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Caelestius

Caelestius

Caelestius (or Celestius) was the major follower of Pelagius and Pelagianism. Caelestius met Pelagius and they began their major work in Rome. From their leaving Rome, Pelagius and Caelestius faced constant struggle against St. Augustine, Jerome, and their followers. In 411, the same year they arrived in North Africa, Caelestius faced a council in Carthage to defend his views. His accuser, the deacon Paulinus of Milan, listed six of Caelestius' ideas counted as heresies, but it is worth noting there is no recorded confirmation the Caelestius identified his views in the same way: # Even if Adam had not sinned, he would have died. # Adam sin did not harm the entire human race. # Children are born into the same state Adam was born into. # The whole human race neither dies through Adam's sin nor is saved through Christ's resurrection. # Before Jesus some men lived without sin. Caelestius refused to retract his views and when the above six points where condemned, the synod also denied him ordination. He first intended to object and take the matter to the Pope but instead left to Ephesus and was ordained there. Later Pelagius would claim in a synod that he did not agree with all of Caelestius' beliefs. In Carthage, two local synods formed and condemned Pelagius and Caelestius without their presence. Much later he would bring his case Pope Zosimus, but only after being banished and his plea only gave way to another banishment. Zosimus was duly impressed and declared him innocent. No action is known about Caelestius after this point.

Pelagius

For other people called Pelagius, see Pelagius (disambiguation) Pelagius was a monk and reformer who denied the doctrine of Original Sin from Adam and was declared a heretic. He was well educated, fluent in both Greek and Latin, and learned much theology. He served time as a monk, focusing on practical asceticism, which his teachings clearly reflect. He was not, however, a cleric. He was certainly well known in the Roman province, both for the harsh asceticism of his public life, as well as the power and persuasiveness of his speech. Until his more radical ideas saw daylight, even such pillars of the Church as St. Augustine of Hippo referred to him as “saintly” with great austerity. However, he was later accused of lying about his own teachings in order to avoid public condemnation. Most of his life was spent defending himself against other theologians and the Roman Catholic Church.

Beginnings

Pelagius was born c. 354. The birth place is disputed. While the vast number of ancient authorities quote his birth at the British Isle, he is also referred as Scottish and as Irish. He became known c. 400 when he moved to Rome and began writing several of his major works, "De fide Trinitatis libri III," "Eclogarum ex divinis Scripturis liber unus," and "Commentarii in epistolas S. Pauli," a commentary of Paul's epistles. Unfortunately most his work only exists in references by his opponents. He and his close follower Caelestius fled Rome when sacked by Aleric in 410 to Carthage where he continued his work and briefly encountered St. Augustine in person.

Persecutions

An objective view of Pelagius and his effect is most difficult. The Roman Catholic church denounced his work in word and yet the Reformation accused Catholics of succumbing to his ideas regardless and condemns both Pelagius and the Catholic Church. Meanwhile the Greek Orthodox Church is silent. Regardless, Pelagius stands, both in reality and in icon, as a radical from the traditions thoughts on original sin and the means of salvation. Pelagius' chronology can best be understood through the actions of his opposition because they have left the only history of him.

Augustine

Pelagianism was quickly spread, especially around Carthage, one reason the opponents acted so promptly and strongly. Augustine contributed four works specifically to Pelagianism, "De peccatorum meritis et remissione libri III" in 412, "De spiritu et litera," and "Definitiones Caelestii" in 414, and "De natura et gratia" in 415. Here he strongly affirms the existence of original sin, the need for infant baptism, the impossibility to live without sin without Christ, and the neccessity of Christ's grace. Augustine's works are intended in part for the common people and for this reason does not adress Pelagius or Caelestius by name.

Jerome

Pelagius soon left to Palestine, befriending the bishop there. Jerome was involved as well. Jerome wrote against Pelagius in his letter to Ctesiphon and "Dialogus contra Pelagianos." With Jerome at the time was Orosius, a visiting pupil of Augustine, with a similar apprehension of the dangers of Pelagianism. Together they publicly condemned Pelagius in Palestine where all three of them currently resided. Bishop John of Jerusalem, a personal friend of Pelagius, called a council in July 415. Orosius' lack of Greek fluency rendered him unconvincing and John's Eastern background made him more willing to accept that humans did not have inherent guilt. Yet the council still had no verdict and passed its outcome to a Latin decision because Pelagius, Jerome, and Orosius were all Latin.

Diospolis

It was only a few months later in December of 415 that another synod formed in Diospolis (Lydda) under a Cesarean bishop initiated by two resigned bishops who came to Palestine. However neither bishop attended for unrelated reasons and Orosius had left after persecution by Bishop John. Without his enemies near, Pelagius explained to the synod that he did believe God was necessary for salvation because every human is created by God and claimed that many works of Celestius did not represent himself. He also showed letters of recommendation by other authoritative figures including Augustine himself who, for all their disagreements, thought highly of Pelagius' character. Thus both Eastern evaluations of Pelagius had nothing negative to say of him.

Pope Innocent I

When Orosius returned to Africa, two local synods formed and condemned Pelagius and Celestius without their presence. Because the synods did not have complete authority unless approved by the papacy, Augustine and four other bishops wrote a letter urging Pope Innocent I to likewise condemn Pelagianism. Innocent I agreed without much convincing.

Pope Zosimus

Pelagius' own guilt in the eyes of the Church, however, was undecided. Pelagius wrote "De libero arbitrio libri IV" to Innocent I in which he articulated his beliefs to not contradict what was formally condemned. Pope Zosimus entered the office by the time the letter reached Rome in 417. The letter stated that infant baptism was needed to enter the Kingdom of God, but not Eternal Life because it did not expunge original sin and that a kind of grace came by studying scriptures and hearing sermons that helped a person avoid sin but was not neccessary. Zosimus was duly impressed and declared them innocent. St. Augustine was shocked that Pelagius and Celestius were not judged to be followers of the heresy they founded called the Council of Carthage in 418 and clearly stated nine beliefs of the Church that Pelagianism denied: # Death came from sin, not physical means. # Infants must be baptized to be cleansed from original sin. # Justifying grace covers both past sins and helps avoid future sins. # The grace of Christ imparts strength and will to act out God's commandments. # No good works can come without God's grace. # We confess we are sinners because it is true, not from humility. # The saints ask for forgiveness for their own sins. # The saints also confess to be sinners because they are. # Children dying without baptism are excluded from both the Kingdom of heaven and eternal life. Every canon was accepted as an universal belief of the Church and banished all Pelagians from Italy.

Death and Later

He probably died in Palestine c. 420 which some report. Others mention him living as much as twenty years later. The cause and date of his death are unknown, but the pervailing rumours are that he was killed by his enemies in the Roman Catholic Church, or (perhaps more grounded) that he left Rome in frustration and headed into Africa or the Middle East. His death did not end his teachings, although those who followed him may have modified those teachings. Because much information no longer exists with regard to Pelagius' teaching's, it is likely that some of his doctrines may have become subject to revision and suppression by his enemies (followers of St. Augustine and the Church leadership as a whole at that time). Belief in Pelagianism and Semi-Pelagianism was common for the next few centuries, especially in Britain, Palestine and North Africa.

Influences of Pelagianism

Pelagius became concerned about the moral laxity of society he saw in Rome. He blamed this laxity on the theology of divine grace preached by St. Augustine, among others. Pelagius was of the opinion that Augustine's teaching amounted to nothing short of introducing Manicheanism into Christianity. He accused Augustine of elevating evil to the same status as God and teaching pagan fatalism as if it were a Christian doctrine. Finally, Pelagius was a Stoic; he lived simply at the same time that he interacted with the elite of Rome's philosophers and theologians. Pelagianism was influenced, it is thought, by both his Celtic ancestry and his Greek styled learning. Greek thought emphasized punishment instead of emphasizing guilt as the Latin church did thus humanity was held to greater responsibilty for individual actions. Celtic paganism championed a human's ability to triumph even over the supernatural, which Pelagius applied sin.

Pelagius in Literature and Film

The Pelagius Book by Paul Morgan is a historical novel that presents Pelagius as a gentle humanist emphasizing individual responsibility in contrast to Augustine's fierce fatalism. Pelagius is referred to in Stephen Lawhead's book, The Black Rood, and makes an appearance in Patrick where he has a discussion with the Anglo-Irish saint. Pelagius is frequently referred to in Jack Whyte's series of books known as A Dream of Eagles, where a major character's belief in Pelagius' ideas of Free Will and the laxity of the Roman Catholic Church eventually cause him to come into conflict with Church representatives. Curiously, Pelagius was the macguffin in the recent movie King Arthur. Although not a character, he is revealed to be the mentor of young Arthur. Upon hearing of his murder in Rome, Arthur's affection for the monk lead him to break off loyalty with the Roman Empire and help the Britons fight the Saxon invaders.

External links

- Anonymous. Pelagius and Pelagianism. In The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XI. Online edition accessed September 17 2005.[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11604a.htm ]
- Loflin, Lewis. Pelagius. Online essay with excerpts from Brittanica.com. Accessed September 17 2005.[http://www.sullivan-county.com/id2/pelagius_brit.htm ]
- Pierce, Peter. The Pelagius Book. The Age. June 11, 2005. Melbourne: Fairfax Digital. Accessed September 17 2005.[http://www.theage.com.au/news/Reviews/The-Pelagius-Book/2005/06/10/1118347580857.html ] Category:360 births Category:Medieval philosophers Category:Ancient Roman Christianity Category:Heretics Category:Ancient Britons

Rome

Rome (Italian and Latin: Roma) is the capital of Italy and of its Latium region. It is located on the Tiber and Aniene rivers, near the Mediterranean Sea, at . The Vatican City, a sovereign enclave within Rome, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Church and the home of the Pope. Rome is the largest city and comune in Italy; the comune or municipality is one of the largest in Europe with an area of 1290 square kilometers. Within the city limits, the population is 2,823,807 (2004); almost 4 million live in the general area of Rome as represented by the province of Rome. The current mayor of Rome is Walter Veltroni. With a GDP of €75 billion (higher than New Zealand's and equivalent to Singapore's — all three have roughly the same population of around 4 million), in the year 2001 the comune of Rome produced 6.5% of Italy's total GDP, the highest rate among all of Italy's cities. The city's history extends nearly 2,800 years, during which time it has been the seat of ancient Rome (the Roman Kingdom, Roman Republic, Roman Empire), and later the Papal States, Kingdom of Italy and Italian Republic.

History

Demographics

Throughout its long history Rome has been a centre of learning, trade and commerce. The native Italian population have shared their city throughout the ages with migrants from across Europe and the wider world. In ancient times a large proportion of the population were foreign merchants, slaves, officials and their descendants who came from across the wide empire which bore the city's name. Today the population is very diverse with immigrants thought to make up as much as 20% of the population of the city.

Economy

Today Rome has a dynamic and diverse economy concentrating on innovation, technologies, communications and the service sector. They produce 6.5% of the national GDP (more than any other city in the Italy) and continues to grow at a higher rate than those in the rest of the country. Tourism is inevitably one of Rome's chief industries. The city is also a centre for banking, publishing, insurance, fashion, high-tech industries, housing, cinema (particularly at the famous Cinecittà studios, dubbed the "Hollywood on the Tiber"), and the aerospace industries. Many international headquarters, government ministries, conference centres, sports venues and museums are located in Rome's principal business districts: the E.U.R. (Esposizione Universale Roma); the Torrino (further south from the E.U.R.); the Magliana; the Parco de' Medici-Laurentina and the so-called Tiburtina-valley along the ancient Via Tiburtina.

Transportation

Esposizione Universale Roma district.]] Esposizione Universale Roma) from the park around the artificial lake. Rome, EUR district.]] Rome has an intercontinental airport named Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport - FCO, but more commonly known as Fiumicino, which also is Italy's chief airport, and the Giovan-Battista Pastine international airport (commonly referred to as Ciampino Airport), a joint civilian and military airport southeast of the city-center, along the Via Appia, which handles mainly charter flights and regional European flights including some low-cost airlines. A third airport, called Aeroporto dell'Urbe, is located in the north of the city along the ancient Via Salaria and handles mainly helicopters and private flights. A fourth airport, called Aeroporto di Centocelle, in the eastern part of Rome between the Via Prenestina and the Via Casilina, has been abandoned for some years now, but is currently being redeveloped as one of the largest public parks in Rome. A subway system operates in Rome called the "Metropolitana" or Rome Metro which was opened in 1955. There are 2 lines (A & B), a third (C) and a new branch of the B-line (B1) are under construction, while a fourth line (D) has been planned. The frequent archaeological findings delay underground work. Today's (2005) total length is 38 km. The two existing lines, A & B, only intersect at one point, Termini Station, the main train station in Rome (which also is the largest train station in Europe, underneath and around which exists now a lively shopping center known as the "Forum Termini" with more than 100 shops of various types). Other stations includes: Tiburtina (second-largest, which is currently being redeveloped and enlarged to become the main high-speed train hub in the city), Ostiense, Trastevere, Tuscolana, S. Pietro, Casilina, Torricola. The Rome Metro is part of an extensive transport network made of a tramway network, several suburban and urban lines in and around the city of Rome, plus an "express line" to Fiumicino Airport. Whereas most FS-Regionale lines (Regional State Railways) do provide mostly a suburban service with more than 20 stations scattered throughout the city, the Roma-Lido (starting at Ostiense station), the Roma-Pantano (starting nearby Termini) and the Roma-Nord (starting at Flaminio station) lines offer a metro-like service. Rome also has a comprehensive bus system. The web site (translated in english) of the [http://www.atac.roma.it/index.asp?lng=2 public transportation company (ATAC)] allows a route to be calculated using the buses and subways. [http://www.atac.roma.it/biglietti/index.asp?COD=320&LNG=2 Metrebus integrated fare system] allows holders of tickets and integrated passes to travel on all companies vehicles, within the validity time of the ticket purchased. Chronic congestion caused by cars during the 1970s and 1980s led to the banning of unauthorized traffic from the central part of city during workdays from 6.00 a.m to 6 p.m. (this area is officially called Zona a Traffico Limitato, Z.T.L. in short). Heavy traffic due to night-life crowds during week-ends led in recent years to the creation of other Z.T.L.s in the Trastevere and S. Lorenzo districts during the night, and to the experimentation of a new night Z.T.L. also in the city center (plans to create a night Z.T.L. in the Testaccio district as well are underway). In recent years, parking-spaces along the streets in wide areas of the city have been converted to pay-parkings, as new underground parkings spread throughout the city. In spite of all these measures, traffic remains an unsolved problem, as in the rest of the world's cities.

Education

Z.T.L. Rome continues to be the major education and research center of Italy, with many major universities that offer degrees in all fields. Among the prestigious educational establishments in Rome is the University of Rome La Sapienza (founded 1303), which is Europe’s biggest university with almost 150,000 students. The city is also home to three other public universities: Università degli studi di Roma “Tor Vergata”, more commonly called Roma 2, University of Roma Tre and the Istituto Universitario di Scienze Motorie. Undisputed as the greatest repository of western art of the last 3,000 years of human history, Rome is home to many foreign academic institutions, as well, such as The American Academy, The British School, The French Institute, The German Archaeological Institute, The Swedish Institute, and The Finnish Institute, The Japan Foundation. Several private universities are as well located in Rome, as:
- LUISS University (Libera università internazionale degli studi sociali), probably the most prestigious private university in Rome;
- Università Cattolica Del Sacro Cuore, a renowned university in Italy;
- John Cabot University, a private American University;
- LUMSA University (Libera Universita Maria SS. Assunta);
- University of Malta, an International University;
- Libera Università di Roma "Leonardo da Vinci";
- Libera Università Degli Studi "S. Pio V";
- UPTER University;
- I.S.S.A.S. University. Still located in Rome are the Accademia di Santa Cecilia - the world's oldest academy of music (founded 1584), St. John's University's Rome campus which is located at the Pontificio Oratorio San Pietro, several academies of fine arts, colleges of the church, medical and Health research instituts.

Monuments and sights

- See Wikipedia's category "Monuments and sights of Rome"

Houses of worship

Churches

Rome is home to over 900 churches.

Basilicas

Patriarchal basilicas

- San Giovanni in Laterano (St. John in Lateran)
- San Pietro in Vaticano (St. Peter's)
- San Paolo fuori le Mura (St. Paul outside the Walls)
- Santa Maria Maggiore (St. Mary Major)
- San Lorenzo fuori le Mura (St. Lawrence outside the Walls)

Other basilicas

- Sant'Agnese fuori le mura (St. Agnes outside the Walls)
- Sant'Andrea delle Fratte
- Santi Apostoli (Holy Apostles)
- San Bernardo alle Terme
- San Clemente (St. Clement)
- Santi Cosma e Damiano (SS. Cosmas and Damian)
- Santa Croce in Gerusalemme
- San Lorenzo in Lucina
- San Marco (St. Mark)
- Santa Maria degli Angeli
- Santa Maria in Aracoeli
- Santa Maria sopra Minerva
- San Martino ai Monti
- San Pietro in Vincoli (St. Peter in Chains)
- Santa Prassede (St. Praxedis)
- San Saba
- Santa Sabina
- San Sebastiano fuori le mura
- Santi Quattro Coronati
- Santa Maria in Trastevere

Other important churches

The following do not yet have Wikipedia articles, but are important nonetheless:
- San Giorgio al Velabro;
- San Giovanni dei Fiorentini;
- San Lorenzo in Miranda (temple of Antoninus and Faustina)
- Santi Marcellino e Pietro;
- Santa Maria della Pace;
- Santa Maria dei Monti;
- Santo Stefano Rotondo;

Non-Christian places of worship

- Great Synagogue of Rome
- Great Mosque of Rome and Islamic Cultural Center Image:Sicht vom petersdom roma.jpg|View over Rome from St. Peter's Basilica. Image:RomeSinagogue.jpg|Rome's main Synagogue in the old Jewish Ghetto district, on the banks of the Tiber river.

Administrative subdivision of Rome

The Administrative subdivision of Rome consists in the division of the large territory of Rome into 19 Districts.

Province of Rome

Rome is the capital of a province, with an area of 5,352 sq. km, and a total population of 3,700,424 (2001) in 120 comuni. The province can be viewed as the extended metropolitan area of the town of Rome, although in its more peripheral portions, especially to the north, it comprises towns surrounded by firmly rural landscape, just as towns elsewhere thruout Italy.

Markets and shopping areas

Porta Portese

Street market on Sunday mornings, from very early to around 1pm, on the left bank of the Tiber, between Porto Portese and Stazione Trastevere, centred on Via Portuense. The wares are mainly clothes, both old and new. The second-hand clothing stalls are by far the more popular, with the clothes sorted by type (leathers and furs, jeans, coats, children’s clothes, etc) and piled on large tables with everything at the same (low) price. Tables start at 50c, and range up to 20 euro for high-quality leather and fur.

Campo de' Fiori

Campo de' Fiori is one of the oldest markets in Rome, where food and flowers are most frequently found. Though the name literally means "field of flowers," there are no fields in sight; it's in the middle of downtown Rome, off of the Corso Vittorio Emanuele II. The market is open every morning of the week except Sunday. Campo de' Fiori, surrounded by many bars and restaurants, is also a popular destination at night for locals and foreigners alike.

Symbols and trivia

Rome is commonly identified by several proper symbols, including the Colosseum, the she-wolf (Lupa capitolina), the imperial eagle, and the symbols of Christianity. The famous acronym SPQR recalls the ancient age and the unity between Roman Senate and Roman people. Rome is called "L'Urbe" (The City), "Caput mundi" (head of the world), "Città Eterna" (eternal city), and "Limen Apostolorum" (the threshold of the apostles). The town's colors are golden yellow and red (garnet): they stand, respectively, for christian and imperial dignities. Rome has two holidays of its own: April 21 (the founding of Rome), and June 29 (the feast of its patron saints, Peter and Paul). Other locally important dates are December 8 (the Immaculate Conception) and January 6 (Epiphany). The Grande Raccordo Anulare (commonly shortened "Il GRA" or "Il Raccordo"), which is more than 80 km long, once encircled the city. Rome has since grown past this round motorway, with new districts well beyond it. Some proverbs about the Eternal City:
- When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
- All roads lead to Rome.
- Rome wasn't built in a day. During its long history, Rome has always had a scarcity of native inhabitants, so by tradition a "true" Roman is one whose family has lived in Rome for no less than 7 generations: this is the original "Romano de Roma" (in Romanesco, the local dialect of Italian). For the autonomistic party Lega Nord, Rome is the symbol of the allegedly parasytical Italian central government, crystalized in their slogan Roma ladrona ("Thief Rome"). Image:Roma01.jpg|Senatus PopulusQue Romanus. Great Seal of Rome's municipality Image:polizia-roma.gif|Seal of Rome's City Police, with the seal and the she-wolf.

Events

Roma Europa Festival, September Annual appointment for modern art and theatre, music and dance, with artists from of all Europe. Festival Romics, October Comics and Cartoon Festival: exhibitions, cartoon film showings of designers and publishing companies. Roma Jazz Festival, October Festival of jazz music since of 1876. Italian and international artists. Roman Summers, from June to September Various events from music to theater, literary meetings and cinema. Events that take place in the most characteristic places in Rome that attract the participation of thousands of artists from all over the world.

Cultural Events

White Night

Series of events at venues throughout Rome on September: concerts, special outdoor performances, churches and monuments open to the public during, museums open all night with free entrance, shops open all nights. ([http://www.lanottebianca.it/index.asp?lang=en&destinazione=cosa_])

External links

- [http://www.comune.roma.it/cultura/ Official Site of the City of Rome]
- [http://www.romasotterranea.it/ Roma Sotterranea/Subterranean Rome]
- [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Europe/Italy/Lazio/Roma/Rome/home.html Bill Thayer's Gazetteer of Rome]
- [http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Arc/5319/eng.htm Andrea Pollett's Virtual Roma]
- [http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Agora/9259/roma_ant.htm Roma Antica e Roma Moderna], in Italian
- [http://www.forbeginners.info/rome/ Rome for Beginners]
- [http://www.alberghi-a.roma.it/info.htm Informations and useful numbers about Rome]

Ancient Rome

- [http://www.romeartlover.it/Rome.htm Rome in the footsteps of an XVIIIth Century traveller]
- [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia_romana/ Encyclopædia Romana, by James Grout]
- [http://www.maquettes-historiques.net/page4.html La maquette de Rome]
- [http://intranet.grundel.nl/thinkquest/introduction.html "Forum Romanum", a ThinkQuest site]
- [http://www.vroma.org/~forum/ "Forum Romanum" Project at VRoma]

Christian Rome

- See Wikipedia's category "Churches of Rome"

Galleries

- [http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov:81/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=15316 Satellite image of Rome] at NASA's Earth Observatory
- [http://myweb.lmu.edu/fjust/Rome.htm Ancient Rome, Images and Pictures]
- [http://map.cs.telespazio.it/fontane/index.html Fontanelle di Roma], including the aqueducts
- [http://www.compart-multimedia.com/virtuale/us/roma/movie.htm A virtual travel of Rome] pictures and virtual reality movies
- [http://www.rome.info/pictures/ Free Rome Pictures]
- [http://sabin.ro/gallery/album412 Rome Photo Gallery]
- [http://digilander.libero.it/fotogian/roma.html Photos of Rome]
- [http://www.photoroma.com/ PhotoRoma]
- [http://www2.siba.fi/~kkoskim/rooma/pages/MAIN.HTM Vedute di Roma]
- [http://www.secretrome.com Pictures of Rome]
- [http://rome.arounder.com/fullscreen.html Arounder.Com] (QTVR panoramas)

Maps

- [http://www.italy-weather-and-maps.com/maps/italy/lazio.gif Rome and environs (Lazio)]
- [http://www.statravel.co.uk/images/off/short_breaks/map/map_rom.gif downtown Rome]
- [http://www.walkingrome.com/links/Pianta-di-Roma-Web.jpg downtown Rome (WalkingRome)]
- [http://www.activitaly.it/infobase/index.php?lang=en Interactive map (Activitaly)]
- [http://www.duke.edu/~rkl7/Images/Rome%20City%20map.jpg Map of Ancient Rome]
- [http://maps.google.com/maps?q=rome&spn=0.039455,0.126549&t=k&hl=en Google Maps satellite images of Rome]

Travel guides

- Category:Capitals in Europe Category:Holy cities Category:Roman sites of the Lazio
- Category:Host cities of the Summer Olympic Games Category:World Heritage Sites in Italy Category:Christianity als:Rom ko:로마 ja:ローマ simple:Rome

St. Augustine

Augustine may refer to: Saints:
- Augustine of Hippo, (354-430) theologian, author of The City of God, Confessions
- Augustine of Canterbury, (d. 604) first Archbishop of Canterbury Or:
- Augustinians, an order of Catholic monk named after Augustine of Hippo
- Augustine Volcano on Augustine Island in Alaska
- St. Augustine, Florida, a city in the United States ko:아우구스티누스

Carthage

:This article is about the ancient city-state of Carthage in North Africa. For other uses of the word, see Carthage (disambiguation). Carthage (disambiguation)). The map also shows Italy and the islands of Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica.]] Carthage (from the Phoenician Qart-Hadasht "New City" (written without vowels as QRT HDŠT קרת חדשת), was an ancient city in North Africa located on the eastern side of Lake Tunis, across from the center of modern Tunis in Tunisia. It remains a popular tourist attraction.

Founding of Carthage

In approximately 814 BC, Carthage was founded by Phoenician settlers from the city of Tyre, bringing with them the city-god Melqart. Traditionally, the city was founded by Dido, and a number of foundation myths have survived through Greek and Roman literature. (See Byrsa for one example.) Carthage's early years were defined by a long rivalry between the landholding and maritime families. In general, due to the city's dependence on maritime trade, the maritime faction controlled the government, and during the 6th century BC, Carthage began to acquire dominance over the Western Mediterranean. Merchants and explorers established a vast network of trade, bringing wealth and power to the city-state. In the early 6th century BC, Hanno the Navigator is supposed to have sailed down the African coast as far as Nigeria. Meanwhile, under a leader named Malchus, the city began a systematic conquest of both the African interior and the coastal lands. In 509 BC a treaty was signed between Carthage and Rome indicating a division of influence and commercial activities. It is the first known source that indicated Carthage had gained control over Sicily and Sardinia. By the beginning of the 5th century BC, Carthage was the commercial center of the region, a position it would retain until overthrown by the Roman Republic. The city had conquered the territory of the old Phoenician colonies, such as Hadrumetum, Utica and Kerkouane, and the Libyan tribes, spreading its control along the North African coast from modern Morocco to the borders of Egypt. Its influence had also spread into the Mediterranean, with control over Sardinia, Malta, the Balearic Islands and the western half of Sicily. Colonies had also been established in Iberia. Iberia

Life in Carthage

Carthaginian Commerce

The early trading empire of Carthage depended heavily on its trade with Tartessos and other cities of the Iberian peninsula, from which it obtained vast quantities of silver and, even more importantly, tin ore, which was essential to the manufacture of bronze objects by the civilizations of antiquity. Carthage followed trade routes already established by her parent city, Tyre. When Tartessos fell, the Carthaginian ships went directly to the primary sources of tin in the northwestern section of the Iberian peninsula and further north, in Cornwall in the British Isles. Other Carthaginian ships went down the Atlantic coast of Africa and brought back gold from Senegal. One account has a Carthaginian trading vessel exploring Nigeria, including identification of distinguishing geographic features, such as a coastal volcano and an encounter with gorillas. (See Hanno the Navigator.) Non-permanent trade relations were established as far west as Madeira and the Canary Islands, and as far south as southern Africa. If the epic poetry of Greece and the contemporary historians of imperial Rome record the military opposition of Carthage to the forces of the Greek city states, and later to Rome, then it is very much to the Greek theatre and Greek comedies that we are indebted for depictions of the generic Carthaginian merchant, hawking cloth, pots and jewellery. He was usually portrayed as an amusing scoundrel, a relatively peaceful and colourful trader intent on making a profit and cheating noble but innocent Greeks of every spare penny they might have. Diggings show evidence of all kinds of exchanges, from the vast quantities of tin needed for a bronze-based metals civilization to all manner of textiles, ceramics and fine metalwork. Before and in between the wars Carthaginian merchants were in every port in the Mediterranean, buying and selling, establishing warehouses where they could, or just bargaining in open-air markets after getting off their ship. The Etruscan language has not yet been deciphered, but archaeological excavations of Etruscan cities show that the Etruscan civilization was for several centuries a customer and a vendor to Carthage, long before the rise of Rome. The Etruscan city-states were, at times, both commercial partners of Carthage and military allies.

Carthaginian Government

Carthage's government was an oligarchy, not unlike that of republican Rome, but few details are known. Roman writers referred to its heads of state as reges "kings"; Punic inscriptions and Greco-Roman accounts show the indigenous term was Sōfetīm "Judges" (the same name early rulers are given in the Bible), which might originally have been the title of the city's governor installed by the mother city of Tyre. Later, one sōfet or two sōfetêm, who were believed to have exercised judicial and executive (but not military) functions, were elected annually from among the most wealthy and influential families. These aristocratic families were represented in a supreme council comparable to the Roman senate that had a wide range of powers. However, it is not known whether the sōfetīm were elected by this council or by an assembly of the people. Although the city's administration was firmly controlled by oligarchs, democratic elements were to be found as well: Carthage had elected legislators, trade unions and town meetings. There was a system of checks and balances, as well as public accountability: the Head of the Admiralty would have to pay with his life for military defeat. Eratosthenes, head of the Greek library of Alexandria, noted that the Greeks had been wrong to describe all non-Greeks as barbarians, since the Carthaginians as well as the Romans had a constitution. Aristotle also knew and wrote about the Carthaginian constitution in his Politics (Book II, Chapter 11).

Carthaginian Religious Practices

Carthage under the Phoenicians was notorious to its neighbors for child sacrifice. Plutarch (ca. 46-120 CE) mentions the practice, as do Tertullian, Orosius and Diodorus Siculus. Livy and Polybius do not. Modern archeological excavations could be taken to confirm Plutarch's view. In a single child cemetery called the Tophet an estimated 20,000 urns were deposited between 400 BC and 200 BC, with the practice continuing until the early years of the Christian period. The urns contained the charred bones of newborns and in some cases the bones of fetuses and 2-year-olds. These remains have been interpreted to mean that in the cases of stillborn babies, the parents would sacrifice their youngest child. There is a clear correlation between the frequency of sacrifice and the well-being of the city. In bad times (war, poor harvests) sacrifices became more frequent, indicating an increased assiduousness in seeking divine appeasement. It is sometimes argued, however, that these bodies were merely the cremated remains of children that died naturally, although in light of other Canaanite evidence this seems less likely. The few Carthaginian texts which have survived make absolutely no mention of child sacrifice. It has been argued by some modern scholars that evidence of Carthaginian child sacrifice is sketchy at best and that it is far more likely to have been part of Roman propaganda against the Carthaginians to justify their conquest and destruction. The debate is ongoing among modern archeologists and other antiquarians. While the surviving Punic texts mention no practices of religious sacrifices, they are detailed enough to give a portrait of a very well organized caste of temple priests and acolytes performing different types of functions, for a variety of prices. Carthage had many gods. The supreme divine couple was that of Tanit and Ba`al Hammon. Priests were clean shaven, unlike most of the population. In the first centuries of the city ritual celebrations included rhythmic dancing, derived from Phoenician traditions. The goddess Astarte seems to have been popular in early times. At the height of its cosmopolitan era Carthage seems to have hosted a large array of divinities from the neighbouring civilizations of Greece, Egypt and the Etruscan city-states.

Conflict with the Greeks and Romans

First Sicilian War

Carthage's success led to the creation of a powerful navy to discourage both pirates and rival nations. This, coupled with its success and growing hegemony, brought Carthage into increasing conflict with the Greeks, the other major power contending for control of the central Mediterranean. The island of Sicily, lying at Carthage's doorstep, became the arena on which this conflict played out. From their earliest days, both the Greeks and Phoenicians had been attracted to the large island, establishing a large number of colonies and trading posts along its coasts. Small battles had been fought between these settlements for centuries. By 480 BC, Gelon, the tyrant of Greek Syracuse, backed in part by Greek support, was attempting to unite the island under his rule. This imminent threat could not be ignored, and Carthage - possibly as part of an alliance with Persia, then engaged in a war with Greece - fielded its largest military force to date, under the leadership of the general Hamilcar. Traditional accounts give Hamilcar's army a strength of three hundred thousand men; though these are almost certainly exaggerated, it must nonetheless have been of formidable force. En route to Sicily, however, Hamilcar suffered losses (possibly severe) due to poor weather. Landing at Panormus (modern-day Palermo), he was then decisively defeated by Gelon at the Battle of Himera. He was either killed during the battle or committed suicide in shame. The loss severely weakened Carthage, and the old government of entrenched nobility was ousted, replaced by the Carthaginian Republic.

Second Sicilian War

By 410 BC Carthage had recovered under a series of successful rulers. It had conquered much of modern day Tunisia, strengthened and founded new colonies in North Africa, and sponsored Mago Barca's journey across the Sahara Desert and Hanno the Navigator's journey down the African coast. Although, in that year, the Iberian colonies seceded—cutting off Carthage's major supply of silver and copper—Hannibal Mago, the grandson of Hamilcar, began preparations to reclaim Sicily, while expeditions were also led into Morocco and Senegal, and also into the Atlantic. In 409 BC, Hannibal Mago set out for Sicily with his force. He was successful in capturing the smaller cities of Selinus (modern Selinunte) and Himera, before returning triumphantly to Carthage with the spoils of war. But the primary enemy, Syracuse, remained untouched, and in 405 BC Hannibal Mago led a second Carthaginian expedition, this time to claim the island in its entirety. This time, however, he met with fierce resistance and ill-fortune. During the siege of Agrigentum, the Carthaginian forces were ravaged by plague, Hannibal Mago himself succumbing to it. Although his successor, Himilco, successfully extended the campaign by breaking a Greek siege, capturing the city of Gela and repeatedly defeating the army of Dionysius, the new tyrant of Syracuse, he, too, was weakened by the plague and forced to sue for peace before returning to Carthage. In 398 BC, Dionysius had regained his strength and broke the peace treaty, striking at the Carthaginian stronghold of Motya. Himilco responded decisively, leading an expedition which not only reclaimed Motya, but also captured Messina. Finally, he laid siege to Syracuse itself. The siege met with great success throughout 397 BC, but in 396 BC plague again ravaged the Carthaginian forces, and they collapsed. Sicily by this time had become an obsession for Carthage. Over the next sixty years, Carthaginian and Greek forces engaged in a constant series of skirmishes. By 340 BC, Carthage had been pushed entirely into the southwest corner of the island, and an uneasy peace reigned over the island.

Third Sicilian War

In 315 BC Agathocles, the tyrant of Syracuse, seized the city of Messene (present-day Messina). In 311 BC he invaded the last Carthaginian holdings on Sicily, breaking the terms of the current peace treaty, and laid siege to Akragas. Hamilcar, grandson of Hanno the Navigator, led the Carthaginian response and met with tremendous success. By 310 BC he controlled almost all of Sicily and had laid siege to Syracuse itself. In desperation, Agathocles secretly led an expedition of 14,000 men to the mainland, hoping to save his rule by leading a counterstrike against Carthage itself. In this, he was successful: Carthage was forced to recall Hamilcar and most of his army from Sicily to face the new and unexpected threat. Although Agathocles' army was eventually defeated in 307 BC, Agathocles himself escaped back to Sicily and was able to negotiate a peace which maintained Syracuse as a stronghold of Greek power in Sicily.

Pyrrhus of Epirus

Between 280 BC and 275 BC, Pyrrhus of Epirus waged two major campaigns in an effort to protect and extend the influence of the Greeks in the western Mediterranean: one against the emerging power of the Roman Republic to defend the Greek colonies in southern Italy, the other against Carthage in a renewed attempt to wrest Sicily wholly from their control. After winning a complete victory over Rome at Heraclea, and another complete yet very costly victory at Asculum, Pyrrhus was soon distracted by opportunities in mainland Greece which had recently been invaded by the Gauls, and the Greeks of Sicily. Making a temporary peace with the Romans he left for Sicily and between 278-276 BC, defeated every Carthaginian force against him. Pyrrhus even managed to take Eryx, the strongest Carthaginian holdout. Yet at Lilybaeum, the Carthaginians were able to hold out against Pyrrhus, and the invader, soon found that he was no longer welcome by the Greek Sicilians. Leaving once again for Italy, he fought the Romans once more to a draw. Not having the resources and manpower to continue, Pyrrhus left for Epirus. For Carthage, this meant a return to the status quo. For Rome, however, it meant capturing Tarentum and holding the entirety of Italy. The result was a shift in the balance of power in the western Mediterranean: the Greeks were effectively reduced to their toehold in Sicily, while Rome's growing strength and territorial ambitions brought it directly into conflict with Carthage for the first time.

The Messanan Crisis

When Agathocles died in 288 BC, a large company of Italian mercenaries who had previously been held in his service found themselves suddenly without employment. Rather than leave Sicily, they seized the city of Messana. Naming themselves Mamertines (or "sons of Mars"), they became a law unto themselves, terrorizing the surrounding countryside. The Mamertines became a growing threat to Carthage and Syracuse alike. In 265 BC, Hiero II, former general of Pyrrhus and the new tyrant of Syracuse, took action against them. Faced with a vastly superior force, the Mamertines divided into two factions, one advocating surrender to Carthage, the other preferring to seek aid from Rome. As a result, embassies were sent to both cities. While the Roman Senate debated the best course of action, the Carthaginians eagerly agreed to send a garrison to Messana. A Carthaginian garrison was admitted to the city, and a Carthaginian fleet sailed into the Messanan harbor. However, soon afterwards they began negotiating with Hiero; alarmed, the Mamertines sent another embassy to Rome asking them to expel the Carthaginians. Her intervention had placed Carthage's military forces directly across the narrow channel of water that separated Sicily from Italy. Moreover, the presence of the Carthaginian fleet gave them effective control over this channel, the Strait of Messina, and demonstrated a clear and present danger to nearby Rome and her interests. As a result, the Roman Assembly, although reluctant to ally with a band of mercenaries, sent an expeditionary force to return control of Messana to the Mamertines.

The Punic Wars

The Roman attack on the Carthaginian forces at Messana triggered the first of the Punic Wars. Over the course of the next century, these three major conflicts between Rome and Carthage would determine the course of Western civilization.
- The First Punic War (264 BC to 241 BC)
- The Second Punic War (218 BC to 201 BC)
- The Third Punic War (149 BC to 146 BC) Rome consistently triumphed over Carthage during the Punic Wars. The end of the Third Punic War resulted in the end of Carthaginian power and the complete destruction of the city by Scipio Aemilianus: Roman soldiers went from house to house, slaughtering the people of Carthage and enslaving any who survived. Carthage's harbor was burned and the city razed. Between the first and the second Punic war, Carthage faced a major mercenary revolt. During the mercenary revolt Rome was able to acquire Sardinia. It is disputed whether the Carthaginian farmland was salted following the Battle of Carthage.

Roman Carthage

Battle of Carthage. On the reverse, the personification of Carthage, his capital.]] The site was too well-chosen to let it go to waste, however, and a new city grew up there, eventually becoming the second largest city in the western half of the Roman empire. By the late 2nd century, Carthage was the center of the Roman province of Africa, with a population of over 400,000 people. It briefly became the capital of an usurper, Domitius Alexander, in 308-311. Carthage also became a centre of early Christianity. Tertullian rhetorically addresses the Roman governor with the fact that the Christians of Carthage that just yesterday were few in number, now "have filled every place among you—cities, islands, fortresses, towns, market-places, the very camp, tribes, companies, palaces, senate, forum; we have left nothing to you but the temples of your gods." (Apologeticus written at Carthage, c. 197.) It is worth noting that Tertullian omits any mention of the surrounding countryside or its network of villas not unlike colonial hacienda society. In the first of a string of rather poorly reported Councils at Carthage a few years later, no fewer than seventy bishops attended. Tertullian later broke with the mainstream that was represented more and more by the bishop of Rome, but a more serious rift among Christians was the Donatist controversy, which drew in the young Augustine of Hippo while he finished his education at Carthage before moving on to Rome. In 397 at the Council at Carthage, the Biblical canon for the western Church was confirmed. The political fallout from the deep disaffection of African Christians was a crucial factor in the ease with which Carthage and the other centres were captured in the 5th century by Gaiseric, king of the Vandals, who defeated the Byzantine general Bonifacius and made the city his capital. Gaiseric was considered a heretic too, an Arian, and though Arians commonly despised Catholic Christians, a mere promise of toleration might have caused the city's population to accept him. After a failed attempt to recapture the city in the 5th century, the Byzantines finally subdued the Vandals in the 6th century. Using Gaiseric's grandson's deposal by a distant cousin, Gelimer, as a pretext, the Byzantines dispatched an army to conquer the Vandal kingdom. On Sunday, October 15 533, the Byzantine general Belisarius, accompanied by his wife Antonina, made his formal entry into Carthage, sparing it a sack and a massacre. During the emperor Maurice's reign, Carthage was made into an Exarchate, as was Ravenna in Italy. These two exarchates were the western bulwarks of Byzantium, all that remained of its power in the west. In the early 7th century, it was the Exarch of Carthage, Heraclius (of Armenian origin), who overthrew Emperor Phocas. The Byzantine Exarchate was not, however, able to withstand the Arab conquerors of the 7th century. The first Arab assault on the Exarchate of Carthage was initiated from Egypt without much success in 647. A more protracted campaign lasted from 670-683. In 698 the Exarchate of Africa was finally overrun by the rising forces of Islam, and Carthage itself was destroyed by the Arab invaders, to be replaced by Tunis as the major regional center.

Carthage in fiction

- Hannibal's Children, an alternate history novel, about the Carthaginians.
- Gustave Flaubert, Salammbô, a novel on the mercenary wars in North Africa and around Carthage.

References

#Hannibal's Campaigns. Tony Bath. New York, NY: Barnes & Noble Books, 1981. #Late Carthaginian Child Sacrifice and Sacrificial Monuments in their Mediterranean Context. Shelby Brown. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1991. #La vie quotidienne à Carthage au temps d'Hannibal. Gilbert et Colette Charles-Picard. Paris: Hachette, 1958. #La légende de Carthage. Azedine Beschaouch. Paris: Gallimard, 1993. #Carthage: Uncovering the Mysteries and Splendors of Ancient Tunisia. David Soren, Aicha Ben Abed Ben Kader, Heidi Slim. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1990. #The Phoenicians and the West: Politics, colonies and trade. Maria Eugenia Aubet. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987. #Itineraria Phoenicia.Edward Lipinski. Leuven: Uitgeverij Peeters en Departement Oosterse Studies, 2004. #Carthage is also the codename of the mysterious fifth sector in the French animation series, Code Lyoko

Adam

:For other uses of Adam or Eve, see Adam (disambiguation) and Eve (disambiguation). For the orchid species commonly called Adam and Eve, see Aplectrum hyemale. According to the Book of Genesis in Judaism's Torah, the Christian Bible and Islam's Qur'an, Adam was the first man created by God. At Genesis 1:27 Adam's female mate is said to have been created with Adam, and at Genesis 2:21-22 Adam's wife is named as Eve (or Chava-חוה) and was created from his rib. Hence, Eve has, in modern times, been thought of as the first woman, according to these texts, though classical traditions recorded in the Midrash make her the second.. The Qur'an tells the story of Adam and Eve mainly in 2:30-39, 7:11-25, 15:26-44, 17:61-65, 20:115-124, 38:71-85., and the Book of Genesis tells the story at chapters 2-3.

Interpretation of names

Adam—אָדָם in Standard Hebrew, ʾĀḏām in Tiberian Hebrew, آدم (ʾĀdam) in Arabic, አዳም ('Adam) in Geez (Ethiopic), and Adamus in Latin — translates literally as red earth. In the ancient cultures of the fertile crescent, people were thought to have been created from the earth itself, and so the term red earth was used to refer to mankind generally. Indeed Adam, in the Kazakh language means human, and Adamshylyk is mankind, and in most other turkic languages Adam also means man or human. However, in the Sibylline Oracles, the name Adam is explained as a notaricon composed of the initials of the four directions; anatole (east), dusis (west), arktos (north), and mesembria (south). The Jews had their own acrostic interpretation of the name Adam. In the 2nd century CE, Rabbi Yohanan used the Greek technique of notarichon to explain the name אָדָם as the initials of the words afer, dam, and marah, being dust, blood, and gall. Eve—חַוָּה (Ḥavva) in Standard Hebrew, Ḥawwāh in Tiberian Hebrew, حواء (Ḥawwāʾ) in Arabic, ሕይዋን (Hiywan) in Geez, and Eva/Eua or Geva in Latin — means simply living one, i.e. Life. Hence these names are literal descriptions of the purported mother of humanity, and of a purported founder of mankind.

The life of Adam (and Eve)

Adam's creation

Life Life] Adam is said, in the torah, to have been created from the dust of the earth, and in the Talmud (Tractate Sanhedrin 38b) is, more specifically, described as having initially been a golem (a bit like a zombie slave) kneaded together from mud. The important early Islamic commentator Tabari adds a number of details, based on claimed hadith as well as Jewish traditions (so-called isra'iliyyat). Tabari records that when it came time to create Adam, God sent Gabriel, then Michael, to fetch clay from the earth; but the earth complained, saying I take refuge in God from you, if you have come to diminish or deform me, so the angels returned empty-handed. Tabari goes on to state that God responded by sending the Angel of Death, who took clay from all regions, hence providing an explanation for the variety of appearances of the different races of mankind. In the torah, God is initially described, at Genesis 1:26, as breathing the breath of life into the nostrils of the first man, and while this is usually interpreted in Judao-Christian circles as having been fairly immediate, according to Tabari's account, Adam remained a dry body for 40 days, then gradually came to life from the head downwards, sneezing when he had finished coming to life, saying All praise be to God, the Lord of all beings. Having been created, Adam, the first man, is described as having been given dominion over all the lower creatures, which he proceeds to name. As one of the people to whom God is said to have spoken to directly, Adam is seen as a prophet in Islam.

The fall of Satan

At this point, Adam takes a prominent role in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic, traditions concerning the fall of Satan, which is not recorded in the torah, though is present in the historically important Book of Enoch. In these, when God announces his intention of creating Adam, some of the angels express dismay, asking why he would create a being that would do evil. Teaching Adam the names reassures the angels as to Adam's abilities, though commentators dispute which particular names were involved; various theories say they were the names of all things animate and inanimate, the names of the angels, or the names of his own descendants. When God orders the angels to bow to Adam one of those present, Satan (Iblis in Islam, regarded as a jinn rather than an angel), refuses due to his pride, and is summarily banished from the heavens. Liberal movements within Islam have viewed God's commanding the angels to bow before Adam as an exaltation of humanity, and as a means of supporting human rights. More extended versions of the fall of Satan exist in which he leads a divine war, which, while in works such as the Book of Enoch is recorded as being in heaven after Satan turns away from God, by works such as that of Tabari, and the Shia commentator al-Qummi, is explained as being heaven sent against the jinn, who had angered God by sin and fighting. In such versions where Satan leads the battle on God's behalf, rather than his own, it is the pride and conceit resulting from his victory which results in his expulsion, since pride is here seen as a sin. Islamic traditions further record that, in vengeful anger, Iblis promises God that he will lead as many humans astray as he can, to which God replies that it is the choice of humans - those who desire to will follow Satan, while those who desire to will follow God.

Eve's creation

At this point, in the torah, Yahweh is described as causing a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and removing part of his body, usually interpreted as a rib (though a more literal translation is non-specific). From this body part, Eve is subsequently created, as a companion to alleviate Adam's loneliness, and while Eve, is not mentioned by name in the Qur'an, she is nevertheless referred to as Adam's spouse, and Islamic tradition refers to her by an etymologically similar name - Hawwa. In fact, although her creation is not recounted in the Qur'an, Tabari recounts the biblical tale of her creation, stating that she was named because she was created from a living thing (her name means living). The torah gives an etymology for woman, or rather the Hebrew equivalent (ish-shah), stating that she should be called woman since she was taken out of man (ish in hebrew). The etymology is regarded as implausible by most semitic linguists.

Traditions regarding Adam and other wives

rib] In Genesis, there are two separate accounts of creation, one at Genesis 1-2:3 and another after Genesis 2:4. While creationists and many other religious people believe these to be written by the same author to represent two different perspectives, most biblical scholars support the documentary hypothesis, which claims each account derived from separate source texts that were later combined, with Eve's name and story being present only in the Yahwist text. Nevertheless, in ancient times, the presence of two distinct accounts was noted, and regarded with some curiosity. The first account says male and female [God] created them, which was viewed to imply simultaneous creation, whereas the second account states that God created Eve from Adam's rib because Adam was lonely. Consequently, to resolve the accounts, rabbis suggested that Eve and the woman of the first account were two separate individuals. Preserved in the Midrash, and the mediaeval Alphabet of Ben Sira, this tradition held that the first woman refused to take the submissive position to Adam in sex, and eventually fled from him, consequently leaving him lonely. This first woman was identified in the Midrash as Lilith, a figure elsewhere described as a night demon. In a context separate to Adam, at Isaiah 34:14 Lilith is explicitely mentioned by name, though often not appearing in translations - her name (liyliyth in the Masoretic text) is replaced by the phrase screech owl in the KJV. In the Talmud, Adam is said to have separated from Eve for 130 years, during which time his ejaculations gave rise to ghouls, and demons. Elsewhere in the Talmud, Lilith is identified as the mother of these creatures. The demons were said to prey on newborn males before they had been circumcised, and so a tradition arose in which a protective amulet was placed around the neck of newborns. Traditions in the Midrash concerning Lilith, and her sexual appetite, are believed ultimately to derive from Sumerian mythology concerning the demon ki-sikil-lil-la-ke, via an intermediate akkadian folk etymology interpreting the lil-la-ke portion of the name as a corruption of lîlîtu, literally meaning female night demon. The Alphabet of Ben Sira goes further and identifies a third wife, created after lilith deserted Adam, but before Eve. This unnamed wife was purportedly made in the same way as Adam, from the "dust of the earth", but the sight of her being created proved too much for Adam to take and he refused to go near her. It is also said that she was created from nothing at all, and that God created into being a skeleton, then organs, and then flesh. The midrash tells that Adam saw her as "full of blood and secretions," suggesting that he may have actually witnessed her creation and was horrified at seeing a body from the inside out. Ben Sira does not record this wife's fate. She was never named, and it assumed that she was allowed to leave the Garden a perpetual virgin, or was ultimately destroyed by God in favor of Eve, who was created when Adam was asleep and oblivous.

The fall of Man

folk etymology–1625).]] The main story concerning Adam is traditionally regarded as extremely important, religiously. This recounts how Adam and Eve are placed in the Garden of Eden, and allowed to cultivate, and enjoy, its fruit, as well as to live innocently. However, there was one tree they were explicitely forbidden from eating - the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil - a tree which is otherwise unidentified, but it has usually been interpreted as a fig tree or as an apple tree. The torah then records that a serpent, a creature described by the torah as at that point having four legs, approached Eve and persuaded her to eat the forbidden fruit, saying you won't die. In the torah, Eve persuades Adam, and so, having eaten the fruit, they both become disturbed by their nudity, making aprons of fig leaves to cover themselves. The torah goes on to state that God personally questions them about this, and on discovering they have disobeyed, expells them from Eden before they can access the tree of life, which grants immortality, and curses the serpent to lose its legs so that it has to crawl, and to have mutual hatred for mankind. In Later traditions, including those of Tabari, interpreted the serpent as a disguised Satan, though Gnostic accounts turned this on its head, and the serpent was seen as the hero, particularly to Ophites, who was trying to help the couple gain knowledge to defeat an evil Yahweh, whom the Gnostics saw as the demiurge. It should be noted here, that both Lilith and the Second Wife are free from any curse of the Tree of Knowledge, they left long before the event occured. The torah states that Adam and Eve were expelled to the East, and at the eastern entrance of the garden, God placed Cherubim, and a flaming sword, which turned every way. Eastern Orthodox tradition says that this sword was removed once Jesus was born, in order for it to be possible for humanity to return to Paradise. Al-Qummi records the opinion that Eden was not entirely earthly, and so, having been sent to earth, Adam and Eve first arrived at mountain peaks outside Mecca; Adam on Safa, and Eve on Marwa. In this Islamic tradition, Adam remained weeping for 40 days, until he repented, at which point God rewarded him by sending down the Kaaba, and teaching him the hajj. Other Islamic traditions hold that Adam was moved to Sri Lanka, as the next best thing to Eden, and, viewing Adam as having been a giant, human size having shrunking drastically before the great flood, Adam's Peak is said to contain his giant footprint.

East of Eden

Adam's Peak).]] Genesis does not tell for how long Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, but the Book of Jubilees states that they were removed from the garden on the new moon of the fourth month of the 8th year after creation (Jubilees 3:33); traditional Jewish sources assert that it was less than a day. Shortly after their expulsion, Eve brought forth her first-born child, and therafter their second; Cain and Abel respectively. The Qur'an also describes the two sons of Adam (named Qabil and Habil in Islamic tradition, but not mentioned by name in the Qur'an) that correspond to Cain and Abel. After Cain kills Abel, and is cursed to wander, Adam and Eve conceive a third child, named Seth, who, with Cain, gives rise to the two family lines of the Generations of Adam. Only three of Adam's children (Cain, Abel, and Seth) are explicitely named in Genesis, though it does state that there were other sons and daughters as well (Genesis 5:4). In Jubilees, two daughters are named - Azûrâ being the first, and Awân, who is born after Seth, Cain, Abel, nine other sons, and Azûrâ. Jubilees goes on to state that Cain later marries Awân and Seth marries Azûrâ, thus, despite the incest, accounting for their descendants. However, according to Genesis Rabba, and other later sources, either Cain had a twin sister, and Abel had two twin sisters, or Cain had a twin sister named Lebuda, and Abel a twin sister named Qelimath. In Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan, Cain's twin sister is named Luluwa, and Abel's twin sister is named Aklia. Other pseudepigrapha give further details of their life outside of Eden, in particular, the Life of Adam and Eve (also known as the Apocalypse of Moses) consisting entirely of a description of their life outside Eden. As the first man, Adam posed a significant figure to attribute prophecy and wisdom to. The Gnostics created an esoteric tract, the Apocalypse of Adam, purportedly containing the enlightenment Adam received. While the Gnostics used texts as teaching devices, rather than viewing them to be literal accounts genuinely written by early patriarchs, the converse was true of what became official Christianity. The Testament of Adam represents a mainstream attempt to produce a faked ancient prophecy, of events that had supposedly already occurred by the time it was published. According to the bible, Adam finally died at the age of 930 years, the traditional Jewish view being he and Eve are currently buried in the Cave of Machpelah, in Hebron.

Historicity

Historically, creationists of the Christian, Jewish, and Islamic traditions, from Nennius to William Whiston, held that Adam and Eve were historical figures. Many gave credence to the works of James Ussher, who viewed them to have lived approximately 6,000, basing their calculations on the Genealogies of Genesis and Table of Nations. With the advent of archaeological discoveries, the theory of evolution, and genetic science the traditional view came to be challenged, and the majority of scholars, as well as many large mainstream religious denominations, today reject the historicity of Adam and Eve. Nevertheless, creationist organizations such as Answers in Genesis and the Institute for Creation Research continue to view them as historical individuals.

Ancestry and evolutionary biology

A theory of a single male and female human ancestor is almost completely contradictory to most modern synthesis of the theory of evolution, which posits that humans evolved from ape-like creatures, gradually. Nevertheless, in modern genetic studies a female individual has been identified who was the female ancester of every single person alive today. Detected via the DNA of mitochondria, which are only inherited matrilineally, she has become named Mitochondrial Eve, after the biblical figure. Similarly, a single male ancestor has been identified for all humans that are now living, via the Y chromosome, which is only passed patrilineally. Hence this male is known as Y-chromosomal Adam after the Adam of the bible. Based on DNA analysis of living ethnic groups, these two individuals are believed to have lived in Africa rather than the east of Arabia. Also, judging from Molecular clock and Genetic marker studies, Y-chromosomal Adam has been dated to having lived some 60,000 and 90,000 years ago, some time substantially before the date suggested for the biblical Adam to have according to Ussher and young earth creationists. Similarly Mitochondrial Eve is dated much earlier, though to about 150,000 years ago, at least 60,000 years preceeding Y-chromosomal Adam. While this may appear confusing, and seem in part to support the biblical idea of a single pair of ancestors (though living 60,000 years apart), the appearance that there were initially just two individuals is in fact an illusion. The matrilinial line of each modern individual will converge with that of another each time a pair of ancestral sisters is reached. However, at no point can the matrilinial lines ever diverge, as you progress further back in time, since at no point were there two biological mothers of a single individual. Hence it is inevitable that all lines will at some point contain the same individual. Similar logic applies for the human patrilinial line, and for patrilinial and matrilinial lines for each animal, for example of ants. While the significance of these two individuals is illusory, genetic studies have indicated the presence of a population bottleneck about 70,000 years ago, indicating at that time there were only a few thousand (possibly only 1000) individuals. However, rather than turn to the bible, taking the explanation of descent from a single human pair, most scientists turn to more scientific theories, predominantly the Toba catastrophe theory. In this, prior to the event there were a much greater number of individuals, but when an extremely large volcano erupted at Toba, the result was an increase in global temperature sufficient to cause environmental change, leading to the reduction of human population.

The Sumerian connection

erupted at Toba William Blake (1808).]] Tales involving Enki and Ninhursag in Sumerian mythology, and Adapa in later mythology, has been put forward by several scholars as a likely candidate for large parts of the story of Adam and Eve, most controversially by David Rohl in 2005, but also by established scholars of Sumeria such as Kramer, in 1981. In the Sumerian myth, Ninhursag creates a beautiful garden full of lush vegetation and fruit trees called Edinu, a name remarkably similar to Eden. Ninhursag creates the garden for herself, but fearing for its protection while she is away, charges Enki, her lover, with the responsibility to control wild animals, and tend the garden. Enki, however, becomes curious, and desires to know about the plants. His assistant selects several plants, offering them to Enki. This enranges Nisnhursag, and she curses Enki with death. As a result of the curse, Enki becomes increasingly ill, feeling pain in eight parts of his body, one of which is his rib. The other gods realise he is dying and so persuade Ninhursag to relent. In response Ninhursag creates a new goddess named Ninti, a name which translates both as Lady of Living and Lady of the Rib, to cure the sickness. One of Ninhursag's other names was Nintu, and most scholars hence view the story of Ninti as deriving from a pun on her name, arising after Nintu became corrupted to Ninti. Ninhursag has the epithet mother of all offspring, and hence holds the same position as Eve - mother of all living (Genesis 3:29). Another significant connection is in the name of Ninti, as Eve's name means living, and Eve is produced from Adam's rib. If one story were derived from the other, because the pun with rib is present only in Sumerian, linguistic criticism places the Sumerian as the more original account. Enki himself was both the lover of Ninhursag, and the first leader on earth, and both he and Ninhursag were created by the chief god, Enlil, hence having parallels with Adam in addition to the story of the rib, and his charge over the garden. Mankind is additionally described as being fashioned from clay in Sumerian myth, though by the Babylonian era, the clay was said to have had the blood of an unspecified god, who was murdered, mixed with it. This supernatural importance of blood is not present in Sumerian myth, but is recorded in certain sections of the torah, for example Leviticus records that the life is in the blood. While the Sumerian/Babylonian myth involves multiple deities in the creation of man, in the monotheist account in the torah, this is not possible. Knowledge generally was viewed in Sumerian myth as deriving from trees. This is explicitely present in a myth of Inanna and Utu, explaining how Inanna, goddess of lust, initially gained knowledge about sex by descending to earth and eating from various plants and trees, in particular Cedars. The merging of this motif, with that of forbidden fruit in the story of Enki and Ninhursag, to produce that of genesis, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, has been suggested by scholars of ancient near eastern mythology, such as Leick. By the Babylonian era, Enki had become viewed as more removed from humanity, and his place as the first leader of man was taken by an individual named Adapa, who was a human, but created by a god. One 14th century BC tablet in fact refers to Adapa as the seed of mankind. One myth recounts that Adapa broke the wings of the south wind in anger at being disturbed fishing, and so was called to the heavens to answer for doing so. Once there, he was warned not to touch the food, in case it had been poisoned in revenge, but the food and drink of immortality were set before him, and thus in gaining the warning, he lost out on immortality. The god which offered the food and drink of immortality was the wily serpent-god Ningishzida. While in the biblical account it is knowledge which the serpent offers, what the serpent actually remarks to Eve is that she shall not die. The food and drink of the gods originated from the earth, and hence somewhere lay the source of the food and drink of immortality, a Tree of Life. Nevertheless, in the biblical account, the food is consumed, not rejected, and the couple are punished for it by being expelled from the garden. Thus any derivation of the biblical account from Sumerian and Babylonian ones involves the confusion of the tale of Adapa and the south wind and that of Enki in the garden. Such a conflation of these two separate tales may have been influenced by a story preserved in the prologue of Gilgamesh, Enkidu and the Underworld. In this, Inanna, transplants the huluppu tree from the Euphrates to her own garden, but a wicked serpent made its nest amongst the roots of the tree, and could not be charmed. This tale connects the serpent to the garden, as well as, due to the presence of Inanna, holding knowledge coming from trees, and the theme of lust. Removing the part about Enki's rib from the story, and moving it to the start, would have allowed the failure to gain immortality being seen as punishment for eating the fruit, rather than a failure to obtain a gift.

Cultural influence

Enkidu of The Expulsion (1426–1427) lost the added fig leaves.]] Early Renaissance artists used the theme of Adam and Eve as a way to represent female and male nudes in a then morally acceptable way. Later, the nudity was objected to by powerful, more prudent, elements, and a fig leaf was added to the older pictures, and sculpture, covering their genitals. The choice of the fig was down to mediterranian traditions identifying the unnamed Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil as a fig tree, since figs, common in the area, were viewed as an aphrodisiac. In Western Europe, the unnamed Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil became considered a form of apple, partly since the germanic word apple originally meant any kind of fruit, only later becoming specialised. The larynx in the human throat, noticeably more prominent in males, was consequently called an Adam's apple, due to a notion that it was caused by the forbidden fruit sticking in Adam's throat as he swallowed, and the name has stuck. The fig leaf became used more generally to cover up any nudity by any individual, and hence depictions involving apples came also to involve fig leafs. In Aramaic, the spelling of the name of Eve - חיויה or חיווי - also means snake. Together with the serpent of the story of the fall, this has lead to much iconography involving snakes wrapped around women. In particular, Lilith is often depicted with a snake wrapped around her. Such depictions were often an excuse for sexual suggestiveness, and phallic symbolism.

References

- Mahmoud Ayoub, The Qur'an and its Interpreters, SUNY: Albany, 1984.
- R. Patai, The Jewish Alchemists, Princeton University Press, 1994.
- Fazale Rana and Ross, Hugh, Who Was Adam: A Creation Model Approach to the Origin of Man, 2005, ISBN 1-576-83577-4
- Sibylline Oracles, III; 24-6. This Greek acrostic also appears in 2 Enoch 30:13.
- David Rohl, Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation, 1998
- Bryan Sykes, The Seven Daughters of Eve

External links

- [http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/world/human.html First Human Beings] (Library of Congress)
- [http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~humm/Topics/Lilith/alphabet.html The Story of Lilith in The Alphabet of Ben Sira]
- [http://www.islamfrominside.com/Pages/Podcasts/Fall%20of%20Adam%20podcast.html Islamic view of the fall of Adam (audio)] Category:Torah people ja:アダムとイヴ th:อาดัม

Jesus

Jesus, also known as Jesus of Nazareth, is the central figure of Christianity, in which context he is known as Jesus Christ (from the Greek Ιησούς Χριστός ; transliteration: "Iesous Christos"; "Christ" not being a surname, but rather a title). He is also considered an important prophet in Islam. Jesus is accepted to have been a historical person, by both followers of the Christian tradition and most academics, who lived from about 8-4 BC/BCE to AD 29-36 CE. The primary sources regarding his life and teachings, which took written form some time after his death, are the four canonical Gospels from the New Testament of the Bible, which depict him – among many other things – as a Jewish Galilean preacher and healer who was often at odds with Jewish religious authorities, and who was crucified outside of Jerusalem during the rule of the Roman prefect Pontius Pilate. After his death, numerous followers spread his teachings, and within a few centuries Christianity emerged as a major religion distinct from Judaism. Beyond the historical information accepted by most secular scholars, the gospels make various additional claims about Jesus: that Jesus was the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament (or Hebrew Bible); that he was the son of God; that his mother Mary conceived Christ while a virgin; and that after his crucifixion he rose from the dead, and then ascended into heaven. Most Christians hold that the Gospels also attribute divinity to Jesus; however, others hold that the Gospels are equivocal on the subject. Many Christians and some scholars believe that the accounts in the New Testament are historical facts, though others maintain that different parts have different degrees of accuracy, and a few scholars hold Jesus did not exist at all. In Islam, Jesus (called Isa) is considered one of God's most beloved and important prophets, a bringer of divine scripture, and also the messiah; although Muslims attach a different meaning to this term than Christians as they do not share the Christian belief in the divinity of Jesus. The Qur'an, Islam's holy book, states unambiguously that Jesus neither died nor was crucified. The same passage, however, admits of multiple interpretations on his status after that event; the majority interpretation is that the Qur'an states that he was raised to heaven by God. (An alternate, and minority, interpretation, is that he was exalted among human beings.) Based on sayings attributed to Muhammad, Muslims believe Jesus will return to earth once it has become full of sin and injustice. Other religions also have different perspectives on Jesus, but do not place significant importance on his life and teachings.

Life and teachings, based upon the Gospels

Chronology

The most detailed accounts of Jesus' birth are contained in the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of Luke. There is considerable debate about the details of Jesus' birth even among Christian scholars, and few scholars claim to know either the year or the date of his birth or of his death. Based on the accounts in the gospels of the shepherds' activities, the time of year depicted for Jesus' birth could be spring or summer. However, as early as 354, Roman Christians celebrated it following the December solstice in an attempt to replace the Roman festival of Saturnalia. Before then, Jesus' birth was generally celebrated on January 6 as part of the feast of Theophany, also known as Epiphany, which commemorated not only Jesus' birth but also his baptism by John in the Jordan River and possibly additional events in Jesus' life. In the 248th year of the Diocletian Era (based on Diocletian's ascension to the Roman throne), Dionysius Exiguus attempted to pinpoint the number of years since Jesus' birth, arriving at a figure of 753 years after the founding of Rome. Dionysius then set Jesus' birth as being December 25 1 ACN (for "Ante Christum Natum", or "before the birth of Christ"), and assigned AD 1 to the following year—thereby establishing the system of numbering years from the birth of Jesus: Anno Domini (which translates as "in the year of the Lord"). This system made the then current year 532, and almost two centuries later it won acceptance and became the established calendar in Western civilization due to its championing by the Venerable Bede. However, based on a lunar eclipse that Josephus reports shortly before the death of Herod the Great, the birth of Christ would have been some time before the year 4 BC/BCE. This estimate itself relies on the historicity of the story in the Gospel of Matthew of the Massacre of the Innocents under the orders of Herod — an event mentioned nowhere else in contemporaneous accounts. Having fewer sources and being further removed in time from the authors of the New Testament, establishing a reliable birth date now is particularly difficult. The exact date of Jesus' death is also unclear. The Gospel of John depicts the crucifixion just before the Passover festival on Friday 14 Nisan, called the Quartodeciman, whereas the synoptic gospels describe the Last Supper, immediately before Jesus' arrest, as the Passover meal on Friday 15 Nisan. Further, the Jews followed a lunisolar calendar with phases of the moon as dates, complicating calculations of any exact date in a solar calendar. According to John P. Meier's A Marginal Jew, allowing for the time of the procuratorship of Pontius Pilate and the dates of the Passover in those years, his death can be placed most probably on April 7, 30 or April 3, 33.

Family and early life

33 According to the Gospels, Jesus was born in Bethlehem to Mary, a virgin, via the Holy Spirit. The Gospel of Luke gives an account of the angel Gabriel visiting Mary to tell her that she was chosen to bear the son of God ([http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%201:26-28&version=31 Luke 1:26-28]). Catholics call this the Annunciation. Joseph, Mary's betrothed husband, appears only in stories of Jesus' childhood; this is generally taken to mean that he was dead by the time of Jesus' ministry. Mark 6:3 (and analogous passages in Matthew and Luke) reports that Jesus was "Mary's son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon," and also states that Jesus had sisters. The 1st-century Jewish historian Josephus and the Christian historian Eusebius (who wrote in the 4th century but quoted much earlier sources that are now lost) refer to James the Just as Jesus' brother (See Desposyni). However, Jerome argued that they were Jesus' cousins, which the Greek word for "brother" used in the gospels would allow. This was based on the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox tradition that Mary remained a perpetual virgin, thus having no biological children before or after Jesus. Luke's gospel records that Mary was a relative of Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist (Luke 1:36). The Bible, however, does not reveal exactly how Mary and Elizabeth were related. Jesus' childhood home is represented as Nazareth in Galilee. Aside from a flight to Egypt in infancy to escape Herod's Massacre of the Innocents, all other events in the Gospels are set in ancient Israel. Only one incident between his infancy and his adult life, the Finding in the Temple, is mentioned in the canonical gospels, although New Testament apocrypha go into these details, some quite extensively. For most Christians, only the virgin birth and the Incarnation itself are major articles of faith for this per

Caelestius

See also

Pelagius

Beginnings

Persecutions

Augustine

Jerome

Diospolis

Pope Innocent I

Pope Zosimus

Death and Later

Influences of Pelagianism

Pelagius in Literature and Film

See also

External links

Rome

History

Demographics

Economy

Transportation

Education

Monuments and sights

Houses of worship

Churches

Basilicas

Patriarchal basilicas

Other basilicas

Other important churches

Non-Christian places of worship

Administrative subdivision of Rome

Province of Rome

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Porta Portese

Campo de' Fiori

Symbols and trivia

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Cultural Events

White Night

External links

Ancient Rome

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Galleries

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St. Augustine

Carthage

Founding of Carthage

Life in Carthage

Carthaginian Commerce

Carthaginian Government

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Conflict with the Greeks and Romans

First Sicilian War

Second Sicilian War

Third Sicilian War

Pyrrhus of Epirus

The Messanan Crisis

The Punic Wars

Roman Carthage

Carthage in fiction

References

See also

Adam

Interpretation of names

The life of Adam (and Eve)

Adam's creation

The fall of Satan

Eve's creation

Traditions regarding Adam and other wives

The fall of Man

East of Eden

Historicity

Ancestry and evolutionary biology

The Sumerian connection

Cultural influence

References

See also

External links

Jesus

Life and teachings, based upon the Gospels