Remember you are dust...

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“Remember you are dust and unto dust you shall return.” With these words, we begin our annual Lenten journey. These words echoed in my head today as we walked through acres and acres of broken sarcophagi this morning in Hierapolis. Thousands, if not millions were buried here because they came to this “sacred city” with the unfulfilled desire to be healed in the thermal springs. The wealthy were buried in large tombs and ornate sarcophagi with the hopes that they would be remembered and honored forever. Yet, there is nothing left of their earthly body except the remnants of their tombs.



The magnificence of Hierapolis and Aphrodaesis (population as high as 300,000 during Roman times) in the 1^st few centuries can only be imagined by the magnitude of the ruins they have left behind. As the ancient Romans, Jews, and early Christians inhabited these majestic cities, they must have believed that their surroundings would last forever. They were talented artists, engineers, philosophers, politicians, etc. (just as we are). It was good to be reminded that today’s cities that seem so permanent may one day be the ruins somebody is exploring in the next millennia…



In St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he writes “Put on then, as God’s chose ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do” (3:12-13). In other words, Paul is reminding the Church of Colossale to pay attention to what really matters. I heard the same message today as I walked among the tombs, the ruins and the buried city of Colossale.

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Photos

Church and Tomb of St. Philipp (Hierapolis)
Tradition tells us this the burial place of St. Philipp, the evangelist from Acts 8:26ff.

Large Public Bath (Aphrodaesis)
The lower layer is from Roman times, a huge public bath. Where the men are working now, they are excavating the top layer from the Byzantine times.

Columns (Aphrodaesis)
The flat surfaces on the bottom half of the column allowed benefactors names to be carved into their surface.

Large Stadium (Aphrodaesis)
I stood at the tunnel entrance and sang, "Cheer, Cheer for old Notre Dame..."