Enchanting Insights from a Biblical Study Tour in Greece
Irvin Swithun Lim Ho Boon
We often quote Lao Tze’s “The Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins with a Single Step”. This is what Paul and his companions did in obedience to the Holy Spirit and ended up covering an estimated 8,500 miles by foot! Paul also planted 13 churches and wrote most of the New Testament, changing the world forever.
Tour Coverage (M-Museum, A-Archaeological Site, U-UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Travel Diary (Sept 10-21, 2022)
Day 1: Departure from KLIA to Athens via (transiting in) Istanbul
Day 2: Thessaloniki M
Day 3: Kavala (Neapolis) & Philippi M A U
Day 4: Virea (Berea) M & KalambakaU
Day 5: Delphi M A U
Day 6: Olympia M A U
Day 7: Epidaurus, Corinth M A & Cenchreae
Day 8: Athens M A U
Day 9: Athens (St Paul’s Church)
Day 10-11: Paphos M U or Santorini
Islands Tour
Day 12-13: Athens & KLIA via Istanbul
Tour Reflections
Looking back at this tour, everything was new to me, so it really was a rich experience to. I enjoyed Christian koi-no-nia and experiencing the generosity and care from fellow Christians I have not met before. I made new friends and renewed old acquaintances, most of whom I stayed in contact with. I enjoyed extraordinary Greece as a tourist along with its people, food, culture, and spectacular sights. But what made this tour different was stepping into the pages of history from the onset when visiting world-famous historical places, digs and their museums. We got a new sense of appreciation from the challenges that Paul and the early Christians faced being part of these pagan cities.
Seeing through the lenses of archaeology and history made us realize that God was actively preparing His Son, Jesus, to come into the world and spread His Gospel from Judaism roots to our Gentile world. We had knowledgeable guides who filled us in on important past and present-day events while Dr. Lim Kar Yong connected us to Paul’s time with his timely devotions and resource materials. I will suggest reading the colorful biblical tour books before going on the tour.
Thessalonica, Philippi, Corinth, Greece
The Parthenon
In Thessalonica, we see 2,300 years of human history from the Greek civilization to the rise of the Macedonian, Roman, Byzantine, and Muslim empires to today. Lessons of history are preserved in the agoras, buildings, museum artifacts, exhibits and magnificent Greek Orthodox cathedrals. Philippi, with it’s beautiful Lydia’s Church Baptistry of mosaics allowed us to perceive how the Gospel first came to Europe and continued its tradition in helping the early church through centuries.
In Corinth and Greece, we catch glimpses of the pagan and permissive Greco-Roman society and how they could have likely caused the problems addressed by Paul in Corinthians. We visited the religious, commercial, and municipal agoras lined with multiple temples, council buildings, markets, and shops. We saw places of biblical history with the Bema, Erastus pavement and Areopagus where Paul delivered his speech in Acts 17 and walked to the Acropolis citadel filled with famous examples of Greek architecture.
Kambalaka (“Castle on a Rock”), Delphi, Olympia
Northern Kambalaka was an awesome sight of monasteries perched on towering rock formations where monasticism played an important role in preserving Greek society and church. Delphi, the scenic uphill site from the famous oracle and testament and its widespread power, as well as its influence until Christianity became official. Olympia, the site of the first Olympic Games and famous stadium of how sports played a key part in human life with many of its metaphors used by Paul.
All in all, it was a blessed opportunity for me and 32 other people from all over Malaysia to go on this tour organized by STM and Footprint Travel Planner to retrace Paul’s 2nd missionary journey in Greece with Rev. Dr. Lim Kar Yong as our spiritual director.
About The Author
