Turkey – the ‘other Holy Land’

Many Christians are unaware of Turkey’s unique role in the Bible. During much of the first century it was the centre for the young church.

Nearly two-thirds of the New Testament – including all of the letters of Paul, most of the book of Acts, and the book of Revelation – is set outside of Israel, in either Turkey or Greece. The apostles John, Paul, Philip and Peter lived, preached and prayed there.

The Seven Churches of Revelation—Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea—are located on Turkey’s Aegean coast.

I have always wanted to visit Hagia Sophia In Istanbul. Completed in AD537 it was the foremost wonder of the Byzantine world with its mosaics, coloured marble and spectacular dome.

The Imperial Door Mosaic is above the door used only by emperors. With his right hand, Christ is blessing the emperor and in his left hand he is holding a book in which is written, “Peace be with you. I am the light of the world.”

The Imperial Door and the interior of Hagia Sophia from the inner narthex.

Hagia Sophia

Mosaic of The Christ, Hagia Sophia

St Savior’s Church, Chora. Built in the 11 Century and decorated in the 14th it contains fantastic Byzantine mosaics and frescoes

One of the highlights was to walk to the newly discovered tomb of St Philip. One of the 12 apostles, he came to Hierapolis, 2,000 years ago to spread Christianity before being killed by the Romans.

Theatre of Hierapolis

The Necropolis at Hierapolis stretched for nearly two kilometres containing an impressive number of tombs.

Sardis received the fifth letter to the Seven Churches in Revelation 3:1-6. Artemis was the main goddess of the city and these are the ruins of the temple. Sometime before AD400 a small brick church (bottom left corner) was constructed at the southeastern corner of the Artemis temple.

The Roman gymnasium at Sardis

Laodicea the last church that received a letter from St John – Revelation 3:14-22

Ephesus one of the Ancient Seven Wonders of Antiquity was an important centre for Christianity from the AD 50′s. From AD 52-54 St Paul lived here (Acts 19). He became involved in a dispute with a silversmith, Demetrius, whose livelihood depended on selling silver shrines of Artemis. Here is the Street of Curetes leading towars the Library of Celsus.

The Roman library of Celsus. Ephesis is one of the world’s great pilgrimage sites as well as the location of some of the best preserved Greco-Roman ruins in the Mediterranean.

Ephesus grew rich both because of its favorable location and as the site of the Temple to Artemis.

The Temple of Hadrian at Ephesus.

Walking the streets of Ephesus today, you realize that St Paul also once walked these same stones. He is said by many theologians to be the second-mightiest person, after Christ, in the entire history of the church. The city is also known for its connections to St. John and the Virgin Mary. It was also the site of the Third Ecumenical Council in 431.

Ephesus Theatre built on the slopes of Mt Panayir.

According to Christian tradition, the Virgin Mary was brought to Ephesus by the Apostle John after the Resurrection of Jesus. Above the ruins of Ephesus this small stone chapel is believed to be built over her house. There is a peace that surrounds this site and a sense of holiness.

The ruins at Pergamum are a must see! Why isn’t the Acropolis as famous as Rome or Athens? It is the third of the Seven Churches in Revelation (2:12-17)

Roman arches at Pergamum

The ruins at Pergamum are stunning

Assos perches high on a cliff overlooking the Aegean. Its Acropolis carries the impressive temple of Athenia. Arriving on foot from Troas, St Paul preached here and went down to the little port on the shore to board the boat on his return journey to Jerusalem.

A stone recently excavated from Troas. It is clean and in perfect condition. During his stay in Troas, St Paul had a dream in which he saw a vision of a man asking him to “Come over to Macedonia and help us” (Acts 16:9) after which he decided to go to Europe. All in all, he stopped and preached here three times.