Day 12

Bob’s Sabbatical

Day 12, September 11, 2009

 

            Have I
mentioned the coffee issue?  Over here,
it is hard to find brewed coffee.  Most
places offer “Nescafe,” which is exactly what you think it is.  Sometimes it comes out of a machine that
mixes it automatically, other times, it just gets spooned in the cup, just like
one does at home when one is truly desperate. One does not pay good money for
Nescafe at home.  One pays good money, or
drinks tea (nope!) or turkish coffee (too sweet) in Turkey.  Pray for me.

            We began
our day at the ruins of the city of Heirapolis, built in the 5^th
Century B.C.  It was a large, wealthy
town, and people spent lots of money on their tombs.  Some are big enough to live in
comfortably.  A couple of us
climbed a pretty steep hill to get to the ruins of the Martyrion of St. Philip.
 It was well worth the climb, especially the
view of the valley from the top.  In the
photo album from today, you will also see a couple shots of the calcium
deposits from the hot springs, today from the top.

            After
lunch we headed west, thru the Lycos Valley (Paul probably traveled a different
route).  We passed through many small
towns.  One of the things that has struck
all of us is the number of solar water heating systems installed on roofs.  I have pictures of one on a house in a
village, and another of urban buildings with entire roofs covered with
them.  They pay for themselves in a year
or less, according to Mehmed, our guide. 
I’m not sure the Historic Overlay would allow them on homes in Franklin,
but they sure are much-used here.  The
other thing I have seen a lot are outdoor fireplaces/bar-b-que’s on people’s
outside porches.  They are “built-in,
with chimneys, etc.  Charcoal is one of
Turkey’s biggest exports.

            The big
learning for me today was putting Ephesus in perspective.  I have been a little skeptical about spending
several days in Ephesus.  I know that it
is one of the most significant excavation sites in the world, but I was afraid
it would be more tourist than pilgrim oriented. On the bus, Steve asked us what
came to mind when he said, “Ephesus.?” 
I, and several others, answered, “Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.”  His response was, “Many scholars do not think
Paul wrote that letter, so why would that make Ephesus significant?”  He claims that Ephesus was the most
“neglected” city of early Christianity. 
What is significant is that Paul was in Ephesus when he wrote 1^st
Corinthians, and perhaps 2^nd Corinthians.  According to Acts 19, he lived there for more
than two years.   There are some scholars
who think that all of Paul’s letters were written from Ephesus.  Also, there is a tradition that John, the
“beloved disciple” and Mary, Jesus’ mother came to Ephesus after Jesus’
death.  We’ll have Eucharist tomorrow at
“Mary’s house” in Ephesus.  The tradition
also says that John grew old there.  It
could be that he actually wrote his Gospel, as well as the letters of John and
Revelation while in Ephesus.  No way to
know, but all this means that Ephesus was a major influence on early
Christianity.  It is just one of several
places where Christianity was well established by the early 2^nd
Century, which is amazing all by itself.

            As we
neared the coast, traffic picked up, towns and cities were closer together, and
it was clear that we were in a more tourist-oriented area.  Turkey is a vast country, and I still cannot
believe Paul traveled (walked) as far as he did.

Peace,

   Bob