Turkey and Patmos- Day Six

This morning we left for our shore excursion quite early (6:30 am meet up). I managed to get a great breakfast in but Candy decided a granola bar would do!

Turkey did not disappoint. Our first stop was the House of the Blessed Mother Mary that was discovered in 1890. This is where she lived with Saint John until her death near Ephesus. Saint John lived there until his death as well. On our way to the house, we stopped by the Basillica of John in the town near Ephesus. The discovery of the house is tied to the visions of Catherine Emmerich in 1822. The first service as held there in 1894 with over 1,000 Christians. We held our own service there with readings from Acts 19:1-10; Ephesians 4:1-13 and heard a great message from Phillip.

We then departed and headed to Ephesus where we literally walked in Paul’s footsteps-the journey he must have taken to come and preach in Ephesus. He lived here for three year. Walking along the ruins felt like we stepped back in time-you could imagine the structures fully formed with their roofs and white marble gleaming in the afternoon sun while hearing the noise of the market and gathering of people.

In the afternoon, we headed to Patmos. I don’t think I was fully prepared for the impact that Patmos would hav eon me today. Having recently lost Rob’s mom, Nancy, I not only felt her presence today, but that of the Holy Spirit. As we walked towards the cave where Saint John had his vision that led to the writing of the letters to the seven churches and the book of Revelation, I knew this would have been a place she would have loved to have seen while she walked on this earth. I also drew comfort knowing she is with our Heavenly Father and probably had the largest smile on her face looking down and sharing in this moment with me.

Saint John was exiled to Patmos, with his scribe, in 95 AD. He stayed 18 months and was then given amnesty where he was allowed to return to Ephesus where he died at the age of 104. While in Patmos, he discovered the grotto where he prayed. This grotto, that we stepped into, is where he heard the sound of a trumpet when it cracked the cave. The cave is split into three sections. He heard the voice come though the cracks telling him to write down what he headed and saw and to send it to th seven churches of Asia Minor. I walked through and could see where Saint John laid his head, the cracks in the cave, where he prayed and worshipped. I felt Nancy’s love for the book of Revelation and the story of hope it brings to us all.

We ended our time at the grotto with a service with readings from Revelation 1:10-18; Revelation 21:1-4; and Revelation 22:16-17; 20-21. Great message from Danny-God gives us “tests that lead to testimony.” AMEN!

We then had the opportunity to go to the monastery on top of Patmos overlooking the entire island. Housed there is an icon of Saint John from the 11th Century-quite beautiful.

Tomorrow we head to Heraklion and Santorini.