Christian Symbols

The Anchor

In Christianity the Anchor represents Christian hope, it is also the symbol of St. Clement of Rome, who was martyred by being strapped to an anchor and drowned. This symbol is most commonly found in Roman catacombs. This symbol is also very commonly found is early cemeteries, like the ones in St. Domitilla and Priscilla.

If I was made to make a mosaic 1500 years ago, I would probably cheat, namely paying someone else to do it, or take a huge tile, paint the picture on it and the after gluing it on the wall/floor, I would crack the tile with a hammer, making it look like a mosaic. To actually glue every piece one by one would take years, and you would have to be either very lucky of very organized to make a picture out of it. I also imagine it would be unbelievable tedious and would take most of an artists life to finish.

Christian Saints

There are many Christian Saints in the world, too many to remember. The Saint I chose to post on Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, other names include Cathrine Tekaktwitha and Lily of the Mohawks, which was given to her because her symbol is the flower, and the clan she was born in was called the Mohawk.. She was born on April 17th, 1656 till she died in 1680, after confessing her vow to virginity when she was only 24. She started life in New France as a Iroquios Native American and an Aglonquin. She became a Roman Catholic at an early age and was exiled from her tribe. She is the first Native American woman to be held in respect and honor in a Roman Catholic Church, and she practiced something called the mortification of the flesh, which means that she induced pain on herself that imitates Jesus' pain. She is told to have slept on thorns and walk over rocks. She is the patron saint for environmentalists.

Female Politicians

Angela Merkel

She is the number 1 most powerful woman in the world, she is the Chancellor of Germany, at the age of 58 this year she controls 2.9 trillion dollars of Germany's GDP, and influences another 14.8 trillion dollars in the European Union. She is the 4th most powerful person in the world. She is not as recognized as Hillary Clinton but she controls much more. Where ever she goes for conferences she is greeted at the airport by very important people. When she arrived at the airport in Israel she was greeted by the president himself, the only other person to receive the honor was George Bush.

Angela Merkel was born on the 17th of July in 1954. She is the first female Chancellor of Germany and very popular, the French put more trust in her than in their own president. I chose to do a bibliography on Angela Merkel because she is one of the most influential and powerful people in the world.

The Fall of Rome

Summarize the reasons for the fall of Rome. In your opinion, which reason(s) was
the most important and why?
The are many reasons for why Rome fell, the Pax Romana ended, and military commanders started to fight for power, and then Rome went through some very bad emperors. Another reason that Rome fell was because it was getting too big, it was becoming more difficult to control its borders and they needed more soldiers, this made people want to take the Roman cities for its riches and fertile lands. This was one of the main reasons the barbarian tribes, as the Romans called them attacked Rome in 410 AD. It lasted many years but soon the last emperor was forced out of western Rome by the barbarians in 476 AD. The Romans blamed the attacks on Christianity, but I think the fall of Rome was due to the enormous size and how unorganized it had become.

Jesus Christ Superstar Review

Jesus Christ Superstar Review

David

Ms. Moore

Humanities 8B

Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera which came out in August 7^th, 1973. Up until this day it has won an Oscar award for Best Music, Scoring Original Song and Adaptation, a Golden Globe award, and many others that have to do with the costumes and music in the movies. This film, directed by Norman Jewison was made in Israel, some scenes directed on real Roman ruins. The main characters are Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Judas, and Pontius Pilate. The actor who played Pontius Pilate also starred as one of the main characters in the old version of the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. The movie begins in a desert, with a camper van full of tourists wearing modern clothing. They are all given semi automatic machine guns and swords, and immediately start unloading the wooden cross from the roof. This half modern theme continued throughout the movie in the form of guns, clothing, and the fact that all the buildings the film was made in were ruins where the events would have happened all those years ago.

This movie/rock, opera was showing the life of Jesus, starting from when he is walking on his way to Jerusalem, and ending when he dies on the cross. The movie created much controversy when it came out because of some of the things that happen; the modern weapons and attire, the relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene, and how Judas dies.

In the movie Jesus is creating problems with the Jewish religious leaders, not fulfilling the prophecy and claiming that he is the son of God. Because of this the Jewish leaders send him to the Romans, asking him to be crucified. However the judge, Pontius Pilate had already dreamed about this happening, and everyone blaming him for killing Jesus. He attempts to get out of it by sending him to King Herod, who is pictured as a rich party boy. In the end, Jesus is brought to Pontius Pilate once more, and this time Pilate tries to punish Jesus by whipping him 39 times, but he is still forced to condemn Jesus because of the shouting crowd.

This movie is unique in a way because the characters never talk, they sing. Everything that they say is converted into songs, and while at first this might be interesting, it gets very annoying after a while. The idea was unique in its own way, having the movie filmed in ancient ruins while having the actor’s use modern clothing and weapons.

I would not recommend this movie because it is out of date. Maybe in 1973 this movie was considered one of the greats and everyone loved rock opera, but nowadays most people would find this movie quite annoying and at times quite boring. I can’t think of many people who would enjoy this movie, and none of them are in my age group.

Sources:

"IMDB - Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)." The Internet Movie Database (IMDB). Web. .v

"Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) - Awards." The Internet Movie Database (IMDB). Web. .

"Barry Dennen - IMDB." The Internet Movie Database (IMDB). Web. 30 Jan. 2012. .

Caesar vs Augustus

I think that Julius Caesar was a more important leader than his grand nephew Augustus because Julius Caesar did much more for Rome. He was a much more disciplined and stronger leader. He was a tactical genius and a good military commander. He tried to prevent poverty, he was loyal to his followers and friends, and punished criminals. He was the one who started the Roman Empire. He could have been crazy, he could have a disease, or he could be power hungry and greedy but what he did in the end is what counts. Without him Rome went into another civil war. Some might say that his grandnephew Augustus was a more important leader because he led Rome into 200 years of peace and expanded its Empire. But without Caesar Augustus would have been another senator; and without Caesar Rome would have never became the powerful Empire as we knew it.

Caesar: Reformer or Dictator

I think that Caesar was a reformer. He had great leadership and he ended the rule of the corrupt nobles. He was fair and upheld justice. He restored cities and aided the poor and unfortunate. He also granted more citizen ship and brought peace to Rome. Many say that he wanted fame and more power, but I think it was a motivation, and a good one. Everyone needs a reason to do something. And even if Caesars motive was selfish, his actions were for the good of the many and he was respected and admired by many. In the end, when he died by the hands of the senators, it started a civil war, and this shows that he has very good leadership.