IN THE NAME OF GOD

 Walking around Thessaloniki, I was struck by the things people and cultures have done to one another in the name of their particular God.  The Macedonians (central Greece) were “pagans” who worshipped numerous gods until Paul and the apostles came to Greece and converted many to Christianity.  The churches here are Orthodox.  (The Christian church centered in Rome became the Catholic branch.)

We visited two old churches in Thessaloniki—the more famous Church of St. Demetrios, and the beautiful, small Sophia Church.  Demetrios is the patron saint of Thessaloniki; he was martyred in the fourth century during the crusades.  The first photo shows the Church of St. Demetrios.


In an interesting mix of cultures, Sophia, the Greek goddess of wisdom, is often referred to as the bride of Jesus or the Holy Spirit.  The present church was constructed in the eighth century, on the site of an earlier church destroyed in an earthquake.  This photo shows the chandelier hanging inside the dome of the Sophia Church.

We stumbled upon an interesting church or monastery, but I have been unable to discover its name or function.  I did find the art to be very beautiful.  The photo on the right is a painting on one wall of the courtyard.  The other photo shows a ceiling painting. 



As a historical review, you may recall that throughout the 1100s and 1200s there were several major Crusade expeditions (eight in all)—violent, bloody conflicts launched by European (Catholic) Christians against the growing power and influence of the Muslims moving up from the Middle East into Turkey and Greece.  Ultimately the Muslims prevailed and the Turks controlled much of Eastern Europe for several centuries.  (The Muslims also controlled Spain via Morocco.)  The churches were converted to mosques, and minarets were added to the existing structures. 


Thessaloniki was also home to a strong Jewish community.  When Jews were expelled from other European communities, most notably Spain, they were welcomed into the Thessaloniki community.  Until World War II, that is, when Germany invaded Greece, and the Jews were exported to concentration camps in Poland. 

We visited the Jewish Museum where the lengthy and impressive history of the Jews in Thessaloniki is chronicled along with the sad demise of these people and their culture.  According to one estimate, only about four percent of the Thessaloniki Jewish population survived.  One poster noted that before the war, there had been approximately 10,000 Jewish children in Thessaloniki, but only 58 of them survived.

Is there a different God for each of these religions—Christian, Muslim, or Jewish—or do we all worship the same God by different names and means?  Does worshiping differently make one person less important than another?  Does the fact that someone worships God by a different name give others the right to take his or her life?  If God is a God of love, how have so many taken the lives of others in God’s name?

In a final note, there are many monasteries scattered throughout Greece.  We sailed past Mount Athos in the Aegean Sea.  According to myth, the Virgin Mary somehow landed on the shores of this peninsula, so it is a holy site.  Ironically, no women are allowed to visit Mount Athos, which is populated by monks in a number of monasteries. If you look closely at the center of this photo, you can see one such monastery nestled into the mountainside.

Welcome to my world! There are so many things to be interested in, to learn, and to experience. I enjoy cooking and am happy to share recipes that I like. I also love exploring the world--from my backyard to far-flung parts of the globe, And I love both reading and writing. As an undergraduate I took full advantage of my liberal arts education, but eventually had to find a career path. I chose educational psychology and had a rewarding career as a professor, college administrator, and school psychologist. In retirement I am rediscovering the world of ideas--the heart of a liberal arts education. I invite you to share my journey of exploration.

Popular Posts

Sailing in the Time of Coronavirus

Image
This was shaping up to be my winter of Asian adventures.  Scott and I were invited to the wedding of a Vietnamese friend just a few days before Christmas, so we planned a vacation to include time in the ancient imperial city of Hue where the wedding would take place.  Nearly a year before, a friend had talked me into joining her on a cruise from San Diego to Hong Kong that would include ports in Hawaii, the Philippines, and Vietnam; thirty-two days from mid-January to mid-February.  And then another friend suggested a China tour that sounded great, so I booked a third trip to Asia for mid-March. And then things started to go wrong.  In the words of Robert Burns, “the best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men gang aft agley.”  First, Ruth notified me that she was cancelling the cruise.  Oh well.  I had paid my money and would lose a large portion of it if I also cancelled, so fine, I’d go alone.  Then, on a beautiful early November Saturday, I suggest...
Read more

Safari!

Image
Six years ago, I went on safari to southern Africa—Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.  It remains a favorite among the many trips I have taken since retirement.  I thought Scott would be interested in a similar experience, but I wanted to see something different, so we booked an east African safari for this summer.   There were many similarities between the two safaris--most of the animals we saw on this trip were repeats of those I had seen on the previous safari, and both were booked through Smithsonian Journeys.  But there were also differences, most notably in the terrain and the safari vehicles used.  The wildlife parks we visited in east Africa—Kenya and Tanzania—are vast compared with those in southern Africa and required driving much greater distances to see animals.  The biggest negative of this trip was that much of our safari-vehicle driving was over bone-jarring, teeth-rattling dirt—and dusty—roads.  The discomfort was worth it, however, ...
Read more

We've Made it to Athens and Our Ship--Let the Fun Begin

Image
After 26 hours in transit from home, we arrived at our Athens hotel—Elia Ermou—and stepped out onto our balcony to this stunning view of the Parthenon, which sits on the Acropolis, or sacred rock above the city.   Eating breakfast at the hotel this morning, the view was slightly different but no less stunning.  Tomorrow we will actually go visit the Acropolis, but today we just enjoyed the view. The hotel concierge told us that getting a taxi in this part of town would be difficult, but we could easily take the subway or metro to the port of Piraeus, where our Viking ship was docked.  "Just walk straight down this street (pointing) about six minutes, maybe ten with luggage, to the metro station at the end and take the green line all the way to Piraeus."  I asked about stairs, but she assured me that the station had an elevator “that works most of the time.”   The walk to the metro station took closer to twenty minutes, as our wheeled suitcases did not ...
Read more

On Cruising: To Sail or Not to Sail

   I am a landlubber at heart, having grown up with car trips, camping and hiking in the mountains, and exploring the roads and back roads of America.   When I retired and began my travel life in earnest, I favored land-based tours with activities I enjoyed doing.   I went hiking in Croatia and later in the Italian Alps, photographed animals in Botswana and landscapes in Arizona, rode a camel and stayed in a camel-hair tent among the sands of Morocco’s Sahara Desert, and took a cooking course in Lucca, Tuscany, Italy. No thanks, I said to cruising offers; too confining, too sedentary, and too many people.   Besides, on several previous ferry crossings, I had been quite ill with sea seasickness.   Then one day, I received a phone call from a friend who travels as an expert lecturer with land-based tours and on cruise ships.   “I’m lecturing on the Viking Sea and have no one going with me.   You’re welcome to come along and share my stateroom...
Read more

EXPERIENCING THE HOLY LANDS OF ISRAEL, PALESTINE, AND JORDAN

Image
Sunrise over Jerusalem as seen from Bethlehem Traveling to the “Holy Land” was not high on my list of potential destinations.  Jordan, and a visit to Petra, was, but I wasn’t so enthused about visiting Israel and its holy sites.  I definitely wasn’t interested in going there with a large religious group.  Even though I am a Christian, too much overt religiosity is not my style.  I am more of an intellectual than emotional Christian focused on faith-in-action.  But I jumped at the opportunity to go on this trip for three reasons:  first, it was to be led by my friend, Deborah Hutterer, the ELCA Lutheran Bishop of the Grand Canyon Synod (Arizona and southern Nevada); second, it promised visits with Palestinians and an exploration of issues related to Palestinian/Israeli relations; and, third, there was an optional post-tour extension to Jordan and Petra.  As a bonus, the price was reasonable. Prior to leaving on this trip, we had several Zoom meetings ...
Read more