Corinthians

On Saturday our entire ministry team toured ancient Corinth. It was amazing. Only about 1% of the ancient city has been unearthed. But WOW! We saw a cool inscription on the road that marked where Erastus the city treasurer paid for the making of the road with his own money. No big deal…except that it’s highly likely that this is the same Erastus that partnered with Paul in ministry (Acts 19:22, Romans 1:23 and 2^nd Tim). Whatever preconceptions we might have that early Christianity was a religion for the poor masses doesn’t stand up here- Erastus would have been quite the upper crust of society.

As I’ve mentioned earlier, it’s astounding how much being here brings the Scripture to life. Do you remember all those times Paul used “slavery” imagery or athletic imagery. Well of course, Greece is the home of the Olympics, so the athletic imagery makes perfect sense. But did you know that Corinth was home to 300,000 citizens and 400,000 slaves. How ‘bout that!

We stood before the BEMA seat- a public court of sorts. This is not a place “like” where Paul would have been but it is the VERY place where Paul stood (and was acquitted by the way). Surrounding the area where the BEMA is, there were shops including one that has been identified as a Butcher’s Shop. So when Paul was talking about food sacrificed to idols, he may have been thinking of the shop just down the street from where we were. The Jewish Synagogue is likely just a short distance away too. AMAZING!

We climbed to the top of the AcroCorinth- the Roman Fortress overlooking the city. It was occupied by various forces through the centuries. According to Wikipedia, it’s one of the most important Medieval Castle sites in Europe.

Yesterday the teams from TN,GA and MS headed home in two waves. The MS group left at 9:45 and they actually just got home a little while ago! I missed them as soon as the bus pulled away. I loved my Neighborhood Impact team and I really hated to see Susan leave.

I took a 4 hour nap after they left and then started getting caught up on internet stuff last night (after trekking back into the city for another incredible Gyro). Last night I had good enough internet to WATCH MS State and Memphis on CBS.Com.

Today I figured out where the main train station is and booked a ticket for tomorrow to Thessaloniki. You can’t help but do a fist-pumping thing when you figure stuff out like that all alone! I plan to spend 2 -3 nights there so I can spend a day in Thessaloniki and a day in Phillipi. After that I’ll probably take a train to Pristina, Kosova where I’ll meet an I-Team contact.