Rome, Italy The City of Rome is overflowing with sites of Christian interest, from the Papal properties and the Vatican to the memorials and tombs of literally hundreds of Catholic saints. However, from an historical standpoint, there are few secular places in Rome quite as important to Christianity as the Ponte Milvio, or Milvian Bridge. It was here, on October 27, 312 … [Read more...]
HOUSE CHURCH
Dura Europas, Syria The House Church of Dura Europas, or what remains of it, is the world’s oldest known existing Christian church structure. Dating perhaps as far back as the early 2nd century AD, the House Church was probably abandoned before Constantine legalized Christianity in the empire. Nevertheless on its site is preserved some of the world’s earliest Christian … [Read more...]
CAVE OF ST. THECLA
Maloula, Syria The Cave of Thecla is an ancient Christian site, dating perhaps as far back as the mid-1st century. Thecla, an early Church convert, did not appear in the New Testament but was an important figure of Apocryphal Christian literature. According to the Acts of Paul and Thecla, she may have been one of the first, or possibly even the first woman martyred for the … [Read more...]
CHURCH OF ST. PETER
Antakya, Turkey The Church of St. Peter in Antioch, or Antakya, may very well be the world’s oldest place of Christian worship still in active use. Built into the side of a slope on Mount Starius, it was the seat of the first patriarchate established outside of the Holy Land. According to tradition, it stands on the spot where Peter the Apostle delivered the first sermon … [Read more...]
HOLY GROTTO OF THE REVELATION
Patmos, Greece The Isle of Patmos in the Dodeconese Islands between Greece and Turkey has the honor of being the setting for the very last book of the Bible. It was here, sometime towards the end of the 1st century AD, that John the Evangelist received the supreme vision of the apocalyptic end of the world and the final triumph of God’s eternal kingdom. The Book of … [Read more...]
MONASTERY OF ST. THADDEUS
Maku, Iran This quiet, isolated monstary located in the wilderness hinterlands of ancient Armenia is believed to stand on the site of the martyrdom and/or burial of the Apostle Thaddeus, or Jude. It is revered by both the Oriental Orthodox and Assyrian Orthodox Churches, especially members of the Armenian Apostolic Church. For the last three decades, the monastery has been … [Read more...]
ST. PETER’S BASILICA
Vatican City St. Peter’s Basilica is the great cathedral of the Vatican, the world’s smallest sovereign state, and the last surviving remnant of an immense Christian Empire that once spread to every corner of Europe. In the aftermath of the Islamic conquest of Jerusalem in the 7th century, the site of Peter’s martyrdom and burial became the most popular, or at least the … [Read more...]
HOUSE OF THE VIRGIN MARY
Ephesus, Turkey The city of Ephesus in western Asia Minor, one of the great metropolises of the Roman Empire, witnessed the final events of the lives of not one but two of the New Testament’s most pivotal figures: Mary, the Mother of Jesus; and John the Evangelist. Little is known about the last days of these two most prominent Biblical personages, but their presence in … [Read more...]
CHURCH OF AGIOS LAZAROS
Larnaka, Cyprus As Christianity began to spread across the Mediterranean world in the 1st century, the island of Cyprus became a natural stepping stone for early Christian missionary efforts. It was the first place Paul visited outside of the Levant, and one of the first places outside of Judea or Syria to receive the Gospel. Its reputation as an important Christian … [Read more...]
UMAYYAD MOSQUE
Damascus, Syria Long before Damascus rose to prominence as the Umayyad dynasty’s capital of the Islamic Caliphate, it was a major early center of the Christian faith. According to the New Testament, Christianity was introduced to Damascus by the disciple Ananias within a year or two after the Ascension, making Damascus one of the first major cities outside of Judea to be … [Read more...]
