It is often said that history repeats itself, which is a fascinating idea to try and comprehend. Certainly, the world is constantly learning from the events of the past, and growing in numerous ways. However, it is very interesting to see that there truly is congruence between the world we live in today and the societies of the past. As we study the relationship between Rome and Jerusalem, I am able to compare it to cultural clashes that we see today. I believe that there are two ways to view this. First, it is interesting to see that there are countries comparable to the structure and driving forces of Rome and Jerusalem. However, I find it more interesting to compare the relationship between the two cities to the relationship between cultures in our contemporary world. Specifically, I see many parallels between the culture clash of contemporary China and America to that of ancient Rome and Jerusalem.
Though Rome and Jerusalem were distinctly different cultures, they managed to have a very important relationship. Rome was the empirical city, based on “…magnificent power imposed through military might and the force of law…” where the strength clearly came from power (Goodman pg. 29). Romans made their wealth by going into the land of others and taking it over. They were truly an empirical culture. The city was overpopulated, and separated by the very poor and the very rich. There was no in-between in the ancient Roman times. However, it was yet a beautiful city, inspiring to those that visited. Rome was modern and technologically advanced during those times. In a lot of ways, this picture of ancient Rome reminds me of modern day China—an overpopulated advanced society that is one of a kind. The wealth of China is greatly made from their ability to provide products to the world. It seems as if objects made in China are found in every corner of the world. I find this comparable to the way that Rome left its mark on the world by taking cities over in a powerful way. Even though China is not physically fighting their way into other countries, they are similarly leaving a huge mark on the world, and are reaping benefits from this strength.
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On the contrast, Jerusalem was a city with a completely different structure and source of strength. It was largely based on faith and strength from religion. Jerusalem was a place with much more tolerance and ethical treatment from person to person. The poor lived alongside the rich, and the social stratification present in Rome was not a factor of how the Jews lived. In Goodman’s book, Rome and Jerusalem, Jerusalem is recognized as a holy place of revelation and miracles, with wealth being based on religious enthusiasm. In a lot of ways, the driving forces of ancient Jerusalem remind of present day America. America is a country that prides itself on equality and freedom, specifically when it comes to religion. I would not consider America to be as symbolically holy as Jerusalem was, but certainly the U.S. has a society and government based on eliminating the stratification among classes, gender, religion and race. These similarities make it easy for me to see a connection between ancient Jerusalem and the United States today.
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While it is interesting to make a connection between two ancient societies and two modern societies, I like to see the parallels in a deeper way. Not only do the societies connect individually, there is also a connection in the relationships between them. Even though Rome and Jerusalem were vastly different, there was an existing relationship between the two. They were both cities that were growing into beautiful cities at the same time. Being located in the same part of the world, they shared a lot of characteristics that made their lifestyles somewhat similar. Additionally, Romans travelled to Jerusalem and likewise Jews travelled to Rome. This led to a sharing of culture and ways of life between the two, no matter how differently the two societies were. We can see this same phenomenon between America and China today. No matter how vastly different the two are, there is a great deal of cultural transfer between the two. America depends a lot on China for industry, and China depends a lot on America for jobs and business.
The modern relationship of America and China has come to an inevitable point, such as was the relationship between ancient Rome and Jerusalem. Needs and wants, and often curiosity, bring even the most diverse people together. In my opinion, this is a fascinating thing to observe. I hope that America and China are able to remain as individual societies, while still depending on one another to grow. Unfortunately, the relationship that Rome and Jerusalem shared eventually turned into a violen conflict. Even though we see how accurately history tends to repeat, it is my greatest hope that modern societies are able to maintain civil relationships.
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