Day #2 - Istanbul

Day #2 - the official tour did not begin until the afternoon so in the morning I toured alone and walked from the hotel to the Hagia Sofia, at the time it was built it was the largest church in all of Christendom. Later after the city fell in 1453 it was converted to a Mosque. Today it is a museum. I did not go in. That will be tomorrow. But I also saw the Blue Mosque, the Hippodrome, German Fountain, Suiliman’s Harem, and the Grand Bazaar. In the afternoon I met up with the tour and we took a boat ride on the Bosphorus. Istanbul is divided by the river. On one side is the new city (after 1453) in Asia and the other side is the old city of Byzantium in Europe. Dinner soon and then to bed. Tomorrow we go inside Hagia Sophia and then we fly to Antalya. Below is the Hagia Sophia - Holy Wisdom (behind this building is a smaller church/mosque name Hagia Eirene - Holy Peace)

For some reason this site won’t let me add captions so photo 4: On the river Bosphorus looking towards Hagia Sophia, Hagia Eirene is the tiny dome behind the larger Sophia (to left of it)
Photo 5: Our boat; Photo 6: the Grand Bazaar; Photo 7: On the river - a beautiful Mosque; Photo 8: the Palace which served as the residence and headquarters for the Ottoman Empire; Photo 9: On the river; Photo 10: The Guard structure guarding the entrance to the city - there is another smaller one on thE other side of the river.


The Kaiser Wilhelm Fountain

The Roman Aquaduct








Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Funeral Sermon on John 14

Once more I have had the unpleasant experience of having to listen to a "pastor" expound on the John 14 text in a way which focuses exclusively on "what we get when we get to heaven." Central to this position is the insistence that "you better believe in Jesus - have a personal relationship with Jesus" or else you won't be getting one of those nice mansions." This is not the Gospel and it is not what this text is saying. In fact I find this approach to funeral sermons to be reprehensible as it subjects vulnerable and grieving men and women to a manipulative religious diatribe which is totally irrelevant to the occasion - the loss of a loved one. Not only that, but I have experienced also the dishonesty of evangelical "pastors" enlisting the deceased in their manipulation (e.g. Mildred believed in Jesus so you all should be like Mildred and believe in Jesus). This is NOT the Gospel. This is manipulation and it is irresponsible. So, for al
Read more

Reflections on the text: Genesis 33:1-11

Image
Please note - I am replacing the Lectionary text appointed for Proper 14 with this text. This text is the climax of the narrative we have been hearing for the previous 3 weeks.  I will say that I think it odd that this text was not included in the series of texts appointed this summer.  Leaving the story and jumping to the Joseph cycle over this climactic story is kind of like following Captain Ahab on his quest for Moby Dick and then jumping to a new story just about the time that they lower the whaling boats.  So, here is the climax of the story:  Genesis 33:1-11 Confrontation! As morning breaks Jacob moves from his campsite and there he sees his brother approaching with 400 (armed?) men.   After the experiences of the previous night his fear and foreboding seems to have been replaced with a sense of inevitability.   He spent the night wrestling with an unknown and unknowable assailant and in the morning he has determined that in this assailant he has experienced and come face
Read more

Reflections on the text – “David and Goliath”

Image
Read the text here: I Samuel 17:1-49 Five Smooth Stones* Of all the stories in the Old Testament perhaps there is none which is as well-known and well-loved as this story of the little shepherd boy, David, defeating the big, well-armed Philistine champion Goliath. The entire construct of this story – the little guy defeats the big guy - has entered into our national consciousness and is often referred to when a small community, for example, is able to prevail over some large corporate conglomerate.  But there is a lot more to this story, so much more in fact, that it is impossible in one week to examine the story completely.  In preparation for this week I read a number of articles and sermons – one of the best is an essay on the nature of religious violence: “After He Killed Him, He Cut Off His Head: David, Goliath and Sacred Violence” by Dan Clendenin – find it at: http://www.journeywithjesus.net/Essays/20090615JJ.shtml   So, what is your experience with thi
Read more