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Quo vadis?
open-in-new
<p><i>Quo vadis?</i> is a <a href="/facts/Latin/pM3Kge85">Latin</a> phrase meaning "Where are you going?" It is commonly translated, quoting the <a href="/facts/King_James_Version/FdS5n0lX">KJV</a> translation of John 13:36, as "Whither goest thou?" </p><p>The phrase originates from the <a href="/facts/Christianity/nKyJHlqq">Christian</a> tradition regarding <a href="/facts/Saint_Peter/50X8naSm">Saint Peter</a>'s first words to the risen Christ during their encounter along the <a href="/facts/Appian_Way/x3QvIHpl">Appian Way</a>. According to the <a href="/facts/Apocrypha/WLV1Ba9w">apocryphal</a> <a href="/facts/Acts_of_Peter/4mGsckcQ">Acts of Peter</a> (<a href="/facts/Vercelli_manuscript/lh8ceWHd">Vercelli</a> Acts XXXV; late 2nd century AD), as Peter flees from <a href="/facts/Crucifixion/754Fyshn">crucifixion</a> in <a href="/facts/Rome/bh1Ttx3T">Rome</a> at the hands of the government, he meets the <a href="/facts/Resurrection_of_Jesus/6oxjSUry">risen</a> <a href="/facts/Jesus/Hcd9hEzI">Jesus</a> along the road outside the city. In the Latin translation, Peter asks Jesus, "<i>Quo vadis?</i>" He replies, "<i>Romam eo iterum crucifigī</i>" ("I am going to Rome to be crucified again"). Peter then gains the courage to continue his ministry and returns to the city, where he is <a href="/facts/Martyr/JYxRcEzz">martyred</a> by being <a href="/facts/Cross_of_St._Peter/oHnHWodC">crucified upside-down</a>. The <a href="/facts/Church_of_Domine_Quo_Vadis/44oyRp7C">Church of Domine Quo Vadis</a> in Rome is built where the meeting between Peter and Jesus traditionally took place. The words "quo vadis" as a question also occur at least seven times in the Latin <a href="/facts/Vulgate/RCVJAlJE">Vulgate</a>. </p>