THE ROMAN PEACE

THE ROMAN PEACE

The plan of God to rescue the world from the tyrant of sin and darkness included perfect timing for Jesus to be born.

In the decades before the birth of Jesus, the world adjacent to the Jews was plagued by war and piracy. The Mediterranean Sea was a very unsafe place to travel. Thus the flow of goods and ideas was hampered. Rome was beginning to establish its authority across Europe, Africa and the Middle East, but Rome was restrained by civil wars and rebellions against its influence in the East.

It was the rather long period of peace enforced by Caesar Augustus, nephew of Caesar, that made the spread of the gospel possible. The "Roman Pax" it was called; The Roman Peace. The sea lanes had been swept clear of pirates and trade flourished. One could buy apples in Rome that were grown in orchards on Cypress or spices from what is today Yemen.

The missionary activity of the first apostles benefited from this blossoming of trade. Also, there was a common language spoken throughout the Roman empire and it wasn’t Latin; it was Greek. This is why the gospels were written in Greek first.

Saint Paul referred to this remarkable moment in history as “the fullness of time”, the moment when God the Father sent the Son to us.

As we draw near to Christmas we should be thankful for the providence of God. He has never abandoned us to the clutches of the evil one. Throughout the long centuries he waited for the right moment to bring humanity back into his arms.