When I went to Rome for the first time, over ten years ago, I spent many hours looking at the ancient Roman ruins in and around the Forum Romanum. Today, only fragments of the original buildings remain, and it is hard to picture what the area would have looked like in its glory days. And yet, once upon a time, those buildings were the heart of mighty Rome, the Empire that straddled much of the known world. The lives of millions in many lands were shaped in various ways by the decisions that were made in those ancient edifices. But today, so little remains. Tourists come and go, taking selfies or snapping pictures of the cute cats that roam the ruins. Those old stones are little more than just curiosities.
Contemplating the former glory of the Roman Empire makes me wonder about our own country. Will our magnificent government buildings in Washington, D.C., one day be nothing more than ruins where cats wander and tourists take pictures and buy souvenirs? Dystopian science-fiction stories often depict such scenarios, but hopefully nothing of the sort will happen for many centuries. But no country is permanent. No political oder is forever. Civilizations rise and fall, as the march of history goes on. That is also one of the lessons of Palm Sunday for us.
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Photo Credit: View of Jerusalem from the Kidron Valley by Zoltan Abraham (c) 2016.