John in Patmos

John in Patmos

John, Peter and James were the three diciples closest to Jesus (Mark 5:37; Matthew 1-7; 12, 26:37). John was very loyal to Jesus during his ministry in Jerusalem, and was the only disciple that was present when Christ was crucified, and Jesus told him to watch over his mother Mary, who was also present at the crucifixion. It is believed that John and Mary came to Ephesus and that John became the leader of the Church at Ephesus. Eventually, he was captured in a persecution campaign by the Roman Emperor Domitian and was ultimately banished to Patmos (Revelation 1:9-10) in 95 AD.

 

   "I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. ... I was exiled to the island of Patmos for preaching the word of God and for my testimony about Jesus." 

 

Patmos, a small, rocky island in the Aegean is the place where many criminals of Rome were sent to serve their prison terms under harsh conditions. After John had arrived, he began to have visions that were written in the Book of Revelation of the Bible.

   The common Roman penalty of banishment to an island (deportatio in insulam) meant a loss of all rights and property, and only a small allowance was given to sustain life on an island. The penalty was usually life-long. Persons of some wealth were allowed to live with the people of the island, so although cut off from the outer world, were not treated with cruelty. However, John’s exile must have been slightly more serious punishment, as he probably did not have any wealth and was one of regular people of Jewish origin in Ephesus. Banishment combined with hard labour was one of the typical brutal penalties for Christians, but it seems that John might have had some freedom during his stay on Patmos.

   During John’s trip to Patmos a big storm started and a passenger was swept into the sea. When John started praying, a wave brought the man back on the boat, and this miracle gave John chance to preach the Gospel. When he arrived to Patmos, the Roman governor Laurentius set him free and Myron, his father in law, offered him to stay in his house, that would soon become the first church on the island. John also healed Apollonides, Myron’s son possessed by the devil, which led to the conversion of some members of Myron’s family (Meinardus 1979:7).

  Banished to Patmos, St. John lost his connection to the world, so could not really know what was going on in the Province of Asia. It would be difficult for him to write his visions in a book, and send it to the Churches. He could only think about them, and see and read them in the heaven.

   The exile against St. John was pronounced by the Emperor Domitian, and ceased to be valid after his death; it was anulled when the Roman Senate announced the return of those who had been banished. The Apostle was free to return to Asia, to his home in Ephesus. He may have brought the Apocalypse with him, but it is possible that  he had somehow already sent it. It probably reached the Churches in the late part of Domitian's reign, but there is also another opinion that it was actually written at that time.

   Acording to Church tradition, John is the only opostle who died of natural causes, all others were martyred.

   Today, the Cave of the Apocalypse in Patmos is a museum and a world heritage site by UNESCO. About 7 meters long and 6 meters wide with silver lamps that light the space, nowdays it is part of a sanctuary. The rock that, according to belief, John used to rest his head is still there.

  Patmos is one of Greek islands that are very close to the Aegean part of Turkey. There are no direct ferries from Turkey to Patmos. Most of our guests finish their Seven Churches Tour in Ephesus; then from Kusadasi port (20 km away from Ephesus) they take a ferry to Greek island of Samos, and from there another ferry to Patmos. When we have a larger group of guests that want to go from Ephesus to Patmos, we arrange a charter ferry for them from Kusadasi to Patmos, and it is a 4 hour journey. The island does not have an airport, so if you are in Greece and Athens and want to go from Athens to Patmos, you can fly to one of the bigger islands and then from there take a ferry to Patmos. Another option is to take a ferry from Athens to Patmos, which is an 8 hour journey.