Trip Introduction

Christianity may have been born in Israel, but it grew up in Turkey.

Two-Thirds of the New Testament was either written to or written in Asia Minor, modern day Turkey. Each of Paul’s three missionary journeys started and traveled through Turkey. Apostles like John, Peter, and the disciple Philip ministered there. The Seven Churches of Revelation are there. As the church matured, some of the most important councils of Christian history were held there. Turkey is even the home of one of Christianity’s favorite bishops: Nicholas of Myra – Santa Claus!

But Turkey is so much more. Before the time of Jesus, Anatolia was the home of the worship of the goddess Artemis, whose temple was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It hosted great kingdom and empires and was the site of the great city of Troy. Even now, Turkey holds more intact Roman era ruins than any other country –even Italy!

And after Christianity took hold, the Roman empire continued for a thousand years on Turkish soil after Rome was sacked by barbarians. When Turkey was conquered by Islamic Turks, they brought their own rich culture and amazing ability to build monumental wonders to this new land.

Today, Turkey is as rich and complex and exotic a culture as exists anywhere in the world. It is a secular, progressive democracy that still embraces their Islamic roots and culture. Yet, it is also the site of new and growing Turkish Christian Church, where new Christians are being led by Turkish believers and are beginning a new chapter for Christians in this ancient land.

In this tour, we will present you with a broad experience of this wonderful country and its rich history:

-You will walk in the steps of the Apostles Paul and John as you visit the places where they traveled and taught.

-You will see some of the marvels of both ancient Anatolia and Islamic Turkey and gain a better understanding of the complex relationship between Christians and Muslims.

-Finally, you will get to meet some Presbyterians who have committed their lives to working in Turkey to better the relationships between Christians and Turks.

In the pages below, we’ll give you a thumbnail sketch of each day our upcoming tour. Be prepared for a journey of a lifetime.

Your in Christ,
Mark Smith and Al Sandalow
Tour Hosts

PS-You will find that you can view a larger version of many of the photos in this blog by simply clicking on the image or by right clicking and opening in a new window/tab.
If you have trouble loading all the pages at once, look to the "Blog Archive" to the right of the first post and click on individual days.

Days 1 & 2 - Getting There

Istanbul Spice Vendor

Whoever said “getting there is half the fun” never flew on a transatlantic flight. However, we’ve done our best to make this part of the trip as comfortable and convenient as possible.

Flight details will be handled by Educational Opportunities, our stateside travel agent and one of the largest Christian tour agencies in the world. We will leave from Seattle's SEATAC airport, though other gateway cities can be arranged.

We will arrive in Istanbul. As we pass through customs, you will be required to buy a tourist visa for $20. Don’t be put off; it costs a Turk $130 to get a visa to visit the USA.

Depending on our arrival time, we may take or short orientation tour of Istanbul, or head straight to our hotel to rest up for the first real day of touring.

Day 3 - Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis

Today we begin our site touring with a visit to the sites of three of the churches specifically mentioned in the Book of Revelations. Remember that when we say “churches”, we don’t mean physical buildings. In the time that John wrote his letter, the Christians in these towns met in private homes. When we visit these “churches”, we are visiting the remains of the first century towns where these Christian communities lived.

We’ll first head north and visit one of the most spectacular towns of ancient Anatolia: Pergamum. John wrote this about Pergamum:

Rev 2:13 "I know where you live--where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city--where Satan lives."

Pergamum has a dramatic acropolis (a hilltop within the city walls or area) 900 feet above the main village which held temples to Zeus and the Roman emperors. The main altar was so impressive, German excavators too it piece by piece to Germany and built a whole museum around it.

In Pergamum, we’ll visit the acropolis, the village of Bergama, an ancient center for healing called the Asclepion, and make a brief stop and the ruins of a Byzantine Christian church, know as the Red Church.

From here, we head south-east, passing through rolling hills, until we reach the modern town of Akhisar, the New Testament’s Thyatira. Not only was this one the Seven Churches, but it is also the home town of a Lydia, a woman who Paul converts to Christianity in Philippi.

Acts 16:14 "One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul's message."

Only a single city block of ruins remains from ancient Thyatira and our visit there will be short.

We continue on to Sardis, to whom John wrote:

Rev 3:1 ""To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead."

Today, Sardis contains some fantastic ruins that show her ancient splendor. We will visit the town center, including the remains of a synagogue that Jews and Christians may have shared, a Roman gymnasium, and a huge temple to the goddess Artemis.
As our day ends, we will close our loop and return to our hotel in Izmir.

Thanks to Dr Carl Rasmussen (www.HolyLandPhotos.org) and Todd Bolen (www.bibleplaces.com) for some of the images in this post.

Day 4 - Izmir/Smyrna, Sunday Worship, St. Polycarp's

Rev 2:8 "To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again."

Today will be a flexible day for us and will focus around the city of Izmir, ancient Smyrna. First, little history.

Smyrna was a prosperous city with a good port in Roman times. It quickly became a center for the growing Christian community. A man named Polycarp from Smyrna learned the Gospel from John the Apostle himself (probably at Ephesus, a short distance away) and in the second century became one of the first great church fathers and also a martyr for his faith.

Smyrna was also the only church who was written to in the Book of Revelations who did not receive any condemnation, only a warning of difficult times ahead. In Byzantine times, Smyrna continued to be a successful and very Christian city. Even after the Turkish conquest, Christians in Smyrna were allowed to practice their faith in relative freedom and for centuries, Smyrna was knows as the most “Christian” town in Turkey.

Sadly, in the confusing years after World War 1, a war between Turks and Greeks began over western Turkey. Many Turkish Christians fought on the Greek side with Smyrna as their headquarters. When the Greek army was routed, Smyrna was destroyed. In the aftermath of that war, many Christian left Turkey and many Turks left what was now the nation of Greece. The old Smyrna was gone and a new Izmir had begun.
Ancient Symrna Agoura www.bibleplaces.com

But, there are still Christian communities in Izmir and great opportunity to serve God.

Today, we will visit with local Christians and join them for Sunday worship at St. John’s Anglican church in Izmir. Time allowing, we’ll also see the Greek orthodox church of St. Polycarp in Izmir and stop by the remains of the Agoura (marketplace) of ancient Smyrna.
After lunch, we will head for the busy port of Kusadasi (koo-SHAH-dah-suh ..it means "Bird Island”). From there we will board our charter boat and make a four hour crossing of the Aegean sea to the island of Patmos.

We will spend the night on this beautiful island.

Day 5 - Island of Patmos

Patmos has often been described as a barren island that the Romans used only as a penal colony. Nothing could be more true. Patmos is a beautiful Aegean islands that is now part of the country of Greece. It lies about 40 miles off the Turkish coast.

Yet, it was here that the writer of the Book of Revelations was in exile when he recorded his heavenly vision. Early tradition tells us that this was John the Apostle, who was sent here from Ephesus, possibly because of his criticism of the Roman Emperor Domitian (more on that when we visit Patmos and Ephesus). John returned to Ephesus after Domitian died and for a while Patmos was simply a stop for ships traveling from Ephesus or Miletus to Rome.

The island was the focus of new activity when Christianity was adopted by the Roman empire in the 4th century. During Byzantine times, the inhabitants of Patmos built a Grand Royal Basilica in honor of Saint John, where the monastery stands today. The island suffered from the Arab raids from the 6th to the 9th century AD, period during which the Grand Basilica of Saint John was destroyed and most residents left.


In 1088, the Father Christodoulos went to the island with monk Arsenios Skinouris who asked him his help to build the Monastery of Saint John in Patmos. The construction of the monastery started in 1101, after the permission of the Byzantine Emperor Alexios Komninos the 1st, who gave to Christodoulos the complete control of the island of Patmos. Thanks to Dr Carl Rasmussen (www.HolyLandPhotos.org) for this picture.

The fame of the monastery grew and a settlement started to expend around it. During the end of the 12th century, the island of Patmos was transformed into a large commercial centre.

In 1207, the Venetians conquered Patmos and the island became a semi-autonomous monastic state and gained a great wealth and influence. After WW1, the island was given to Greece and remains so today.

In Patmos, we will have a day to visit the sites and enjoy this peaceful island. In the morning, we well explore the grotto where tradition holds that John composed the Book of Revelations, tour the Monastery of the Apocalypse, and stroll the cobbled lanes of village of Chora. This area is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Here, men must wear trousers (shorts are not allowed) and women must cover their shoulders and wear at least knee-length skirts when visiting the grotto and the monastery.

We’ll head back to the mainland on our chartered boat mid-afternoon.

Day 6 - Ephesus

It’s hard to overstate the importance of Ephesus.

In ancient times it was the center of goddess worship and the temple to Artemis was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, twice the size of the Pantheon on the Athens acropolis!

In the Roman world, Ephesus was a center for culture, trade, and banking and attracted people from all over the empire. The Apostle Paul lived and taught here for over two years. The Apostle John came after Paul and lived here until his death (less a few years on Patmos).

When Christianity swept through the Roman world, Ephesus took a leading role and soon became a site for some of the churches most important ecumenical councils. Here, one of the first church’s dedicated to the Virgin Mary was built.

Today, Ephesus is said by many to be the most important and impressive ancient ruins in the world. You will be amazed at Ephesus.

We start our day to visiting the town of Miletus. Like Ephesus, Miletus was an important coastal port and a wealthy city. It was here that one of the most touching events in the book of Acts occurred: Paul’s farewell to the Elders of Ephesus.

Acts 20 "From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. When they arrived, he said to them: "You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia…. Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. …Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified."

Here, we’ll see the well preserved ruins of the main port and town and remember Paul’s words to his brothers and sisters who he knows he will never see again, along with some interesting graffiti in the theater. Thanks to Dr Carl Rasmussen (www.HolyLandPhotos.org) for this picture.

We’ll return to Ephesus and begin our visit at the top of the hill. Strolling down the main city street, we’ll see the upper district of council buildings, temples, and even the temple of Domitian that may have led to John’s exile.

In the lower city, we’ll visit the Celsus library, the most unique bathroom you have even been in, the marketplace, the amazing theater, and …even a house of ill repute!

Following Ephesus, we’ll head into the village of Selcuk just a mile away. We’ll stop and see there the Temple of Atremis once stood, then head to the Ephesus Museum to see of the amazing finds from the Ephesus excavations.
Finally, we head to a hill to visit the ruins of a huge Byzantine church that was build over what is believed to be the grave of the Apostle John. This is a great location to see the countryside (and to look for storks).


We’ll spend the night in Selcuk.

Day 7 - Denizli, Laodecia, Paumkkale/Hierapolis

From Ephesus, Christianity spread inland to towns of the Meander and Lycus valleys. In his letter to one of those church, Colossi, Paul writes about one of the Christians who had spread the word:

Col 4:12-13 "Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis."

Today, we follow in Epaphras’ footsteps and visit Laodicea and Hierapolis (with Colossi the following day) as we drive east through the beautiful Meander River valley.

Before we reach our first ancient site, we stop at the modern city of Denizli. Denizli is anything but a tourist town and is normally only seen by non-Turks as their tour busses past through its crowded streets on the way to Pamukkale. While this area was once the center of thriving Christian communities, there is now almost no Christian presence in an area that once Paul wrote to with such enthusiasm.

To help bridge the gap of understanding between Christians and the Turkish Moslems of Denizli, and American family has moved into Denizli to become a part of their community. They are now being prayfully supported by the PCUSA as fraternal workers in their project to build bridges between Turks and Americans.

To meet people at the grass roots level, they have opened a business and simply hope to a “salt and light” to the people they will meet.
We will stop in Denizli and see their new storefront and hear about how God is using them to be his witness in this valley of ancient churches.
Only a few miles to the northwest, is Laodicea. In Roman times, it was a huge and wealthy town. It was even administered for a while by the famous Roman orator, Cicero, for a while around 50BC. Antiochus the Great (223–187 BC), had transported 2000 Jewish families to this area and thus, many of Laodicea's inhabitants were Jews. This made it fertile ground for Christianity.

But, all was not well. By the time the Book of Revelation was written, John was worried about the faith of the Laodicea Christians. He warned them:

Rev 3:14-16 ""To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth."
In the last five years, Italian teams was done major excavations at Laodicea and uncovered the main hilltop cardo. We’ll visit this area, a Byzantine church, and an impressive theater, and here reflect on John’s warnings and promises.
From Laodicea, you can see Hierapolis, know also by its Turkish name, Pamukkale (cotton castle). Here we will see the ruins of this important town, the city’s vast necropolis (city of the dead), the travertine pools created by the calcium laden hot springs that pour from the hillside, and explore the ruins of a church built on the spot that early sources tell us the disciple Phillip was executed at.

Plan to roll up your pants and wade in the warm waters. We’ll spend the night in a hotel at Pamukkale.

Day 8 - Colossae, Antalya, Kaleiçi, and Paul's Place

This morning we leave the white cliffs of Paumkkale. But before we leave the Lycus Valley, we’ll stop at the site of the town of Colossae. Nothing remains of this town that Paul wrote a letter to that is the favorite book of the Bible for many people. Philemon and his slave Onesimus of the New Testament letter Philemon seem to have come from this town.

Once a large town, Colossae was but a small town in the first century and was mostly destroyed by an earthquake around 60AD (indicating that Paul probably wrote his letter to them before that event). There is not much to see today, but it is a great place to remember the important message of Paul’s letter:

Picture Todd Bolen www.bibleplaces.com

Col 1 "(Christ) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together… For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross."

From Colossae we begin a beautiful four-hour drive through several mountain ranges that will take us to Antalya, a gem of a city on the Mediterranean Sea. We’ll have a brief stop at the Antik Yolu, the ancient Roman road coming into the Antalya Valley.

Founded by, and named for, a king of Pergamum named Attalus. Antalya is known as Attalia in the Book of Acts. Paul and Barnabas both came and went from this harbor town on their first missionary journey.

Antalya is now a major city, with over two million residents. Her coastline in both directions is filled with resort hotels that attract millions of vacationers to her sunny skies and beautiful beaches. Some have described Antalya as Turkey’s most “European town”.

We’ll head straight to Kaleiçi (KAH-leh-ee-chee); Antalya’s historic old town to, visit this historic area and meet some Presbyterians who have done ministry in Turkey for many years.

Kaleici can be entered through the remains of a Roman gate built in 130 AD to commemorate the Roman Emperor Hadrian's visit to the city.

Within this area, we’ll visit St. Paul Cultural Center, or simply “Paul’s Place” - a unique ministry location planted by Presbyterian pastor James Bultema as a place for people of all nationalities to gather and share their faith, culture and ideas. It has become home to an international English church and the host facility for a Turkish Christian church that is run and staffed by Turkish Christians.
In Antalya, we will also meet Ben’s other half, Verna. She has been an important part of the PCUSA work in the past few years. This will be an exciting location to see how God is still working in this ancient country today.
Our final Kaleici visit will be to an overview of the old harbor, the very same harbor that Paul journeyed from.
Time permitting, we visit the excellent Antalya Museum that houses finds from Roman towns in the region, including Perge, where we will visit tomorrow.

We’ll spend the next two night at the wonderful Talya Hotel, right on the shores of the Mediterranean.