Day 18

Bob’s Sabbatical

Day 18, September 17, 2009

 

            Our “Paul
and the Early Church” course is in the home stretch.  We left Bursa this morning to head for
Istanbul, our last stop.  It was an
interesting day.  We stopped at Nicea,
which sits on the edge of a beautiful lake. 
Constantine, the Emperor who first legalized Christianity, had a “lake
house” there (he lived in the city he named for himself, Constantinople – now Istanbul).  In 325 he invited Bishops from his Empire to
come to the Lake house for the Council of Nicea, or what became known as the
First Ecumenical Council.  He has been
quoted as saying that “strife in the Church is worse than war.”  He basically was concerned about the strife
in the Church of his day, and said to the Bishops assembled, “work it out
before you go home!”  The result is what
we now say every week, the “Nicene Creed.” 
All that is left of the Palace where the council met are some pieces of
a wall that jut out into the lake (it really was a “lake” house).

It was very moving to spend some
time there, thinking about that council, and what it has meant to the
Church.  General Convention in Anaheim it
wasn’t!  The council also came up with 20
“canons,” or statements about clergy discipline and church life.  The last one was, “Stand up to pray.”  So it is not just my preference, or the
pitiful kneelers at St. Paul’s, but the Council of Nicea that instructs us to
stand when we pray.  One of the reasons
given was that standing is symbolic of the Resurrection.

            We also
visited the remains of the Church of Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom) in Nicea.  It was the site of the 7^th (and
last) of the Ecumenical councils, held in 787 A.D.  the last time St. George’s was here, there
was no roof on the building.  Our leaders
were much impressed with the restoration work being done.

            Nicea is
an area of huge olive groves.  Also,
there are some local olives that are as large as plums.  I tried to get a picture of what seems
typical in much of Turkey, a tractor going down the road, with a man driving
and a woman, all dressed in robes and head covering riding on the wheel cover
next to the man. I could not get one from the bus.  The other visual image I have (but no
pictures) is of fields with women bending over picking tomatoes or whatever –
no men.

            From
rural Nicea we drove (and took a ferry) to the teeming city of Istanbul.  At 14 million people, it stretches for over
100 kms.  2000 families per day are
moving there.  Today is the last day of
Ramadan, the Muslim feast time.  It took
us forever to get to the hotel because the town is like nothing I have ever
seen – people everywhere!  We took a ride
in a boat on the Bosporus, which splits the city in half.  It runs between the Black Sea and the Sea of
Marmara.  It is also the dividing line
between Europe and Asia.  [I see that I misspelled
Bosporus in the photo album for today – please forgive me, but I am not going
back to change it on all those pictures].

            We also
visited Chora Museum, which was built in the 6^th Century A.D. just
outside the city walls.  Most of it’s
noted frescos were added in the 13^th Century.  It has suffered damage from earthquakes,
crusaders, and was turned into a mosque in about 1505.  The mosaics and frescos are stunning.  One of the noted mosaics is of St. Paul.

            While we
were on the boat trip on the Bosporus, Mehmet, our guide pointed out Calcedon
in the distance, behind some shipping cranes. 
That means that we have either visited or at least seen the places where
the 7 Eucmenical councils of the Church were held, beginning in 325 in Nicea,
and ending there in 787.  In between were
councils in Constantinople (3), Ephesus, and Calcedon.

            Although
I came to learn more about Paul, the course was also on the early Church.  I have a whole new appreciation for how we
have come to where we are now.

  Peace,

    Bob