Day 3 – Kalambaka to Thessaloniki
We were up and waiting for the dawn. It was not quite 5:30am. Rather than go walking to explore, we chose to enjoy the view of the magnificent Monastery of St Stephen, perched high above the earth on the precipice of a massive sandstone pillar that loomed high above the village of Kalambaka. From our balcony, we had a bird’s eye view. The dawn gradually shone its glow from behind the mountain. It was a glorious way to begin the new day.
It was a most sumptuous breakfast at 7am, with bags already outside the room for the porter service to the bus, which was waiting for us at 8:30am. It was to be a very full day ahead, with the promise of 36 degree temperatures. In addition, all men were required to dress in long trousers for entry to the Monasteries of the Meteora. The women were required to wear long dresses.
We headed to the heights above. As indicated yesterday, we were in Kalambaka to visit the Monasteries of the ‘Meteora’, magnificent monasteries dating from the 14th century, but which were built perched on the very precipices of the massive mountainous pillars of sandstone that dwarfed the village of Kalambaka below. See the photos. Originally about twenty, only six remain, but they are massive, beautiful and defy all logic in the way they have somehow been constructed without any mechanization, and have stood the test of the centuries.
We were headed for the ‘Meteora’ – a Greek word that picks up the idea of ‘meteor’, of the heavens, suspended in the air. They didn’t exist at the time of the Apostle Paul, nor did he probably see the massive pillars of stone reaching for the sky above the Thessalian Plain. It was important to visit to capture something of the sheer devotion of the early Monks whose faith and dedication to God were reflected in the determination to construct these great edifices to the God whom they served so sacrificially.
The photos tell the story far better than words. We climbed to the heights of the fabulous Monastery of St Nicholas. We had the benefit of a road that has only been built in the past 50 years, and hundreds of steps that took us up the otherwise sheer walls of the Monastery with its beautiful Orthodox chapel, perched literally on the precipice of a massive sandstone column of rock. The Monasteries are all of similar quality – they are rock solid structures, but left us wondering just how the first person ever scaled the sheer sides of these dangerous vertical walls. How did they get the materials up to such heights, when only ropes and cables were the means for centuries of monks accessing and departing the Monasteries. They were actually winched up and down by a rope net!
We had the benefit of the stairs, on a very hot day. We marveled in the silence of the small chapels.
We then scaled the heights even further to the magnificent Monastery Valaam, with views to the Great Meteora across the vast chasm. The hours passed quickly as we explored with great reverence these two Monasteries, but viewed the other four in our tour of the Monasteries of the ‘Meteora’. Words are insufficient to describe the sheer wonder, the magnificence of the handiwork of mere man, impassioned by their love for the wonderful Creator in whose honour these great wonders of the world had been constructed.
Reluctantly we made the descent, after ourselves standing on the top of one of these great sandstone pillars, which gave breath taking views across to the Monasteries perched like huge eagles nests. Back in the village we spent time at a place where the icons for the Orthodox church were made and available for sale. Then lunch back in the centre of town, and time to ‘take the weight off our feet’.
We were then heading north to pick up the trail of the Apostle Paul. Paul was originally Saul, a Jew and a Pharisee from Tarsus, who devoted the early part of his life to the persecution of Christians, until he was confronted by the Risen Christ when Saul was on his way from Jerusalem to persecute Christians in Damascus. His life was changed, as was his name, now Paul. He devoted the rest of his life to the proclamation of the message of the Risen Christ, and teaching and preaching the Gospel. Much of the New Testament after the Gospels is either written about Pauls’s extensive ministry, or was written by Paul to strengthen and encourage the Christian communities that had spread through what we know today as Turkey and Greece. During his life, he led at least three missionary journeys, either founding or later visiting the Christian communities, and preaching the Gospel to the Gentiles who had previously not heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Our journey was in ‘the Footsteps’ of St Paul’s 2nd Missionary journey. To keep it interesting, we were doing it backwards!
From Kalambaka we headed further north into Greece, heading for Berea. Acts 17:10 describes how Paul was brought by his companions from Thessaloniki to Berea for his own safety. The story of Thessaloniki will appear tomorrow. But St Paul couldn’t help himself. He went straight to the Jewish Synagogue to tell the very devout Jewish followers about Jesus Christ. The Bible says they received Paul’s teaching with great eagerness and studied the scriptures to check if all that Paul was saying was true. As a result, many were added to the Christian faith. However, the mobs came after him from Thessaloniki, so St Paul was then taken to the coast, from where he went by ship to Athens. We pick up the Athens story when we get back to Athens in about ten days.
The bus stopped at the park in the centre of Berea, at the statue of St Paul under a tree, the park and chapels dedicated to the memory of the one who did so much to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles, especially in Berea. We spent 15 mins with one of our number sharing thoughts from the scriptures, and prayers of gratitude for the dedication of St Paul, and the many down through the ages who have given selfless service to the Kingdom of God.
The bus then headed further north to our end location for the day, the magnificent city of Thessaloniki, where St Paul arrived from Philippi and staked a claim in that place for the Gospel of Christ so long ago. More about that tomorrow.
We found our Hotel. It was the end of a long, hot day. We shared a much awaited dinner together, and some of us watched the most beautiful sun set over the magnificence of the Aegean Sea.
It was the end of a beautiful day, a day where with our own eyes we stared upon the attempts of man to build something which tried to capture something of the mystery of an eternal God who comes to us in Christ. As St Paul announced to the Thessalonians, ‘This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah’, when he made the great claim to them that there is a King other than Caesar, and his name is Jesus Christ.
As we watch the sinking sun shed its orange and red glow across the Aegean Sea, we send our love from the beautiful seaside village of Thessaloniki.
Until tomorrow….
KRA
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