Day 07 - Pergamum, Weaving Center

Today we started our day getting to once again admire the beauty of God’s creation while riding a gondola to the upper acropolis of Pergamum. Before starting our walk through the city we took a short detour to open our day with John’s letter to Smyrna in the book of Revelation. John encourages the church of Smyrna to persevere through the horrible persecution and pain they were experiencing at the hands of the Roman Empire.

This message was especially timely for today because just before we left Chicago, Dave
received word that his brother had passed away from his battle with cancer. Dave’s brother’s funeral was held today back in Grand Rapids. In honor of his brother, Dave shared with us some of his best memories and the impact his brother had on the world around him. It was clear to all of us that he was a man of faith and perseverance even while battling the pain of cancer. This group has continually grown together throughout the week and we were blessed to be able to mourn and honor Dave’s brother along with him and Sue.

From there we journeyed through the amazing city to Zeus’ altar, followed by the temples to Athena, Trajan, Dionysius, and Demeter. In a city that was clearly extremely religious, we saw how each temple brought its own kind of disorder into the world. We explored how the gospel interacts with each one and offers another way forward, one that brings peace and flourishing to a disordered world.

We closed our day visiting a Turkish weaving center. The Bible is written to a world filled with diversity. Each culture and people group bring different kinds of beauty into this world and we wanted to celebrate that beauty wherever it can be found. We were shown the weaving process and met some of the men and women who make their livelihood in this trade.

After weaving we went back to the hotel and once again got to celebrate another birthday.
Happy Birthday, Judy! In the end, we finished another wonderful day in the amazing land of Turkey. Learning more about the people here, the message of the Gospel, and how we have been tasked to continue to spread that good news to the ends of the earth....