The PCUSA Pilgrim Pastor

Hierapolis, Laodicea, Colossae

Friday, October 11, 2024

We started today getting high…really high. The morning began early with breakfast at 5:30 and being picked up at 5:50. We picked up a few more people and then got to where the hot air balloons were. They were very impressive.

The five of us who went were all very excited.

Then came time to fill up the balloons with hot air. It was pretty cool.

Next we had to actually get into the balloon. It was a little tricky since there was no door. We had to climb over.

But we all made it in and were ready to go.

Our guides even got in on the excitement.

Lift Off!

We saw all the balloons starting to rise

We must have taken over 100 pictures.

Several of us commented how peaceful it was. It really wasn’t scary at all.

We couldn’t believe we were actually in a hot air balloon.

We drifted above the clouds and watched the sunrise.

Our balloon driver was great. He took us high but kept us nice and steady ascending and descending slowly.

After an hour it was time to come back down. You can see this balloon where ropes are thrown to the ground and some of the crew grab them. They then guide the balloon to its landing spot…

On the back of a truck!

Once we all got out, next was the champagne toast.

Oh my, it was definitely one of the highlights. Check that off the bucket list!

We were picked up at 8:30 to go to the archeological site of ancient Heiropolis, today known as Pamukkale.

We entered through the south Byzantine Gate built in the 5th century.

Hierapolis means “Holy City.” It belonged to the King of Pergamum who bequeathed it to the Romans in 133 BCE. It still belonged to the Romans in Biblical times when a flourishing Christian community developed. When Paul writes to the Christians in Collosae, he mentions a faithful Christian who “has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Heirapolis.” (Colossians 4:13) For more fun facts about this city, feel free to enlarge and read this.

The archeological site is huge with remains everywhere.

One of the highlights is the theater that you can see in the distance and get a feeling for how big this is.

Although we didn’t go in, they do have a pool with ancient columns, capitals, and other ancient ruins. You can swim with ruins that are thousands of years old!

Next we hopped in a golf cart and rode up to the ancient theater. Best $11 we ever spent on a hot day.

On our way up we stopped to check out a temple of Hades guarding the underworld. The priest used to go in the tunnel at the bottom with an animal. Because of the CO2 fumes coming up from the ground, the animal died but the man came out alive. Proof of the power of Hades with his dog Cerberus and two serpents.

It takes so much work to carefully dig up these ruins, label them, and then put them together. It’s like a giant jigsaw puzzle.

Then onto the theater. You can see the sprawling city below. People used to come up here not just to watch a show, but also to have a picnic and watch what was happening in town. You really can see everything from here.

While we are a great looking group, unfortunately the photographer forgot to include the theater behind us.

Next we went to the place where Jesus’ disciples Philip was martyred and buried.

Pilgrims to this holy place could wash themselves before entering the tomb area.

The tomb of Philip that the faithful have been visiting since the first century.

Here’s how it looks inside.

An entire church was built here to house pilgrims, worship, and perform healing ceremonies. A good portion of the structure still remains.

It was the perfect place for us to take a group picture.

Last night we had the pleasure of swimming in the naturally hot thermal springs. Those springs contain many healthy minerals that over time have deposited many of those minerals to create an interesting and beautiful formation.

The Pamukkale thermal springs are well known in this area and a portion of the archeological site allows visitors to experience them first hand.

Of course we had to get in on the action.

The springs were a perfect temperature and felt good on feet that had done lots of walking.

These are the beautiful formations they have created.

From the road it looks like snow.

We even saw them from the air.

Hierapolis is a huge place but was so worthwhile to see an ancient town that Paul referred to and where Philip gave his life for the sake of the gospel.

Our next stop was Laodicea, one of the churches Paul refers to in his letter to the Colossians 4:15-16, “Give my greetings to the brothers and sisters in Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house. And when this letter has been read among you, have it read also in the church of the Laodiceans.” This was a beautiful archeological site where a lot of restoration work is currently being done. The main walkway to the city if impressive.

What is neat is that our actually get to walk in these places where people have walked for thousands of years.

The place is huge and I was grateful we had a guide who could both show us the highlights and explain their significance.

The church here is quite a place, complete with mosaic floors.

The Council of Laodicea was held here from 343-381.

They had running water and pipes that carried the water to the baptistery, washing area, and toilets.

The mosaics were full of love.

This was the altar area and front of the church.

Upon closer investigation, you can detect where the altar was placed anchored by the holes to the foreground.

Here is a closer look.

The altar area of this famous church which was referred to as one of the seven church in Revelation (3:14-22), was the perfect spot for a group picture.

Beside the altar is the baptistery. You can see the cross shaped pool where new converts would be baptized.

We headed back down the road to a few other places in Laodicea.

The temples erected to the pagan gods were very impressive.

Plexiglass covered the floor where you could see columns that have been perfectly preserved throughout the centuries.

The engravings of the columns still remain where the treasury was kept. The lower figure is the goddess Tyche, the goddess of fortune, luck, and success.

The remains of several of the temples still stand and are being reconstructed today.

Finally we walked across a field to the temple of Trajan.

Excavators were very excited to find this statue and are planning to reconstruct the entire temple complete with the water feature and fountain that was originally here.

Water was actually a central focus of this temple. In the second century, they wrote the water laws on marble for all to see in order to promote hygiene and health in the city. You’ll have to enlarge the picture to see the writing.

It was the perfect place for a group picture and great way to end our visit to Laodicea.

Wow, it had already been a long day but lunch revived us enough to go to our last location.

Some of you may recognize the name Colossae. The people are called Colossians and it’s a letter in the Bible that Paul wrote to these people.

And here it is.

Yeah, I know, kind of underwhelming. But if you climb up the hill

and up a little more, you get to see this.

And this.

What is up there is enough to get this put on the list of places to dig one day.

Right now all the action is at Laodicea and for good reason. One day, maybe in 50-100 years, archeologists will get to this site and it too might be more of a regular on a biblical tour in Paul’s footsteps.

Paul’s most famous words to the Colossians is in chapter 4;12-17 which includes, “Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.” We don’t think Paul every made it to Colossae because in his letter he writes, “we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus,” implying that Paul probably hadn’t visited there. Not many people visit here today, but perhaps one day…who knows?

After a full day we headed to our hotel just in time to catch the sunset.

This by far was our fanciest hotel. It was like a picture postcard.

After a fabulous dinner in the cool night air and an indulgent Turkish bath, we slept good that night renewing ourselves for a big day tomorrow in Ephesus.