Chios

Biblical References

Acts 20:15

Chios is mentioned only once in the Acts account. The reference is somewhat ambiguous: "The next day we set sail... and arrived off Chios. " (NIV) This is one stage in the so-called Third Missionary Journey, when Paul is returning to Jerusalem carrying a gift of support from the churches of Achaia and Macedonia.

Some translations place the travelers 'opposite' Chios. It is unclear whether Paul would have made landfall at Chios, at some port of Asia Minor 'opposite' Chios, or even made landfall at all? Dr Mark Wilson makes the case for a stop at Erythrae, in Turkey, "opposite Chios". See here.

Visiting the Site

I visited Chios on a personal journey with my wife, Suzanne, in June 2019. This was part of a journey designed to finish off the remaining places on my list, located in Greece. For that reason our itinerary was a bit 'all over the place'. We arrived in Chios by ferry and departed by plane in order to get to our next stop. You can read the account of that journey, here.

Click here for a Google Earth view of Chios. The perspective chosen shows its proximity to Çeşme, in Turkey, my gateway to Erythrae.

Chios

Chios is both the name of an island and of the main port on the eastern side of the island, opposite Asia Minor.

It seems likely that the biblical account refers to the harbour identified here. The harbour is still a busy hub of modern ferry services.

Agioi Apostoloi

The Church of the Holy Apostles, in Pyrgi, was the only site with any specific Pauline reference that we could find on the island of Chios. Information suggested that frescoes on opposite sides of the church depict scenes from the lives and Peter and Paul.

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We made our way there on a rented scooter, arriving by 3:30pm having been told that it was open until 4:00pm. The sign confirmed the opening hours, but... someone had gone home early?

All we could manage was a look at the entrance and an oblique shot of the information board behind the fence!

Photo: 6 Jun 2019

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