Petra, Jordan The lost city of Petra was one of the great archaeological finds of the early 19th century. This magnificent city, hewn from the rock of the surrounding towering cliffs, is one of the world’s most unique architectural treasures. While it is primarily known for its Nabataean, Roman and Byzantine ruins, its importance as a religious pilgrimage site is … [Read more...]
TOMBS OF THE SONS OF JACOB
Several Locations, Isael & Lebanon In the closing chapters of the Book of Genesis, as the stories of the Patriarchs come to an end, great attention is spent on the fate of Joseph, who was raised up above his brothers in the service of Pharoh. It is known that his body was exhumed and solemnly returned to Canaan during the Exodus, and that he was buried in Shechem, … [Read more...]
RUINS OF SODOM
Bab Edh-Dhra, Jordan The story of the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah has long been considered allegorical, if not outright mythical, even among the most devoted of Bible scholars. The truth of this strange side story in the patriarchal histories is elusive. However, there is every reason to believe that Sodom and Gomorah and the other three Cities of the … [Read more...]
KRAK DES CHEVALIERS
Homs, Syria While Akko was the military headquarters of the Crusaders in the Holy Land, the Krak des Chevaliers was their greatest bastion. This tremendous fortress, first built by the Kurds and then later rebuilt by the Crusaders, is arguably one of the greatest castles in the world. It is certainly one of the greatest castles that survived the Middle Ages essentially … [Read more...]
BASILICA OF ST. SIMEON STYLITES
Aleppo, Syria After Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire, die-hard Christians began to seek increasingly extreme ways to outdo each other in their public displays of humility towards God. At first they expressed themselves by founding or entering monasteries, or seeking seclusion as hermits. But as the 5th century dawned, more and more devotees … [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...]
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...]
