I’m in Sperlonga!

I’m in Sperlonga, Italy with professor of archaeology Darius Arya (http://dariusaryadigs.com/ AND http://instagram.com/saverome/). Sperlonga is in the Lazio region, 120 km south of Rome, on the Mediterranean Coast. It’s a place of sunshine and beaches. And it’s also a place that is strangely connected with Jesus of Nazareth – although most people don’t realize it. How so?

Sperlonga is the place where the Roman Emperor Tiberius (14 CE to 37 CE) had one of his fancier villas. When I say villa, I don’t mean a little house with a pool. Excavations have revealed a mind-boggling estate on the sea. The highlight is a natural grotto or cave. There was a private bedroom inside the cave for the fun and games of the emperor and his distinguished guests. Just outside the grotto there was a manmade island reachable by a small wooden bridge. A wall in the pool separated salt water from sweet water. From the salt water, guests could pick the fish they’d like to eat, and in the sweet water pools they could take a plunge while they waited for their delicacies.

Most people who care about Jesus have never thought about Tiberius. But he was the emperor at the time of the crucifixion. One name most people have certainly never heard of is Sejanus. But he was a central player in Rome at the time that Jesus rode into Jerusalem. Which brings us back to Sperlonga. After his downfall in the year 31, Sejanus was implicated in the poisoning of Tiberius’ two heirs – Drusus and Germanicus. But in the year 23 he was in Tiberius’ good books. Just after Drusus met his end (apparently Sejanus seduced Drusus’ wife who then helped him do away with her husband), Sejanus found himself dining with the emperor at Sperlonga. At the time, he was already very important – the head of the Praetorian Guard (think of it as Tiberius’ FBI). But something happened at Sperlonga that would be very, very good for Sejanus; some rocks came loose from on top of the grotto (knowing Sejanus, maybe he helped that process along). The giant rocks crushed some of Tiberius’ guests. Tiberius, however, was not hurt. Like a true body guard, Sejanus flung himself over the emperor ready to die in his stead. After this event, the grateful Tiberius took off for Capri (some say to have sex with minors) and Sejanus was left to rule the empire in all but title.

Which brings us back to Jesus. Scholars place the crucifixion in Jerusalem in the year 30 at the height of Sejanus’ power in Rome. Which means that if you are interested in the story of the Gospels, you should be tracking what’s going on in Rome at the same time. Sejanus may be the key that unlocks the events behind the crucifixion.