Resurrection Shaped Stories

The Roman Triumphus was a civil ceremony and religious rite of ancient Rome. In which the victorious Roman troops led the conquered enemy down a processional route in the city of Rome to the temple of Jupiter. The route was lined with spectators who applauded as the victors passed by.

The triumph publicly celebrated and sanctified the military achievements of an army commander who had won great military successes, or originally and traditionally, one who had successfully completed a foreign war. The triumphing general was ritually elevated to near-divine or near-kingly status for the day of the triumph, and thereafter retained the right to be described as vir triumphalis (roughly, "man honored with triumph") for the rest of his life. Even the etymology of the word Triumph, comes from this ceremony.

One of the most interesting facts about this “march/procession” is that there were carriers burning spices, and spreading a fragrance of victory among the people in Rome, just picture it, the sweet smell reminding you, you are on the winning team, the enemy has been conquered, yet right behind them though, the defeated army, which will forever associate this smell with defeat and despair as their future is certain slavery.

2 Corinthians 2:12-17

Perhaps among my favorite passages in all of scripture, because of Paul’s use of imagery to describe how God uses us to spread his message, with the “fragrance” of his Gospel and even as one reads further in the New Testament and sees this image come up again to describe God's victory in the spiritual realm (Col 2:15), we can fully understand what 1st century readers would get behind the usage of such a metaphor, and we can perhaps glimpse from it the message of assurance and comfort that Scripture, is still to this day trying to transmit.