Turkey Travel Blog

Turkey is a predominately-Muslim country yet many people are surprised to learn its history is steeped in Christianity, from the house of the Virgin Mary in Selcuk, near ancient Ephesus to the earliest known church in Antakya. Biblical tours of Turkey are very popular with visitors from Christian countries, keen to learn more about how Christianity grew in this area to spread worldwide. Indeed, three saints of the Christian religion are called the Cappadocia fathers, due to their involvement in spreading the word even when faced with certain death. Another Saint was Paul who was born in Tarsus, present day Mersin in the Southeast of the country. He was a Jew, and originally persecuted followers of Christ until in his own words; he experienced a miracle on the road to Damascus. From there, he vowed to spread the word. It is said that without people like the Cappadocia fathers, Saint Paul and John, Christianity would never have become as popular as it did.

Retracing The Journey of Saint Paul

In his day, Saint Paul travelled many miles, across more countries than present day Turkey. It took him years, compared to travel methods now when we can cross the world in just fifty hours in a commercial plane. He used methods of transport such as a horse or donkey to go from East to West spreading Christianity to the largely Jewish population. The starting place for any tour should be the birthplace of Saint Paul. In history, the importance and size of Tarsus even outshone places like Alexandra and Athens. Attracting famous rulers and officials, Mark Anthony and Cleopatra had a romantic rendezvous in this city. Saint Pauls house and church has been renovated and opened for visitors. Antakya is where Saint Paul helped establish the first church. Saint Pierre is a pilgrimage journey for many Catholics but there are also other churches in the region still in use. The mosaic museum in the city centre holds many artefacts from that era and it is eye opening to visit an old traditional house. Near the cotton castle of Pamukkale is the ancient city of Hierapolis, another destination Saint Paul visited, so he could spread the word of Christianity. This city was also an ancient spa centre for healing Roman soldiers after battle, and a significant amount of it has been excavated. Lately, historians have uncovered “the gateway to hell”. In ancient times, anyone who went near it died so locals believed it was hell and sacrificed animals. Scientific explanations reveal that it was simply methane gas. Although Saint Paul travelled to many other major cities including Pergamon, the prize jewel is Ephesus. Opposition to Christianity in this large seaside city was strong and many Christians prayed in secret. With Saint John though, Paul helped followers in their cause, despite Ephesus being the second largest city of the Roman Empire and the emperors being against Christianity in every form. You can see all these places and more on our tour called “The Footsteps of Paul in Turkey”