In Stone and Story
Early Christianity in the Roman World
Chapter
Chapter 2: Fire in Bones
Photo Gallery
Photo 2.1
The pub in which Zmyrina and Asellina worked (mentioned in chapter 2 of In Stone and Story) appears in this photo.
Photo 2.2
This photo displays the shrine that adorned the house in which Ennychus, Venidia, and Livia Acte lived. Virtually every residence had at least one devotional shrine within it (as discussed at various points in In Stone and Story).
Discussion Questions
- What was your reaction to the various stages in the story about Zmyrina? What adjectives would you use to characterize her and Asellina, based on their actions and their context?
- Discuss how status is measured in settings that you are familiar with today? Are there especially significant physical indicators that people flaunt in order to broadcast their status (or reach for a higher status)? How might the first-century world compare to and contrast with the twenty-first-century world?