Do as The Romans do! - Or better not?

**Snow** · 1st-December-2008

Often, when I read through the Forums, I read the sentence "Do as The Romans do".

Adaption to a different culture may be quite important in order of getting accepted. However, the Romans usually destroyed the culture of its' enemy. There are also no important people which we know who have contributed somehow to Philosophy or Science as the Greek did.

Do you think the Romans have actually been the Barbarians?

**maniya** · 1st-December-2008

heh finally google video!

well I never even thought about it, its an old proverb hmmm...

**Kari** · 1st-December-2008

Never really thought about it. But being roman catholic and also of roman blood down the centuries, iv got huge respect for what was back then the roman empire.

**drummerac** · 1st-December-2008

The Roman empire was the most evil empire in history. From the Games to warfare and ethnic cleansing, the world would have been better off without them. We may even have have progressed alot further if they hadnt destroyed the great libraries of the ancient world.

**Kari** · 2nd-December-2008

There are alot of things the roman empire gave us though, which helped to develop the world. Im not saying all of it was right, because it wasnt. However i wont slag off my ancestors.

Also there was many evil empires down the years in this world, not just the roman empire. Not forgetting UK hasnt been all sweet and innocent down the years either.

**BryanD** · 28th-January-2009

I guess the Romans had their problems, but the quote from
shakespeare is about cultural adaptation, and applies to
Finns going abroad as well as Visitors coming to Finland.
Learning from the other culture's strengths and weaknesses
happens when we lose our egocentrism, and focus on the
new aspects of the culture we experience.

Nowdays the same cultural devastation as happened under
Roman standardisation is happening as we Westernize,
globalize, and otherwise try to shape acceptable patterns,
which are usually simple and low-tech, for general population
use.

In the book of Daniel, God shows Daniel a preview of the Roman
empire and its replacement of Babylonian, Persian and Greek
empires as the dominant culture, and how it will be eventually
replaced by God's kingdom in eternity. Jesus' kingdom is a kind one.
The Romans were viewed by Daniel as a corruption of the earlier
kingdoms, which were compared to Gold, silver and bronze, while
Rome was symbolized by iron, and then a mixture of iron and clay.

The Roman empire is breathing its last gasps, even as we sit here
thinking about it. It is still a dominant cultural form from the U.S.
Senate and President system, to the arena spectacles of U.S.
football and other competitive games, like smack down, TV
gladiators, etc. Jesus' kingdom is destined to replace all of this,
and then we will see how people were ideally meant to behave,
with love, peace and all of the wisdom of spoken and acted grace.

I guess for now, though, the main thought is that when we enter
into a new cultural situation the idea is to accept and love the
people and learn from their ways without judgemental attitudes.
That was Jesus main teaching for us.

BryanD