Apocalypse Now

We haven't come to Armageddon, which is in Israel, but we have started walking through the book of Revelation, visiting three of the seven churches, and passing by a fourth, Laodicea, on the road. This was the third of the cities we visited, Pergamum.

Its ruins were in two parts--in the valley, and up on an acropolis towering over the landscape.

The city in the valley was famous for its hospital. The treatment was twofold, always involving a priest and a doctor, and was based in the healing waters of the area. The process was pretty interesting: first dressed in a white gown (like today, actually), the patient would be given some opium and put to sleep in an underground room with dogs and snakes, where running water was channeled. In the morning, they would describe their dreams to the two practitioners, who would then work on a diagnosis. Treatments would often last 10 days or two weeks, and so the amenities of a minor city were all present, including a small theater and an atrium for walking.

Going to the acropolis, we encountered a cascade of former temples and homes of the rulers.









Former Temple.





The theater here was built overlooking the vast panorama--to the right you see the temple of Dionysius.















Revelations 2:12-17 has the message of Jesus to the church in Pergamum: they are described as living where Satan's throne is. Not only was the complex of temples renowned for their opulence, the massive temple of Zeus was found there--the stronghold of the pagan power.









Rubble Formerly Known as the Temple of Zeus.





"To him who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone which no one knows except him who receives it."