Ephesus

This morning was a quiet start, and we slept in, which was very nice and much needed. After breakfast, we had a chance to relax, chat with folks on deck, and enjoy the water. Around lunchtime, we docked in Kusadasi, Turkey, the nearest port to the ancient city of Ephesus.

Ephesus shows up in several places in the New Testament, as it was one of Paul’s favorite cities. He preached and taught here for a period of nearly three years. He also caused a riot here because his preaching threatened the local economy. Paul also stopped to meet with the Ephesian elders on his last journey to Jerusalem near the end of Acts, and of course Ephesus was the home of the Apostle John and, probably, Mary the mother of Jesus. John is said to have died here.

So we boarded a bus with our Turkish guide and headed from the port to the ancient site of Ephesus, one of the best restored archaeological sites around. We entered through the top gate and worked our way down the hill, passing such places as shops, houses, the Senate building and some terraced housing (houses built on top of shops). Ephesus had an extremely well developed water system, and many of the pipes under the roads are still visible. They had a fountain in the middle of town as well as running water and sewer. We also got to take a look at their public “outhouses.”

The highlights of the walk, at the bottom of the hill, are the Library of Celsus (whose three-story edifice has been restored) and the Ephesian Theater. The Theater still stands much as it was in Paul’s day, when the rioters forced everyone into the theater and shouted, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” for two hours before they were calmed down. Rachel and I walked as far up as we could and tried to imagine the theater full of people. (Concerts are not held in the theater since Sting performed here several years ago and brought down the house…literally. Much had to be reconstructed after that concert because of the vibrations from the music.)

After dinner, we were able to go back to Ephesus by night and share in a wonderful concert under the starts. We took our place in the Senate building, on ancient seats, and listened as a string ensemble played Bach, Mozart, Brahams and other classical selections. Ephesus was beautiful at night, and I could almost imagine Paul or John or even Mary listening to music by night in that ancient city as they worked to bring the Gospel to this part of the world.