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Praise be Jesus Christ, Now and Forever

Location: Laodicea, Pamukkale, Colossae, Karahayit

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. What words can capture the grandeur and majesty of our God, Jesus Christ, the King of the universe? While it does not capture it all, I found these words from the Te Deum most fitting: “Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you: Father, of majesty unbounded, your true and only Son, worthy of all worship, and the Holy Spirit, advocate, and guide. You, Christ, are the king of glory.”

Today, my pilgrim brothers and I journeyed in the footsteps of Saint John, the beloved disciple, as we visited one of the churches of Revelation and other places he most likely visited.

Our fearless and stout-hearted bus driver took us from Antalya, right on the Mediterranean, to Laodicea. While in Laodicea, we visit the Church community that Saint John addressed in Revelation. 

From Laodicea, we travelled to Pamukkale, one of the best-know hot springs in all of Türkiye. These hot springs were known to be quite the fashionable spas back in the Roman days; as it turns out, they still are today! Tourists and pilgrims like us travel from all over the world to Pamukkale and rest in these hot springs.

We also visited the Church of Colossae (which is referenced in the Letter to the Colossians). Unfortunately, no excavation has been done here, and it appears to just be a hill.

From Colossae, we also visited The Temple of Apollo, a stunningly intact theatre, the Necropolis, and most importantly, the site where Saint Phillip was imprisoned and martyred. It was a beautiful testament on this Solemnity of Christ King of the Universe to witness the same faith that Saint Phillip the apostle professed, the same global church, alive and present in all of us gathered at the site of his Martyrdom, and imprisonment, praying together.

We then checked into our hotel and celebrated the Sunday Mass together, and ended another exhilarating day with a trip to the hot springs! More to come soon! 

-Evan MacKenzie, Archdiocese of Seattle

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