Rabbles, Riots, and Ruins: Twelve Ancient Cities and How They Were Evangelized

Mike Aquilina’s newest book about how the Catholic faith spread among ancient cities lived up to Debra Black's every expectation.  

Rabbles, Riots, and Ruins: Twelve Ancient Cities and How They Were Evangelized

by Mike Aquilina
Published by Ignatius Press

Mike Aquilina has blessed Catholics with more than 70 books over 30 years. He is an expert on the early Church as understood through the teachings of the Church Fathers as well as historical documents and archeological finds. The combination of this results in his books presenting an interesting perspective with nuggets of fascinating details. His gift is that he makes this information easy to understand and prevents it from overwhelming his reader.  

Aquilina’s most recent book, Rabbles, Riots and Ruins, Twelve Ancient Cities and How They Were Evangelized, is an interesting and accessible look at the unique cultures and mindsets of these prominent cities. He begins by painting a background of this picture, explaining the notion of ‘city’ and why people organized themselves this way. The Roman Empire, for example, had 5627 collective cities (p. 14)!

Cities included in this book

Aquilina explains his choice for these 12 as each was of major importance in its time:  

Jerusalem: Unique in the Roman empire because its importance was not due to trade or strategic location but for religious reasons.  

Antioch (Syria now Turkey): The city where followers of ‘The Way’ were first called Christians. One of the greatest cities in the empire.   

Rome (Italy): Capital of the empire where horrific persecutions of Christians were their form of ‘entertainment’. It was the biggest city in the world in the time of Jesus.   

Alexandria (Egypt): Although the intellectual heart of the Mediterranean world including Jewish intellectual tradition, it was also notorious for its riots.  

Ephesus (ancient Greece now extinct): Famous for housing one of the seven wonders of the world as well as holding the important Church Council of Ephesus in AD 431, by tradition it is also believed to be the place where our Mother Mary spent her last years on earth.  

Edessa (Turkey): Where Greek and Jewish Semitic cultures met, its claim-to-fame is that its king corresponded by letter to Jesus!  

Lugdunum (Lyon, France): The gateway for philosophies and cultures from the East to enter the West in which an early Christian culture developed.   

Ejmiastin: Armenia is the first official Christian country and preserved many ancient works of Christian literature.   

Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey): Founded by the first Christian emperor as the new capital to the empire, it is where royalty, government officials and Church bishops “played out a constant soap opera, with a grumbling mob in the background always threatening to burn down the city” (p. 20)!  

Milan (Italy): At one point the western capital of the empire where a bishop shamed an emperor into doing a public penance!  

Ravenna (Italy): Also once the capital of the western Roman Empire, it was a safe place for cowards to hide from barbarians!  

Carthage (North Africa): Origin of the Latin Rite Catholic liturgy and birthed many great writers both pagan and Christian.  

With the background now painted, Aquilina completes the picture by invoking his reader’s imagination, setting the scene for each city as he leads them on a verbal tour. For example, Antioch:  

Let’s imagine we’re travelers from some far-off land coming to see Antioch for the first time. … we didn’t make it before dark … And then we see it — bright stripes of light spread out below us … Every street is lined with lights, and the walls blaze with illuminations. … And then the bustle inside! People rushing here and there, laughing, gossiping, shopping, as if it were the middle of the day! … "Have we come in the middle of a festival?" we ask. "No. Antioch is always like this." (p. 43) 

Meanwhile, in my personal reading of Scripture I will never read Acts chapter 19 the same again now that I have toured the scene in this book from the eyes of the residents there:   

People from all over the Roman world came to see the temple (of Artemis also known as Diana). And wherever tourists are, people are ready to sell them souvenirs. The silversmiths of Ephesus did a brisk business in little silver replicas of the temple and statue … Then came Paul preaching that idols like Diana of the Ephesians were false gods. … and he was winning friends. He even had friends among the ruling class. What would happen to that flourishing souvenir business if these Christians succeeded … in persuading people that Artemis was not really a divine being? (p. 104-105) 

No wonder a riot almost started! 

 A fascinating look at our spiritual heritage

Within the tale of each city, Aquilina tells us of its importance to the world, particularly the Christian world. It is a fascinating glimpse into our spiritual heritage that I wish I had read in middle or high school! It is an enjoyable read for adults as well as youth, and I can see multiple ways to embrace the book. In addition to one’s own private reading, it can be used as a book club for the parish or among friends, for a family to read together, or for a youth or college/young adults ministry. Each chapter is only 10 to 20 pages, so it is not overwhelming. Enjoy the tour! 

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Copyright 2024 Debra Black
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