Are some of the apostles buried under a mosque in Istanbul?

After the destruction of the city of Jerusalem, the center of gravity for the church moved to Turkey. Most of the New Testament books were written either in Turkey or to people who resided in Turkey. Some of the apostles based their [Read More...]]]>

Are some of the apostles buried under a mosque in Istanbul?

After the destruction of the city of Jerusalem, the center of gravity for the church moved to Turkey. Most of the New Testament books were written either in Turkey or to people who resided in Turkey. Some of the apostles based their ministry in Turkey, and the believers were first called Christians in Turkey. The twelve apostles, all recently dead, were revered by the Christians there.

In the early 300s, Emperor Constantine dedicated a church building in Constantinople (Istanbul) which was called “The Church of the Holy Apostles.” He intended to gather the remains of the apostles and have them interred here in this church. That proved impossible, but four of the New Testament heroes were evidently buried there – Andrew, Mark, Luke, and Timothy. The latter two, Luke and Timothy, had originally been buried in Ephesus but their remains were moved to the Church of the Holy Apostles.

Constantine himself was also buried there. So were the remains of the celebrated preacher of Constantinople, John Chrysostom, whose sermons were so good he was called the “Golden Mouth.”

The Church of the Holy Apostles became a kind of “Westminster Abbey” of the East, with tombs and inscriptions to the great heroes of apostolic and post-apostolic Christianity.

A couple of hundred years later, the church was renovated from the ground up by Emperor Justinian, the man who also commissioned the Hagai Sophia (see my previous blog on that). It was consecrated on June 28, AD 550. When he died, Justinian joined Andrew, Mark, Luke, Timothy, and Constantine in being interred there.

According to old manuscripts, an inscription was placed over the main gate of the church recording what happened to all twelve of the apostles. This is the source of much of our tradition and/or history concerning the Twelve. It said:

Mark is put to death by the people of Alexandria.

The great sleep of life Matthew sleeps.

Rome sees Paul die by the sword.

Philip is given what was given Peter.

Bartholomew suffers death on the cross.

Simon too on the cross ends his life.

In Rome vain Nero crucifies Peter.

In life and death John lives.

Luke died peacefully at the end.

The men of Patras brutally crucify Andrew.

A knife severs the life paths of James.

Lances kill Thomas in India.

Second in size only to the great Hagai Sophia, the Church of the Holy Apostles was a place of pilgrimage for thousands of believers for hundreds of years.

Sadly, no trace of the Church of the Holy Apostles remains today. The Crusaders looted it in the 1200s; and when Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the church was turned into a mosque and later destroyed. The Fatih Mosque now sits on the site, perhaps over the tombs of Timothy and Luke. Marks remains were perhaps shuttled off to Venice. I can just see Luke and Timothy flying up through that mosque at the resurrection!

When I discovered our hotel was near the Fatih Mosque, Joshua and I took a cab there, though there was nothing to be discovered in terms of its ancient history. We did find a little framing store nearby. The owner couldn’t speak a word of English, but we communicated with sign language. I’d been looking for an inexpensive painting of the Bosphorus; and even after I toppled over a shelf of paintings (resulting in broken fames and shattered glass and at least one bent canvas), he was as kind as could be, offering us tea to settle our nerves. See him smile and pour the steaming tea after I accidentally wrecked his shop? See Joshua smirk?

I bought the painting of the Bosphorus, by the way, and I didn’t even haggle. I wan’t in a very good bargaining position.

Here are some pictures of the Fatih Mosque and of the nearby shop.

On a hilltop near the excavated ruins of Ephesus are another set of ruins—a church built in the 500s by Emperor Justinian to commemorate the grave of St. John the Apostle. Our earlier Christian historians say that John left Jerusalem before the city was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70. He came [Read More...]]]>

On a hilltop near the excavated ruins of Ephesus are another set of ruins—a church built in the 500s by Emperor Justinian to commemorate the grave of St. John the Apostle. Our earlier Christian historians say that John left Jerusalem before the city was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70. He came to Ephesus and served here as leader of the church (except for a brief exile on the island of Patmos) until his death sometime near AD 100. He was the last surviving apostle, and his grave was venerated by early Christians. It would seem reasonable to assume that somewhere beneath this tomb or this church, the body of John the Apostle really does abide perhaps under this very gravestone, awaiting the promised resurrection.

As I toured this 6^th-century church, I found something else very interesting – an ancient baptistery, or “baptisterium,” as our guide called it.

What a city was ancient Ephesus! The gateway from Europe to Asia in biblical times; a teeming city of 250,000 souls–the fourth largest in the Roman Empire; the scene of Paul’s greatest church planting project; home to Timothy, John, and maybe Luke; and the location of one of the most vibrant congregations in [Read More...]]]>

What a city was ancient Ephesus! The gateway from Europe to Asia in biblical times; a teeming city of 250,000 souls–the fourth largest in the Roman Empire; the scene of Paul’s greatest church planting project; home to Timothy, John, and maybe Luke; and the location of one of the most vibrant congregations in history.

We can learn so much from the story of the founding of the church of Ephesus in Acts 19 and from Paul’s message to the elders of that city in Acts 21. And then, of course, there are two epistles to the Ephesians in the Bible—the one that we call the book of Ephesians and the other a short missive in Revelation 2:1-7.

Today the city is home to storks and turtles and an astonishing number of cats. But its ruins are considered among the finest in the world, even though only a fraction of the city has been excavated. It’s the most developed site in Turkey.

In visiting Ephesus, one can walk down a long ancient street containing an upper town, a downhill avenue, and a lower town. The upper end seems to have been more governmental and included a small theater hall (an odeion or concert hall). The lower street seems to be more commercial. In between are the latrines.

The column lined upper end of the long inclined main street of Ephesus where the Roman Baths were located

Small theater hall (would have been enclosed) used for city meetings & cultural events

Most of city on upper end still not excavated. Underneath landscape, a vast residential and commentarial center awaits discovery

The Marble Street. Did John think of this when he saw the vision of Gold Street of New Jerusalem?

In the middle of the city is Domitian Square with its marble sculpture relief of Nike, a flying Greek goddess of victory with the crown ready to reward victors. And near the public square is the… public latrines. Our guide explained that a pool in the middle was filled with frogs to drown out sounds, and with an open ceiling to clear away odors. The long togas would have insured modesty, so he said.

Domitian Square

Nike! Remember what the Bible says about "crowns"?

The Latrine with flowing water underneath

Commodes on all sides with the Frog Pond in the middle

Another modern-day Ephesian

Thanks for visiting Ephesus with Joshua and me. I'll post a few more pics in a day or two.

If I were to ask about the greatest church building in the world, you might think of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome or St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. But for many centuries there was only one answer – the Hagai Sophia in Istanbul (eye’-ah / so-fee’-yah). Emperor Justinian built it in the 500s [Read More...]]]>

If I were to ask about the greatest church building in the world, you might think of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome or St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. But for many centuries there was only one answer – the Hagai Sophia in Istanbul (eye’-ah / so-fee’-yah). Emperor Justinian built it in the 500s AD on the site of prior church buildings, and it was designed by the best Greek scientists and mathematicians in the sixth-century world. Walking into the Hagai Sophia today, it’s hard to imagine the impact it would have made on pilgrims nearly 1500 years ago. Marble and stone was imported from all over world. An army of builders worked nonstop for years. And Justinian reportedly exclaimed as he walked into the building: “Now I have outdone Solomon!”

For a thousand years, it was the greatest dome in the world. But on the very day that the Ottoman’s took Constantinople in 1453, the Hagai Sophia was turned into a mosque (hence the minarets), which it remained until 1934, when it was turned into a state museum.

Three things impressed me a great deal. First, the immense size of the interior and dome, which was breathtaking, especially considering its antiquity. It’s large enough to contain Notre-Dame and tall enough to enclose the Statue of Liberty. Second, an ancient mosaic of Christ in which he was making gesture of blessing using three fingers to signify the Holy Trinity. Third, two huge urns used to provide drinking water for the worshippers. These urns were in existence in the time of Christ. They date to pre-New Testament days, and were evidently made elsewhere in Turkey (in Pergamum to be exact), carved out of single blocks of marble.

Here are some pictures.

The Dome of Hagai Sophia

In the Nave

The Great Chandelier

Christ and His Gesture of the Trinity

The View from the Gallery

One of the Urns from before the days of Christ

Istanbul is an Islamic city in an Islamic country. Imagine the mournful wails we’re hearing from the minarets. It’s also a city filled with Christian history, but you have to look very hard to find any traces of it now. For centuries Constantinople (Istanbul) was the foremost center of Christianity in the world. [Read More...]]]>

Istanbul is an Islamic city in an Islamic country. Imagine the mournful wails we’re hearing from the minarets. It’s also a city filled with Christian history, but you have to look very hard to find any traces of it now. For centuries Constantinople (Istanbul) was the foremost center of Christianity in the world. It was originally called Byzantium, a town that dates roughly to the same period as Isaiah the prophet. When Constantine the Great became emperor in the 300s AD, he chose Byzantium as the capital of his eastern domain and renamed the city Nova (New) Rome. Soon, however, it was called Constantinople. Since Constantine was the first Roman Emperor to legalize Christianity, the church in Constantinople, headed by the Patriarch, became the Eastern version of the Pope in Rome. This eventually led to the major division in Christianity—East v. West, or Orthodox v. Latin. If you’ve visited a Greek Orthodox or Roman Orthodox Church, for example, their traditions come from the Constantinople branch. If you’re Catholic or Protestant, you can trace your heritage to the Western Church. As the church—both East and West—became institutionalized, it lost its force and fire; but in every generation the Lord has maintained a chain of unbroken witnesses who have handed the faith down to us. Thank God for His unbroken chain and for letting us be a part of it today. Here are some pictures from this morning’s excursions. The picture below shows the Hagai Sophia (once the greatest church building in Christendom) on the left and the Blue Mosque on the right.

This bridge connects Europe with Asia

Galata Bridge

Fish Sandwiches right out of Bosphorus

Egyptian Spice Market

Joshua on Bosphorus Cruise

Here’s wishing you a cup of Turkish Coffee. Joshua Rowe and I had a safe and uneventful flight to Istanbul, arriving this morning about 10:15. The cab driver dropped us off about a half-mile short of our hotel, but we managed to find it without too much problem. After a brief rest, we [Read More...]]]>

Here’s wishing you a cup of Turkish Coffee. Joshua Rowe and I had a safe and uneventful flight to Istanbul, arriving this morning about 10:15. The cab driver dropped us off about a half-mile short of our hotel, but we managed to find it without too much problem. After a brief rest, we went exploring. Over the next few days I’d like to blog about the significance of Istanbul to church history; but for now here are some pictures from our afternoon of exploration.

In front of Hagai Sophia

Street Corn

Pomegranates

In the Grand Bazaar

On the Bosphorus

The Hippodrome

Minarets Over the Crowds

Olives

Nuts

Beans

Spices

Crowds

• You can tell a person’s character by how early or late they arrive at work—Susan Case in There’s a Dead One Alright
• You can tell a person’s character when you check their groceries—Jonathan Kellerman in Time Bomb
• You can tell a person’s character by looking into her eyes—Jessica [Read More...]]]> You can tell a person’s character by…
  • You can tell a person’s character by how early or late they arrive at work—Susan Case in There’s a Dead One Alright
  • You can tell a person’s character when you check their groceries—Jonathan Kellerman in Time Bomb
  • You can tell a person’s character by looking into her eyes—Jessica Stern in Terror in the Name of God
  • You can tell a person’s character by their handwriting—Ruth Binney in Wise Words and Country Ways.
  • You can tell a person’s character with tolerable correctness if you know what jokes he finds amusing—in an old magazine
  • You can tell a person’s character by what they do when no one else is looking—Samuel V. Main in Strengthening Your Good Heart
  • My father always said you can tell a person’s character from his shoes—Curt Sampson in his book about the Masters Golf Tournament
  • As my Grandfather G used to say, “You can tell a person’s character by the way he treats his animals”—Diane Torrens in Fielding’s Family Vacations USA
  • You can tell a person’s character from his doddles—L. G. Alexander in Mainline: Student’s Book
  • You can tell a person’s character by what he gives or borrows—Ralph Vile in Proverb’s from the Poet Preacher
  • You can tell a man’s character by his handshake—Randal Files in Close to the Edge.
  • You can tell a man’s character by how he handles three tings: his wife, his anger, and his money—Melisa Neuman in AARP Connect to Love
  • You can tell a man’s character by his beer mug—a German maxim
  • You can tell a man’s character by the way he handles chopsticks and holds his rice bowl—a Chinese maxim

  Any fresh suggestions?

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