Mary—Beauty Even though there is nothing so great as the majesty of God and nothing so low as man insofar as he is a sinner, Almighty God does not despise our poor prayers. On the contrary, He is pleased when we sing His praises. Saint Gabriel’s greeting to Our Lady is one of the most beautiful hymns which we can possibly sing to the glory of the Most High. “I will sing a new song to you” (Ps. 143:9). This new hymn which David foretold was to be sung at the coming of the Messiah is none other than the Angelic Salutation. There is an old hymn and a new hymn: the first is that which the Jews sang out of gratitude to God for creating them and maintaining them in existence—for delivering them from captivity and leading them safely through the Red Sea—for giving them manna to eat and for all His other blessings. The new hymn is that which Christians sing in thanksgiving for the graces of the Incarnation and the Redemption. As these marvels were brought about by the Angelic Salutation, so also do we repeat the same salutation to thank the Most Blessed Trinity for His immeasurable goodness to us. We praise God the Father because He so loved the world that He gave us His only Son as our Savior. We bless the Son because He deigned to leave heaven and come down upon earth—because he was made man and redeemed us. We glorify the Holy Spirit because He formed Our Lord’s pure Body in Our Lady’s Womb—this Body which was the Victim of our sins. In this spirit of deep thankfulness should we, then, always say the Hail Mary, making acts of faith, hope, love and thanksgiving for the priceless gift of salvation. …. Although this new hymn is in praise of the Mother of God and is sung directly to her, nevertheless it greatly glorifies the Most Blessed Trinity because any homage that we pay Our Lady returns inevitably to God Who is the cause of all her virtues and perfections. When we honor Our Lady: God the Father is glorified because we are honoring the most perfect of His creatures; God the Son is glorified because we are praising His most pure Mother, and God the Holy Spirit is glorified because we are lost in admiration at the graces with which He has filled His Spouse. When we praise and bless Our Lady by saying the Angelic Salutation she always passes on these praises to Almighty God in the same way as she did when she was praised by Saint Elizabeth. The latter blessed her in her most elevated dignity as Mother of God and Our Lady immediately returned these praises to God by her beautiful Magnificat. Just as the Angelic Salutation gives glory to the Blessed Trinity, it is also the very highest praise that we can give Our Lady. One day when Saint Mechtilde was praying and was trying to think of some way in which she could express her love of the Blessed Mother better than she had done before, she fell into ecstasy. Our Lady appeared to her with the Angelic Salutation in flaming letters of gold upon her bosom and said to her: My daughter, I want you to know that no one can please me more than by saying the salutation which the Most Adorable Trinity sent to me and by which He raised me to the dignity of Mother of God. By the word Ave (which is the name Eve, Eva), I learned that in His infinite power God had preserved me from all sin and its attendant misery which the first woman had been subject to. The name Mary which means “lady of light” shows that God has filled me with wisdom and light, like a shining star, to light up heaven and earth. The words full of grace remind me that the Holy Spirit has showered so many graces upon me that I am able to give these graces in abundance to those who ask for them through me as Mediatrix. When people say The Lord is with thee they renew the indescribable joy that was mine when the Eternal Word became incarnate in my womb. When you say to me blessed art thou among women I praise Almighty God’s divine mercy which lifted me to this exalted plane of happiness. And at the words blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus, the whole of heaven rejoices with me to see my Son Jesus Christ adored and glorified for having saved mankind. The Hail Mary—Fruits …. The Hail Mary is a blessed dew that falls from heaven upon the souls of the predestinate. It gives them a marvelous spiritual fertility so that they can grow in all virtues. The more the garden of the soul is watered by this prayer the more enlightened one’s intellect becomes, the more zealous his heart, and the stronger his armor against his spiritual enemies. The Hail Mary is a sharp and flaming shaft which, joined to the Word of God, gives the preacher the strength to pierce, move and convert the most hardened hearts even if he has little or no natural gift for preaching. The Hail Mary—Blessings This heavenly salutation draws down upon us the blessings of Jesus and Mary in abundance, for it is an infallible truth that Jesus and Mary reward in a marvelous way those who glorify them. They repay us a hundredfold for the praises that we give them. “I love them that love me … that I may enrich them that love me and fill their treasures” (Prov. 8:17, 21). Jesus and Mary have always said: “We love those who love us; we enrich them and fill their treasuries to overflowing.” “He who soweth in blessings, shall also reap blessings” (Cor. 9:6). Now, if we say the Hail Mary properly, is not this a way to love, bless and glorify Jesus and Mary? In each Hail Mary we bless both Jesus and Mary: “Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.” By each Hail Mary we give Our Lady the same honor that God gave her when He sent the Archangel Gabriel to greet her for Him. How could anyone possibly think that Jesus and Mary, who often do good to those that curse them, could ever curse those that bless and honor them by the Hail Mary? ….

Monday, March 17, 2025

Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’, emperor Hadrian and Julian ‘the Apostate’

by Damien F. Mackey “Antiochus Epiphanes thought nothing was more certain than that he would annihilate the Jewish nation. Julian the Apostate convinced himself that it was already in his power to uproot the Christian religion”. Herman J. Selderhuis (ed.) This is a quote from the book, Psalms 1-72 (p. 14). If Julian ‘the Apostate’ bears comparison, at least to some extent, with the emperor Hadrian: “… Julian … and Hadrian were both 'full of zeal for idolatry', 'superstitious […] astrologers wanting to know everything, so constantly inquisitive as to be accused of magic'.” then I might expect, also, some useful comparisons of this Julian with emperor Hadrian’s alter ego, king Antiochus IV ‘Epiphanes’, as according to my series: Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’ and Emperor Hadrian. Part One: “… a mirror image” https://www.academia.edu/32734925/Antiochus_Epiphanes_and_Emperor_Hadrian._Part_One_a_mirror_image_ and: Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’ and Emperor Hadrian. Part Two: “Hadrian … a second Antiochus” https://www.academia.edu/35538588/Antiochus_Epiphanes_and_Emperor_Hadrian._Part_Two_Hadrian_a_second_Antiochus_ Collin Garbarino talks about “an appropriation of the past” - {appropriation being a word I have been much inclined to use for when I consider pagans to have borrowed from the Hebrew scriptures but claimed the material as their own} - by Christian writers of the Maccabean period (“Resurrecting the martyrs: the role of the Cult of the Saints, A.D. 370-430”, 2010). Though, according to my radical revision of the Maccabees in relation to the Herodian era, the Maccabean martyrs at the time of Antiochus IV ‘Epiphanes’ fall right into the period of the Infancy of Jesus Christ. See also my article: Hadrianic patterns of martyrdom (7) Hadrianic patterns of martyrdom | Damien Mackey - Academia.edu Garbarino writes (emphasis added): https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2348&context=gradschool_dissertations This appropriation of the past could even reach back farther than the time of Christ [sic]. During this expansion of the cult of martyrs in the fourth century, bishops began venerating the Maccabeans who died in the Seleucid persecutions of the 160s BC. The various books of Maccabees describe the deaths of faithful Jews at the hands of Seleucid oppressors because of their refusal to abandon the Torah. These stories contain many of the same elements that later characterized Christian martyrologies: trials designed to cause apostasy, tortures and promises given by the magistrate, and a confession of continued faith in God. In light of these commonalities, it is surprising that Christian communities did not adopt these Jewish saints earlier. The earliest extant evidence of Christians honoring the Maccabean martyrs is Gregory of Nazianzus’s Homily 15, On the Maccabees. …. Gregory probably preached this sermon in 362, during the reign of Julian the Apostate. …. He used the Maccabean situation to criticize in a veiled manner the anti-Christian policies of the emperor. In the sermon, he explicitly says that very few Christian communities honor these martyrs because their deaths predated Christ. …. Gregory, however, found their cult useful for promoting Christianization, and this sermon acts as a turning point for the Maccabees. Martha Vinson writes, “Before this sermon, the Maccabees are merely faces in a crowd of Old Testament exempla ... while after it, as the homiletic literature from the last decades from the fourth century attests, they have been singled out from the pack as the sole beneficiaries not only of encomia but of a well-established cult.” …. By the year 400, the Maccabees were being honored as Christian martyrs by preachers around the Mediterranean. [End of quote] Barry Phillips will write in a footnote (p. 129, n. 19) to his article “Antiochus IV, Epiphanes” (Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. 29, No. 2, 1910): Dan. 11 st: " And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate." Cf. 8 12 9 27 12 11, 1 Macc. 1 54, 2 Macc. 6 2. Hoffman, Antiochus Epiphanes, p. 80, essays to compare Antiochus and Julian. In so far as the ideas of both were out of harmony with the spirit of the times, there is an apparent similarity between the persecutions of Antiochus and of Julian, far less, however, than the dissimilarity, owing to the fact that whereas Julian sought the extinction of Christianity as an end, Antiochus sought the extinction of Judaism but as a means to an end. Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’ and Julian ‘the Apostate’ are similarly likened to the Antichrist. For instance, Stephen J. Vicchio tells of Cardinal Newman’s view in Vicchio’s The Legend of the Anti-Christ: A History, p. 314): “Newman goes on in the first advent sermon on the Anti-Christ to argue that some of these historical figures have been Antiochus IV Epiphanes and Julian, “who attempted to overthrow the Church by craft and introduce paganism back again …”. We shall conclude, still on an antichrist type, the “666” of Revelation, with Reginald Rabett’s comment (in GLateinos@; Lateinos; or, The only proper and appellative name of the man, p. 138): For example — If we were to speak of the Emperor JULIAN who is proverbially and emphatically styled THE APOSTATE, yet it would be necessary to use the Name - Julian - because it is the Proper Name of this Man; for were we to omit his Name, no one would of a certainty conclude that Julian the Apostate was meant; but probably Antiochus Epiphanès might be intended .... Some comparisons follow between Hadrian, his reign conventionally dated to c. 117-138 AD - but I have re-dated him to the Maccabean era: Time to consider Hadrian, that ‘mirror-image’ of Antiochus Epiphanes, as also the census emperor Augustus (4) Time to consider Hadrian, that 'mirror-image' of Antiochus 'Epiphanes', as also the census emperor Augustus | Damien Mackey - Academia.edu - and Julian ‘the Apostate’, his reign conventionally dated to c. 361-363 AD. From Emperor and Author: The Writings of Julian 'the Apostate', p. 307 (edited by Nicholas J. Baker-Brian, Shaun Tougher): What [Jean-Philippe-Rene de] La Bletterie says of Julian as Caesars' author differs markedly from his earlier characterization of him as emperor at the start of his 1735 biography; there, he represents Julian as … a ruler driven by 'an uncontrolled passion for glory' – one who pursued his policies with 'a kind of fanaticism', and who was not free of 'the faults which [his] amour propre perceive[d] only in others'. …. Just what La Bletterie was thinking of, on that last count, can be inferred from his note on the passage in Caesars in which Hadrian is teased as a star-gazer who was forever prying into ineffable mysteries (311d). La Bletterie was prompted to remark that much the same could be said of Julian: he and Hadrian were both 'full of zeal for idolatry', 'superstitious […] astrologers wanting to know everything, so constantly inquisitive as to be accused of magic'. And the likeness did not end there: Julian, assuredly, 'did not have the infamous [homosexual] vices of Hadrian […], but he had almost all his [other] faults and absurdities'; both of them were ‘fickle, obstinate, and vain of soul’…. Moreover, at one point in his comparison of Julian with Hadrian, La Bletterie entertains a possibility which would imply a very hostile view indeed of Julian: 'they both passed very wise laws and performed many merciful actions; but Hadrian seemed cruel sometimes, and some say that [“l'on dit que”] Julian was only humane out of vanity'. …. [End of quote] Again, we read at: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?660191-Julian-the-Apostate-the-most-fascinating-quot-what-if-quot-in-late-Roman-history “Julian is often compared in character to Marcus Aurelius and Hadrian, indeed he is very much a blend of the two. He combines Hadrian's philhellenism with Marcus Aurelius' Stoicism, scholasticism, and militaristic determination”. From Ammianus Marcellinus, p. 309, by Gavin Kelly: “Ammianus …. rejects the comparison chosen by Valentinian's partisans to Aurelian .... He compares him to Hadrian in his depreciation of the well-dressed, the learned, the wealthy, the noble, the brave, 'so that he alone should appear to excel in fine abilities' (ut solus uideretur bonis artibus eminere, 30.8.10); Julian too had been compared to Hadrian in one of his faults .... His tendency towards timorousness is described …”. From Emperors and Historiography: Collected Essays on the Literature of the Roman ..., p. 315, by Daniel den Hengst: “… divination was practiced in an uncontrolled and lawless way affectata varietate, that is to say with overzealous efforts to practice all forms of divinatio. In the necrology Ammianus compares Julian to Hadrian in this respect. By doing so he harks back again to his description of Julian in Antioch, where Julian is characterized in this context as multorum curiosior. …. In this case, Julian may have been plagued by curiositas, but he shared this vice with a great predecessor [sic]. …. Hellenistically inclined Julian ‘the Apostate’ Like Herod ‘the Great’ “Julian is also compared with Herod, as wise men whose behaviour is not particularly wise: "Yet is it not all kinde of learning or wisedome which is availeable for the true happinesse of a King or Kingdome (as may appeare in the miserable ends of Herod, and Iulian the Apostate, both in their kindes wise and learned) but wise behavior in a perfect way, that is, Wisdom mixed with Piety, guided by Religion, and sanctified with Grace".” Hakewill 50 On some particular likenesses between Julian and Herod, Manolis Papoutsakis has written (Vicarious Kingship: A Theme in Syriac Political Theology in Late Antiquity): Accordingly, Julian is identified with Herod the Great a “foreigner” and, by implication (cf. Deut 17:15), a “usurper” of the Judahite throne: Herod's disruption of the legitimate line of kings resulted in the adventus of Christ, who came in order to reclaim His Judahite inheritance, that is, the Royal Office (malkutá). In his verses against Julian, Ephrem elaborates upon the Julian/Herod comparison by forcefully reading 2 Thess 2:3 into the cluster consisting of Gen 49:10 a-b and Matthew 2. As a result, Julian, a “Herodian” king who disrupted the dynasty of Constantine, the new David”, is appositely presented as a θεομάχος and is implicitly identified with the Antichrist-figure par excellence, namely, the Apostate at 2 Thess 2:3 …. In GREGORY NAZIANZEN'S FIRST INVECTIVE AGAINST JULIAN THE EMPEROR, we read: http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/gregory_nazianzen_2_oration4.htm “Thou persecutor next … to Herod, thou traitor next to Judas, except so far as not ending thy life with, a halter, as he did; thou murderer of Christ next to Pilate; thou hater of God next to the Jews!” In Jacobus de Voragine’s The Golden Legend: Lives of the Saints, we read this comment regarding Julian and a Herod (this time, though, not ‘the Great’, but Herod Antipas): “Then Julian the apostate commanded that [John the Baptist’s] bones should be burnt. …. And like as Herod which beheaded him was punished for his trespass, so Julian the apostate was smitten with divine vengeance of God …”. Julian has been likened, in his death, to “Herod”, and to “Antiochus”: https://www.lostplays.org/lpd/Julian_the_Apostate Robert Albott reports that "Iulian the Apostate, at his death cast vp his blood into the ayre, crying Vicisti Galilaee" …. This reluctant acknowledgement that Christianity was to become the dominant religion of the Roman empire is a point frequently related in references to Julian. Henry Burton notes: "And as Iulian the Apostate, pulling the mortall dart out of his bowels, though therein he saw and felt the hand of Divine revenge, yet he vttered his confession thereof with the voyce of blasphemy, Vicisti Galilaee: and so breathed out his blasphemous spirit in a desperat impenitency" …. Stephen Jerome similarly observes how "as you haue heard the godly praying, or praysing and blessing GOD, speaking graciously, sending out their spirits ioyfully, and dying comfortably: so prophane men dye eyther carelesly and blockishly," and relates that Julian the Apostate "in his last act of life, from his infected lungs sent out venome against Christ, calling him in dirision, victorious Galilean" …. He also provides some early modern context for how Julian was perceived, citing "the examples of … Herod … Antiochus …”. Adrian Scaife writes (“Julian the Apostle: The Emperor who “Brought Piety as it Were Back from Exile”.” pp. 113, 118-119): …. it is still worth looking at Julian’s political platform, as it is fundamentally intertwined with his program of religious reform. Susanna Elm (2012) summarizes his efforts into three primary categories: “logoi, hiera, and the polis—Greek language and culture, its gods and all things sacred, and the city as the physical locus of Greek culture, government and religion”— and each would be amended by refocusing Roman culture around classical paideia (5). …. The allegories also contributed to a growing theurgical framework in Julian’s new paganism whereby the adherent could create a spiritual connection with the divine (a process that began in To the Cynic Heracleius), imitating the most humanistic aspect of the Christian faith (Athanassiadi 2015, 136). Once again the shadow of Christianity looms: Julian drew from the established practices of a Greek philosophical movement to produce a religious handbook of sorts that offered spiritual advice by way of allegories—a result openly reminiscent of Christian scripture/scriptural interpretation. Meanwhile, the Hymn to King Helios pulled explicitly from Mithraism in anointing the sun-god as the central divine force. But Julian managed to incorporate the traditional pantheon of gods, too, by assigning each of the Hellenic gods an aspect of the larger Mithraic figurehead. In one typical fusion, Julian writes, “Among the intellectual gods, Helios and Zeus have a joint or rather a single sovereignty” (Hymn to King Helios, 136A-B). He continues through the pantheon one-by-one, drawing from the inspiration of Plato, Homer, Hesiod, and others to assign the various parts of the whole that is Helios: Aphrodite accounts for Helios’ creative function; Athena embodies pure intellect; and so on (Hymn to King Helios, 138A ff). The unity of the various traditional gods into the “One” can be seen as a reflection of the Christian model Julian’s uncle first established, but it also embodies the central tenet of Neoplatonism (Athanassiadi 2015, 160). In that sense, Julian simultaneously achieved a complex synthesis of a theurgical Mithraism, the Platonic form, and traditional Hellenic mythology. The emperor’s religious program, responding to unique obstacles of Late Antiquity, accounted for the diverse local mythical legacies that were so important to civic identity and established a divinity embodying the shared Romanitas of a united Hellenic empire. ….

Thursday, March 6, 2025

Puzzling why those very prolific writing Essenes are not ever mentioned in Bible

Part One: Who exactly were the mysterious Essenes? by Damien F. Mackey “[Marvin] Vining contends that the Essenes were the scribes in the Gospels, the ones whom Jesus said sat in Moses’ seat in Matthew 23”. James Bradford Pate Why are not the Essenes, a most prominent religious group in Palestine, ever referred to in the Bible, at least under the name of ‘Essenes’? This is a burning question repeatedly asked by Marvin Vining, an Anabaptist-Methodist, in his book, Jesus the Wicked Priest: How Christianity Was Born of an Essene Schism (Rochester, Vermont: Bear and Company, 2008). Who were these Essenes? And what were their origins? Some have argued that the Essenes were the strict warrior-group, the Hasidaeans, in the Maccabean times. “Dr. J. L. Teicher, himself a Jew and a distinguished Cambridge scholar”, on the other hand, “went so far as to argue that the Dead Sea manuscripts “are quite simply Christian documents”.” (Ahmed Osman, Christianity: An Ancient Egyptian Religion). Likewise, Osman himself attempted to connect Jesus and his followers to the Essenes (ibid.): “The very name “Essenes” indicates that they were followers of Jesus”. Whilst Marvin Vining will clearly show that a lot of Jesus’s teaching, and anger, were directed against the extreme doctrines of the Essenes - who could not therefore have been Jesus’s early followers - a Hasidaean origin does not seem to me to be too far-fetched at all, especially given my view that the Maccabean times overlap with the life of Jesus Christ - that Gamaliel’s Judas the Galilean, at the time of the census (Acts 5:37), was none other than Judas Maccabeus. Marvin Vining, however, not only asks the most relevant question, but he also seeks to answer it. We read for instance in this post about Vining’s conclusion: Book Write-Up: Jesus the Wicked Priest Posted on November 4, 2013by jamesbradfordpate https://jamesbradfordpate.wordpress.com/2013/11/04/book-write-up-jesus-the-wicked-priest/ Vining argues that the Essenes had the power to contribute to Jesus’ death because they had clout with Herod, according to Josephus, plus they had influence on Jewish halakah, for Vining contends that the Essenes were the scribes in the Gospels, the ones whom Jesus said sat in Moses’ seat in Matthew 23. (After all, Vining argues, did not the Essenes engage in a lot of scribal activity, since they produced the Dead Sea Scrolls?) Vining also notes that, while the Mishnah does not prescribe crucifixion, the Dead Sea Scrolls did, and so Jesus’ crucifixion was probably due to Essene influence. [End of quote] "... the Essenes were the scribes in the Gospels ...", a hugely significant group. I must admit that I did not have great confidence that Marvin Vining would arrive at the correct answer, given some of his other identifications. He, for instance, thinks that the angel Gabriel, who announced the birth of John the Baptist to his father, Zechariah (Luke 1:11-13), was actually the Jewish High Priest. I also would not be able to accept Vining’s thesis, his book’s title, of Jesus as the Wicked Priest. Firstly, it is unlikely that a strict Jewish sect would have recognised Jesus as a priest at all. However, Marvin Vining has, to my satisfaction at least, worked out what so many others before him have been unable to do. To identify precisely who were the Essenes, a group un-mentioned in the Bible under that name. I do not think that I would ever have been able to reach this conclusion, which seems so obvious once it has been properly explained, as Vining manages to do. This does not mean that I can agree with various other of the book's major conclusions - though finding it all highly informative. Unfortunately, there are some wild conclusions (so I think) also reached in the book. For example, that Gabriel who announced the birth of John the Baptist to his father, Zechariah, was the High Priest. I also very much reject one of his main lines of arguments, that Jesus was originally an Essene, but split and caused a schism. I was happily surprised to find the author so convincingly identify the group that has been such a conundrum to scholars for so long: the Essenes. Part Two: Menelaus could well have been the ‘Wicked Priest’ Steven A. Fisdel’s book, The Dead Sea Scrolls: Understanding Their Spiritual Message, locates the origins of Essenism firmly within the context of the Maccabean struggles. In Part One, I fully embraced Marvin Vining’s well argued and convincing thesis that the biblico-historically elusive Essenes were the scribes (also known as the “Herodians”). That does not mean that I accept Vining's book in its entirety, as already pointed out. I have explained there, for instance, why I must reject his notion that the “Wicked Priest” of the Qumran scrolls was Jesus himself (see also below). George J. Brooke, when writing his review of Rabbi Steven A. Fisdel’s book, The Dead Sea Scrolls: Understanding Their Spiritual Message, https://www.jstor.org/stable/4193190?seq=1 says of the author that: “He locates the origins of Essenism firmly within the context of the Maccabean struggles ...”. With this biblico-historical location I would completely agree. But I would add to it my own chronological twist that the Maccabean period overlaps with the Infancy of Jesus Christ. On this, see e.g. my article: Judas the Galilean vitally links Maccabean era to Daniel 2’s “rock cut out of a mountain” (7) Judas the Galilean vitally links Maccabean era to Daniel 2's "rock cut out of a mountain" Thus the Essenes, well identified by Marvin Vining with the biblical scribes, fit nicely into this revised scenario, this thereby answering the burning question as to why the Essenes, as such, are never mentioned in the Bible? With that in mind, I can also accept George J. Brooke’s view (whether attributable to the Rabbi or not) that “… for [the Rabbi] the Teacher of Righteousness is probably to be identified as Onias III and the Wicked Priest as Menelaus”. {Though I would not number Onias as III, which I believe is a fault due to an over-extended chronology}. David Pardo has come to the same conclusion as to the identities of these two major characters of the Dead Sea Scrolls (“A STATISTICAL IDENTITY FOR THE TEACHER OF RIGHTEOUSNESS IN THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS”).

Tuesday, March 4, 2025

Ash Wednesday provides an ideal opportunity to repent

“In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near’. This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him’”.” Matthew 3:1-3 Today (5th March, 2025) is Ash Wednesday. What is Ash Wednesday? That question is asked, and answered at: https://www.dynamiccatholic.com/lent/ash-wednesday.html?srsltid=AfmBOopjUijbPKBfV2-941XYjz2QeJqG_2PqluhcTVKeS6HnSmb3DnwD What is Ash Wednesday? Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent—and a wonderful opportunity to make yourself 100% available to God! How available to God are you? 50%? 75%? 96.4%? No matter what your answer, Ash Wednesday is the perfect time to decide that you will spend this Lent increasing that number. On Ash Wednesday, you can get your forehead blessed with ashes at Mass or a prayer service. These ashes are a reminder that we need to repent. Repentance is a powerful invitation. When John the Baptist first appeared in the desert of Judea, this was his message: “Repent, prepare the way of the Lord” (Matthew 3:2). Later, when Jesus began his ministry, he led with this message: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). But what does it mean for us to repent, here and now, more than two thousand years later? It means the same as it did to the people walking around the dusty pathways in their sandals, trying to inch closer to Jesus as he passed through their town or village. Repent means “to turn back to God.” We all find ourselves needing to turn back to God many times a day, in ways small and large. It is not a matter of guilt and it is not a shameful thing. It is simply that we are a better version of ourselves when we return to his side! When is Ash Wednesday 2025? This year Ash Wednesday is on March 5, 2025. The History of Ashes on Ash Wednesday You might be wondering why we get ashes on our foreheads for Ash Wednesday. Throughout history, ashes have been a powerful outward symbol of interior repentance and spiritual awareness. Here are some examples of ashes in the Bible: • "Therefore I disown what I have said, and repent in dust and ashes." (Job 42:6) • "Daughter of my people, dress in sackcloth, roll in the ashes." (Jeremiah 6:26) • "I turned to the Lord God, to seek help, in prayer and petition, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes." (Daniel 9:3) • "When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. Then he had this proclaimed throughout Nineveh: “By decree of the king and his nobles, no man or beast, no cattle or sheep, shall taste anything; they shall not eat, nor shall they drink water. Man and beast alike must be covered with sackcloth and call loudly to God; they all must turn from their evil way and from the violence of their hands." (Jonah 3: 6-8) The Early Christians used ashes to show repentance as well, but not just on Ash Wednesday! After going to confession, it was common for the priest to give the person ashes on their forehead. Catholics have been receiving ashes on Ash Wednesday since the time of St. Gregory the Great. In 1091, Pope Urban II encouraged the entire Church to use ashes on Ash Wednesday. If you want to get blessed with ashes this Ash Wednesday, be sure to check with your local parish. Most churches celebrate Mass or have a prayer service on Ash Wednesday, and all are welcome to attend and be blessed with ashes. Sign up for this year’s Is Ash Wednesday a Holy Day of Obligation? Contrary to popular belief, Ash Wednesday is not a Holy Day of Obligation. Even though you’re not required to attend Mass, Ash Wednesday is a wonderful opportunity to rearrange your priorities and feed your soul before one of the most important seasons of the entire year! Can you eat meat on Ash Wednesday? No. Unless you have a medical exemption, Ash Wednesday is a day of Abstinence for Catholics. Avoiding meat can be difficult, but it’s a powerful way to be disciplined about your priorities. When you make little sacrifices a part of your everyday spirituality, amazing things happen! For example, suppose you have a craving for a Coke, but you have a glass of water instead. It is the smallest thing. Nobody notices. And yet, by this simple action you strengthen your willpower and become an even better-version-of-yourself. Or, say your soup tastes a little dull. You could add salt and pepper, but you don’t. It’s a little thing. It’s nothing. But by saying no to yourself in small ways, it makes you even freer to say yes to the things that truly matter. If you want to grow in strength this Lent, there’s one simple thing you can do: Try to never leave a meal table without practicing some form of sacrifice. It is these tiny acts that will strengthen your will for the great moments of decision that are a part of each of our lives! What are the fasting rules for Ash Wednesday? The Church requires all Catholics from ages 14-59 to fast on Ash Wednesday. As long as you are in good health, this means that you should only eat one full meal, plus two smaller meals that do not equal a full meal. Ash Wednesday is also a day where Catholics avoid eating meat. There is great wisdom in the Christian practice of fasting—even though its benefits are largely forgotten! Fasting is a spiritual exercise, and as such is primarily an action of the inner life. Authentic fasting draws us nearer to God and opens our hearts to receive his many gifts. Fasting is also a sharp reminder that there are more important things in life than food. Authentic Christian fasting helps to release us from our attachments to the things of this world. It is often these worldly attachments that prevent us from becoming the-best-version-of-ourselves. Fasting also serves as a reminder that everything in this world is passing and thus encourages us to consider life beyond death. Go without food for several hours and you quickly realize how truly weak, fragile, and dependent we are. This knowledge of self strips away arrogance and fosters a loving acknowledgment of our utter dependence on God. Ash Wednesday is a powerful day to rediscover the power of fasting in your life! Make It Personal Ash Wednesday is the perfect time to decide if you want to have the kind of Lent that’s easy to forget…or the kind that changes your life. Do you want a renewed commitment to prayer? More discipline in a specific area of your life? A stronger marriage? More peace? This Ash Wednesday, set aside 15 minutes to set your intentions for the season of Lent!

Monday, March 3, 2025

Tiberius - Claudius similarities

by Damien F. Mackey For Tiberius: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiberius For Claudius: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claudius Following an emperor Gaius Julius Caesar Tiberius succeeded Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus. Claudius succeeded Gaius Julius Caesar Caligula. Named Tiberius Caesar Augustus Tiberius was Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus Claudius was Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus Dependent upon Praetorian Guard, Princeps As Tiberius became more embittered with the position of Princeps, he began to depend more and more upon the limited secretariat left to him by Augustus, and specifically upon Sejanus and the Praetorians. According to tradition, a Praetorian named Gratus found [Claudius] him hiding behind a curtain and suddenly declared him princeps. …. Claudius was spirited away to the Praetorian camp and put under their protection. Claudius declared emperor by the Praetorian Guard. Difficulty with the Senate, Plots From the outset, Tiberius had a difficult, resentful relationship with the Senate and suspected many plots against him. Nevertheless, he proved to be an effective and efficient administrator. …. According to Tacitus, Tiberius derided the Senate as "men fit to be slaves". …. Antagonism between Tiberius and his senate seems to have been a feature of his rule. …. Claudius set about remodeling the Senate into a more efficient, representative body. …. Nevertheless, many in the Senate remained hostile to Claudius, and many plots were made on his life. This hostility carried over into the historical accounts. As a result, Claudius reduced the Senate's power for the sake of efficiency. Divorce After Agrippa died, Augustus insisted that Tiberius divorce Vipsania and marry Agrippa's widow, Augustus' own daughter (Tiberius's step-sister) Julia. Tiberius reluctantly gave in. This second marriage proved scandalous, deeply unhappy, and childless; ultimately, Julia was sent into exile by her father. Suetonius and the other ancient authors accused Claudius of being dominated by women and wives, and of being a womanizer…. Claudius married four times, after two failed betrothals. The first betrothal was to his distant cousin Aemilia Lepida, but was broken for political reasons. The second was to Livia Medullina Camilla, which ended with Medullina's sudden death on their wedding day. …. Claudius later divorced Urgulanilla for adultery and on suspicion of murdering her sister-in-law Apronia. Soon after … Claudius married Aelia Paetina, a relative of Sejanus, if not Sejanus's adoptive sister. During their marriage, Claudius and Paetina had a daughter, Claudia Antonia. He later divorced her after the marriage became a political liability. Rhodes In 6 BC, while on the verge of accepting command in the East and becoming the second-most powerful man in Rome, Tiberius announced his withdrawal from politics and retired to Rhodes. …. Claudius also settled disputes in the provinces. He freed the island of Rhodes from Roman rule for their good faith …. Law Court …. thereafter Tiberius began appearing in court as an advocate, and it was presumably at this time that his interest in Greek rhetoric began. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/mono/10.4324/9780203165133-18/tiberius-law-development-maiestas-barbara-levick Tiberius prided himself on his knowledge of Roman law, both sacral and secular, and on his respect for it. …. The ius auxilii inherent in the tribunician power and his imperium gave him the right to come to the aid of a citizen who appealed to him against magisterial injustice and to take cognizance of cases from all over the Empire, in Italy, and at Rome. …. They were already his before AD 14, although he is not likely to have used them when Augustus was available. His return to Rome and his accession to sole power, together with his election to the supreme pontificate on 10 March AD 15 … gave full scope to his auctoritas (prestige and influence), and at least one senator argued that Senate and equites could not carry on their business without his supervision. …. Tiberius intended to use his influence well, and eight years after his accession could still proclaim the supremacy of law. …. Claudius personally judged many of the legal cases tried during his reign. Ancient historians have many complaints about this, stating that his judgments were variable and sometimes did not follow the law. …. He was also easily swayed. Nevertheless, Claudius paid detailed attention to the operation of the judicial system. He extended the summer court session, as well as the winter term, by shortening the traditional breaks. Claudius also made a law requiring plaintiffs to remain in the city while their cases were pending, as defendants had previously been required to do. These measures had the effect of clearing out the docket. The Jews In AD 19 Tiberius ordered Jews of military age to join the Roman Army. …. He banished the rest of Rome’s Jewish population, on pain of enslavement for life. (Acts 18:2): “… Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome”. Triumphal procession Tiberius returned and celebrated the triumph which he had postponed, accompanied also by his generals, for whom he had obtained the triumphal regalia. [Claudius] left Britain [sic] after 16 days, but remained in the provinces for some time. The Senate granted him a triumph for his efforts. Sickly, also strong and tall Suetonius describes Tiberius as being pale skinned, broad shouldered, left-handed, and exceptionally strong and tall for a Roman, although he had poor posture. …. Suetonius and Paterculus both write that, as a young man, he was considered attractive by Roman beauty standards. …. Even in adulthood, he was prone to severe acne outbreaks. According to Cassius Dio, Claudius became sickly and thin by the end of Caligula's reign, most likely due to stress. …. A possible surviving portrait of Claudius from this period may support this. …. However, he showed no physical deformity, as Suetonius notes that when calm and seated he was a tall, well-built figure of dignitas. … When angered or stressed, his symptoms became worse. Historians agree that this condition improved upon his accession to the throne. …. Claudius himself claimed that he had exaggerated his ailments to save his life. …. Gloomy, unpleasant [Tiberius] came to be remembered as a dark, reclusive and sombre ruler who never really wanted to be emperor; Pliny the Elder called him "the gloomiest of men". …. Seneca's Apocolocyntosis mocks the deification of Claudius and reinforces the view of Claudius as an unpleasant fool …. Suspicious death Tiberius died in Misenum on 16 March AD 37, months before his 78th birthday …. While ancient sources agree on the date and location of his death, contradictory accounts exist of the precise circumstances. Tacitus relates that the emperor appeared to have stopped breathing, and that Caligula, who was at Tiberius's villa, was being congratulated on his succession to the empire, when news arrived that the emperor had revived and was recovering his faculties. He goes on to report that those who had moments before recognized Caligula as Augustus fled in fear of the emperor's wrath, while Macro took advantage of the chaos to have Tiberius smothered with his own bedclothes. Ancient historians agree that Claudius was murdered by poison – possibly contained in mushrooms or on a feather (ostensibly put down his throat to induce vomiting) – and died in the early hours of 13 October 54. …. Nearly all implicate his final and powerful wife, Agrippina, as the instigator. Agrippina and Claudius had become more combative in the months leading up to his death. This carried on to the point where Claudius openly lamented his bad wives …. Funeral When Tiberius died, he was given a sumptuous funeral befitting his office, but no divine honours. Claudius's ashes were interred in the Mausoleum of Augustus … after a funeral similar to that of his great-uncle Augustus …..

Sunday, March 2, 2025

Augustus true founder of Pisidian Antioch?

by Damien F. Mackey “As Augustus was regarded as the city’s founder, this temple dedicated to him was built after 2 B.C. and became the focal point of the city”. info@ambertravel.com Whilst I have nothing whatsoever against Rome, or Romans, I have thought it necessary to minimize these in my works of revision. For example: Rome surprisingly minimal in Bible (1) Rome surprisingly minimal in Bible and: Horrible Histories: Retracting Romans (3) Horrible Histories. Retracting Romans Here I want further to extend this minimising by taking a look at Pisidian Antioch, which I have favoured as being the capital of the Seleucid king, Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’: Which Antioch may have been the capital of Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’? (3) Which Antioch may have been the capital of Antiochus 'Epiphanes'? The city was supposedly founded by one of Epiphanes’ predecessors, but then re-founded by the emperor Augustus: https://www.ambertravel.com/st-paul-trail-pisidian-antioch#:~:text=The%20city%20was%20founded%20in,importance%20of%20this The city was founded in the 3rd century by either Antiochus I or II, but it only achieved prominence after its refounding as a Roman colony by Augustus in 25 B.C. Three members of the imperial family served as honorary magistrates of the city from 15 B.C. to 35 A.D., attesting to the importance of this Galatian city. Triple-Arched Gate This triumphal arch gateway was excavated by the University of Michigan in 1924. The gate was built in the second century A.D. and was dedicated by Hadrian in 129 A.D. on his tour of Asia Minor. Hellenistic City Wall The city was a major Hellenistic center in the centuries before Paul's arrival. It was located along the route from Ephesus to Cilicia. Jewish inhabitants were brought to the city by the Romans for political and commercial reasons and it was to this community that Paul preached on his first missionary journey. Temple of Augustus As Augustus was regarded as the city's founder, this temple dedicated to him was built after 2 B.C. and became the focal point of the city. This podium temple was constructed in front of a two-story semi-circular portico and adjacent to a large colonnaded courtyard. The temple was first excavated by Ramsay in 1912-14. …. [End of quote] Now, in my recent Horrible Histories article (above), I picked up an extraordinary convergence of names that, in a conventional context, would make no sense, but that, in my revision, nicely tie up names and characters. There I wrote: …. To make matters really complicated, there is supposed to have been, incredibly, an ‘Antiochus Epiphanes’ at the time of the emperor Hadrian – and I have already identified the Antiochus Epiphanes with the emperor Hadrian: Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’ and Emperor Hadrian. Part One: “… a mirror Image” https://www.academia.edu/32734925/Antiochus_Epiphanes_and_Emperor_Hadrian._Part_One_a_mirror_image_ …. and, guess what? - this Antiochus Epiphanes had the name of Julius Caesar. He was, supposedly, Gaius Julius Antiochus Epiphanes (Philopappus). [End of quote] This incredible situation may serve, all at once, to tie up the three main names associated with early Pisidian Antioch: Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’ (see “Which Antioch …” article); Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus; and the emperor Hadrian. My re-interpretation of the Pisidian Antioch would be that it was essentially founded by Augustus, who was Hadrian, who was Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’, whose capital city it was. I, initially somewhat tentative about taking the huge step of identifying Augustus with the emperor Hadrian, whom I had already identified as Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’ (see “Mirror Image” article above) - thereby pitching the emperor Hadrian into the Nativity era of Jesus Christ - would eventually conclude, however, that it was: Time to consider Hadrian, that ‘mirror-image’ of Antiochus ‘Epiphanes’, as also the census emperor Augustus (2) Time to consider Hadrian, that 'mirror-image' of Antiochus 'Epiphanes', as also the census emperor Augustus Any faint doubts that I may still have had about bridging more than a century of conventional time estimation, by merging Augustus with Hadrian, were put to bed completely after reading Lillian Joyce’s article: In the Footsteps of Augustus: Hadrian and the Imperial Cult (1) In the Footsteps of Augustus: Hadrian and the Imperial Cult Years ago I had had it pointed out to me that, despite the textbooks, there was a significant overlap between the Assyrian king, Sennacherib, and his supposed father, Sargon II. The more that I studied this, however, the more that I came to realise that it was not a mere overlap, but that the reign of Sargon II was the very reign of Sennacherib. Sargon II and Sennacherib: More than just an overlap (1) Sargon II and Sennacherib: More than just an overlap Hopefully Lillian Joyce will eventually be able to take a similarly bold step and recognise that Hadrian was not just dogging Augustus’s every footstep, as her article substantially shows he was, but that Hadrian was Augustus. Taking some of her various comparisons between Hadrian and Augustus, we learn: Abstract Hadrian sought to honor, emulate and even surpass Augustus in a variety of his actions as Princeps. Associations with imperial cult were part of Hadrian’s consolidation and unification of empire. Hadrian erected, revived, or enhanced at least twelve temples and shrines connected to imperial cult. I suggest adding the Temple of Venus and Roma to this list. Its Greek-style plan and choice of goddesses connected it to the legacy of Augustus. The goddesses Venus and Roma functioned effectively as surrogates for imperial cult with Venus as Augustus’s divine ancestress and Roma as the cult consort of Augustus. In its use of Augustan models with associations to imperial cult and the power of the living emperor, the temple revealed Hadrian’s sophisticated plan to showcase his power through a connection to the Augustan legacy and concepts of eternal empire. …. Since antiquity, sources have noted Hadrian’s admiration for Augustus. Hadrian had a bust of Augustus among the Lares in his bedroom and a portrait of Augustus on his signet ring.1 Beyond keeping these images of Augustus close to his person, Hadrian sought to honor, emulate, and even surpass the first emperor in a variety of actions. In 121, Hadrian proclaimed a new Golden Age, celebrating it with coins, games, and festivals.2 Around 123, he shortened his title to Hadrianus Augustus.3 He restored Augustan monuments within and outside of Rome, and began new projects, including the temple to Venus and Roma, which evoked Augustan symbols and were often tied to imperial cult. With these projects, Hadrian used the memory of Augustus as an innovative way to legitimize and promote himself. 4 …. The first item in the Historia Augusta regarding Tarraco is that Hadrian used his own funds to rebuild the temple of Augustus.33 Hadrian also called for a gathering of the Council of the Province, which administered the imperial cult. The likely meeting spot was close to the site of the temple. Thus, the ceremonial backdrop for meeting these representatives was the site of the imperial cult celebrating Augustus. Locals soon began to add images of Hadrian to the sanctuary and a high priest received a mandate from the Council to gild Hadrian’s statues. Locals carried these images during festivals and then kept them in the porch of the temple.34 In Athens, the Augustus-Hadrian link also was strong. The Athenians dedicated a temple to Augustus and Roma on the Acropolis.49 This round structure was directly in front of the eastern entrance to the Parthenon.50 However, in scale it did not visually dominate the Parthenon or the Acropolis landscape. This connection had been in place for well over 100 years when Hadrian arrived.51 Like Augustus, Hadrian was initiated into the Eleusinian Mysteries.52 We know of multiple benefactions throughout the city much like those of Augustus.53 …. Hadrian used the memory of Augustus to invigorate present and future.7 Proclaiming a new Golden Age, bringing the worship of Roma into the city, and converting the Parilia to Romaia were part of a grand vision. Roma was more than a city goddess; she was a stand-in for imperial cult and eternal power.75 Venus, too, spoke to the divine heritage of the ruler. The goddesses linked Augustus and the history of Rome with Hadrian as the realization of a legacy. The “Greekness” of the new temple and its colossal images resonated with other sites of imperial cult throughout the empire. With this temple, Hadrian could project his current power and predict his eventual deification as Augustus had done before. ….