Day 16

Bob’s Sabbatical

Day 16, September 15, 2009

 

            Paul had
a lot of competition.  I’ll come back to
that thought.

 

            We
started the day with a lecture on “Paul and Women.”  I won’t go into detail, but suffice it to say
that I feel a little better about Paul and his ideas on women.  He was actually rather radical for his time,
and some of the quotes many of us cringe at come from letters he may well not
have actually written.  Even the things
he surely wrote were written to specific situations and contexts, and it
probably is not fair to use them as his general attitude toward women.  Some modern critical scholarship concludes
that Paul, like Jesus, was pretty much ahead of his time with regards to women,
and that not too long afterwards, the Church became more patriarchal again –
fitting more into the norms of the culture of the day.  I’ll be glad to talk some more about this
when I return.

 

            We
headed north today, passing through Izmir, the ancient city of Smyrna, where
Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna was martyred in155 A.D.  When his captors came to arrest him, he
offered them food.  When told he could
avoid being put to death by making an offering to the Emperor, he is said to
have replied, “for 87 years Jesus has been faithful to me, I will not abandon
him now.” (my paraphrase).

 

            We
stopped at a Turkish rug factory for a wonderful bar-b-que lunch and tour.  This is really a kind of co-op where Turkish
women are taught the ancient trade of rug making, are supported, and whose wares
are marketed for them.  The Turkish
government supports this, and similar programs. 
We saw the cocoons being heated and then the silk thread being spun.  We watched rugs being made.  It was fascinating, to say the least.

 

            We went
on to the Acropolis, built in about 3000 B.C. 
It sits high on a hill, and was never conquered by enemies.  Water came via an aquaduct from across the
valley.  Water from a spring went down a
trough, which narrowed – allowing it to gain momentum.  A series of ups and downs continued the
process, until the water finally reached the cistern in the middle of the town.

 

            We then
went across the valley to Asclepion, a healing center dating from the Second
Century A.D.  Asclepion was the son of
Apollo, and was known as the god of healing. 
Only those with mental disorders were allowed in. Every kind of therapy
was available, including hydro-therapy, mud pools, dream therapy, theater, and
who knows what else.  The two snakes
continue to be symbols of healing to this day.

 

            Which
brings me back to Paul and his competition. 
We are blessed to be in a time and place where Christianity is
relatively easy.  We take our faith “in
stride,” and often do not give it as second thought.  Paul, on the other hand, lived in a world
where this new faith he was preaching was not well received, and where society
already had well-established faith systems that did not always welcome him or
his message.  The Jews generally did not
welcome him, the Greeks had their own Gods and system of worship, (just look at
these temple ruins I’ve been visiting), gentiles, pagans and others could not
quite believe that they might be welcome in this new community.  I continue to gain respect for Paul’s
persistence, his willingness to talk to anyone, welcome anyone, and be
enthusiastic about his faith.  I pray
that we in Franklin who carry his name may find the same enthusiasm and
persistence in sharing our faith and spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Peace,

    Bob