Patmos Island....
One can get to Patmos on 1-hour hydrofoil from Samoa, but we didn't go that route, for some scheduling reasons. After visiting Meteora, we went back to Athens to begin our Greek island hopping. Our ferry departed from Athens at 7pm and reached Patmos at 2am.
Checked into the B&B for some sleep before spending the day touring the Holy Monastary, the Cave of the Apocalypse, around the island. We stayed on the island for only 21 hours, to be exact as we left for Mykonos at 11pm by ferry.
The Holy Bible specifically stated in Revelation: “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it, for the time is near” (Rv 1:3). Will it be a double blessings for those to have physically visited the site where the book is composed, I wonder?
Because of the fact that St John composed the book of Revelation here, the Greek Parliament has called it a ‘Holy Island’. Apostle St. John was banished from Ephesus to Patmos for preaching the Gospel (84-97 AD) by the self-deified Emperor Domitian. John returned to Ephesus after the death of Domitian in 97AD.
Apart from its spiritual/religious tie to Christianity, personally two words best used to describe Patmos: idyllic and tranquility. I would seriously consider Patmos for my long-term spiritual retreat, if I ever needed one.
The Holy Monastery of Saint John the Theologian, Chora and the Cave of the Apocalypse have been declared by Unesco as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
I don't remember how many hours we slept. All I remember was that I was very excited to visit the Cave. We took the historic trail that connects Skala to the Holy Monastary.
The imposing Holy Monastary is built on top of the mountain and dominates not only the Chora of Patmos Island which is built around it today but the entire island. It preserved many artifacts from Byzatine and post Byzanine periods. Being at the top, it provides an unbelievable view of the Patmos and its surrounding islands on a clear sunny day. One could easily spend a few hours visiting the musuem here.
The view from The Holy Monastery of Saint John the Theologian
We then followed the trail down to the Cave.
The Cave itself, as expected, was neither grand nor spectacular. It was pretty dark and stuffy inside. However, physically being in the Cave, to me, was an amazingly humbling and yet a spiritual re-assessment experience. It was a memory flashback of my spiritual journey. The impeccable accuracy of the fullfilled prophecies from the book of Daniel led me in 1994 to believe of the One Triune God in the Holy Bible and also to accept Him as my Creator and Savior. With faith, back then, I wholeheartedly believed that the apocalyptic prophecies revealed to St. John here in this cave would too be fullfilled to the last detail in END TIMES. Here I was, on the bench right in the cave where the book was written, re-evaluated my understanding and belief in the book of Revelation. Whoever studies the book of Revelation knows the heaviness of its content. It is a prophetic book of the Apocalypse to come. None of the Hollywood scientific apocalypse movies can par with the graphical horrors described in the book of Revelation. It will be a time where death is far better than life.
*No photos are allowed in the cave. There are plenty on the internet.
I didn't stay long in the cave, but I was reminded once again of the Days to come.
We rested a while on the benches outside of the Cave under those big trees. Sitting next to our bench was a rather interesting female. She started a conversation with us. She believed that everything material has a spirit in them, including that nearby dumpster as she pointed there. I don't remember the details of the conversation. I do remember questioning her whether her Gods informed her of where her eternal home is. I don't recall her answer. It was a rather lengthy 20+-minute conversation. At the end, I simply repeated my position that I hoped she would remember of the two eternal places I mentioned, which was also mentioned in the book of Revelation. And I hoped she would choose a good one. With that, We parted with her.
Strolling through the maze-like alleys and charismatic whitewash buildings in the "sacred" village of Chora was very visually satisfying.
There are sights to behold around every corner. Doors of different sizes, patterns, and colors against the whitewash buildings are especially appealing to the eyes. This is indeed a stunningly peaceful village.
Interesting fact: Patmos Island was a place of exile for the enemies of Rome.
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