The Last Day in Turkey

This was our last day here in Turkey, and thus, it is also my last blog from this country of beauty, historical richness, and great contrasts! For me, this journey was a huge grace wherein I began to appreciate more what Asia Minor means to the world and to our Christian heritage, in particular. Something which Padre Granella said in yesterday’s mass struck a chord in my heart: these stones speak! And they do, because they are witnesses to so much history. What one needs to do is immerse oneself in their history and experience the power they project.

Today I could say that reading the Acts of the Apostles, the Letters of Paul and the Book of Revelation will never be the same again. The images received, the experience made of these places will make these pages come to life. At the same time, I should say that the remembrance will not be without a certain sorrow, when I remember how these vivid communities are reduced to a few hundred people and how the Christian remains of Churches and monasteries are left to deteriorate as if they do not make part of Turkish heritage.

Still, this situation is not without its silver lining: the great work the Franciscan Capuchins are doing here and the presence for reasons of rest or more of comfort of a number of Irish and Germans in this part of the land. Yesterday, Fr Granella told us that quite a number of people, especially retired persons, come here during the winter months. Most of these are Catholic. My prayer is that the Lord may once again show his glory through these persons. As Prof Manns once told us during this trip: the river is moving forward silently underground; you would never know where it will come out to light! We need to wait (and pray) patiently, while giving all our support to the work being done by the Capuchins, even by visiting these places.

Today, we visited Priene and Didyma, which are not mentioned in the Bible although we may assume that Christians in the early Church have had some form of contact with them. There are remains in both cities of churches coming from the third centuries. The layout of Priene was arranged in completely regular grids according to the Hippodamian approach to city planning (much like Valletta, although our capital city of a much later date). Of particular interest here is the Temple of Athena (4^th Century BC). Several columns of this Temple are still standing. In this city, there is archaeological evidence that Alexander the Great lived here, at least for some time.

Didyma (twin) is so named because of its famous shrine dedicated to Apollo, the twin to the goddess Artemis. This is a spectacular temple which includes a cell in the inner sanctuary where people used to come to consult the oracle of the gods. As a matter of fact, this shrine was a notable rival of the famous Temple of Apollo at Delphi, in Greece. The same type of oracular prophecies brought thousands of pilgrims to Didyma to find answers to their future. Human nature remains the same through the ages!

In between these two cities we visited Miletus, which was one of the great cities of commerce of the ancient world. It had a number of harbours and enjoyed a strategic location on the west coast of Asia Minor. By time it lost its importance. St Paul visited Miletus at the conclusion of his third missionary journey. At that time, the city had a Temple dedicated to Athena, a Sanctuary of Apollo, large market areas, or Agora (the South Market was known to have been the largest market in the ancient Greek world). A huge theatre could still be admired in its majesty and pomposity.

Paul came to Miletus instead of going to Ephesus, where he had spent quite a long time earlier on. Why? In Ephesus, as we have seen the previous days, Paul encountered quite a fierce opposition from the craftsmen for taking away by his preaching the Gospel a lot of commerce and, as a result their wealth. So Paul remained in Miletus and called the presbyters of Ephesus to come meet him here. It might be that Paul met these presbyters in the synagogue, very close to the harbor of the Bay of Lions. In Acts 20,17-35 we find the farewell speech he delivers to them. It is an amazing speech with many biographical notes which correspond very well to the different autobiographical notes we find in his letters. In the central verses of this speech Paul exhorts the presbyters to take good care of the flock the Lord has entrusted to their care because this flock was purchased by the blood of his own Son.

Here, my story in Turkey ends, although its effect will continue in the coming years! As from tomorrow evening my adventure in the other Holy Land begins … Israel and Jerusalem in particular. I intend to continue updating this blog, although not necessarily on a daily basis. Obviously, all this depends on the kind of internet connection I will have. So, until we meet in Jerusalem … these coming days! God bless you all from Turkey.

Some standing columns of the Temple of Athena in Priene

The Theatre in Miletus

A shot of the Temple of Apollo in Didyma