A Perfect Day at Patmos

When Amy and I booked this Grace Trip, we had choices between several different packages. The one we settled on was perfect, except for one small thing. We really wanted to visit the island of Patmos, and the itinerary did not include it. But, as I used to say to my children (to the point of annoyance): “nothing is ever perfect”.

Tuesday was our first full day at sea, and we were scheduled to land at the island of Lemnos. The weather had other ideas, however, and high winds and waves made it impossible for us to tender to the island. The next island on the agenda, Mykonos, was also experiencing this weather, so the captain was afraid that even if we sailed there overnight we would not be able to get off the ship there either. So he called an audible: we left the bay of Lemnos and headed toward Patmos, which had a much better forecast and a more protected harbor.

Amy and I were thrilled. I would trade Mykonos for Patmos any day. The weather forecast still called for rain off and on most of the day, but who cares?

We woke up early and packed our raincoats and umbrellas, which, as it turns out, were entirely un-needed. As you can see from the photos, it was an absolutely lovely day.

Lovely island, but we mainly wanted to see Patmos because it was here that John saw the apocalyptic vision he recorded in the book of Revelation.

Chapter 1 of that books reads:

I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.”

Standing on the island where our Lord appeared to John in this way was very moving. I always like to visualize these events as much as possible, and now my visualizing is much more concrete.

The Bible does not say where, exactly, John was when he received this revelation. But that has not stopped people from claiming they know.

Halfway up the main hill is a cave and small grotto. This is the place it is claimed John was when he these things were shown to him. Our guide was a lovely young woman who grew up on the island, and she stated without hesitation that this was the place where it happened. She beautifully recited a good part of Revelation chapter 1 in a way that was quite moving. And apparently, from what I gleaned from her words, the Orthodox Church affirms this cave is the true site.

I am doubtful. The Bible mentions the island, but not a cave. And the tradition about the cave dates from the 10th or 11th century. Yes, that is ancient to us, but it is still almost a thousand years after the event.

She then took us to the top of a hill where a monastery was built in the 11th century. You will notice it now looks like a fortress. This is because raids from Ottomans and pirates forced it to create defensive fortifications. Those same raids caused most of the islanders during the middle ages to move their homes to just outside the monastery, so that they could flee inside it when trouble called. This was an interesting dynamic to me. Normally monasteries are far from the city, in order to be removed from worldly distractions. And this monastery was indeed isolated at the beginning, but the village built around it. There must be a sermon illustration in this, but I am still fishing for it. Give me time.

I did not take the first picture below. It is from a drone or helicopter, since you cannot get higher than this on the island. The rest are from inside the walls but not inside the monastery itself (since it does not allow photos).

After touring the holy sites we had a nice lunch at a table on the beach and I took a swim in the bay. The water was much warmer than you would think: around 70 degrees. I will spare you pictures of me in my swimsuit. I don’t want to make all the younger guys jealous. But here is a lovely picture of my hot wife:

As I said at the beginning, “nothing is ever perfect.” And I believe that. But, to be honest, I am straining to think of anything not very perfect about today. We got to go to an island we did not think we would be able to. The weather was lovely. The grotto and monastery were very, very interesting. And we got to spend time thinking and pondering about what it must have been like for Saint John to live here, and where, in fact, he might have received his amazing revelation. Finally, as we left the island, we were blessed with a beautiful sunset.

And all this with the person I love and admire more than anyone else in this world.

Okay…maybe once in while…at least for a day…something can be perfect.