I’m reading Acts – very appropriate while we’re touring of Turkey. In the last month, we’ve visited 3 of the 5 places mentioned in Acts 18 alone – Athens, Rome, Ephesus. Cesarea is 70 km from where I am now in Turkey.
Today was a very special day, especially for my friend. He is a fan of Rumi, the 13th century mystic poet, and planned a visit to Rumi’s city, Konya, especially to see it. The visitors to the museum were all clearly moved by Rumi’s work. One man was outside the gates, fervently praying; two women sat in a corner of the museum, reading Rumi’s poems. My friend read me some of his poems on the way into the city, and while I knelt and prayed in the adjacent mosque, my hair covered in the women’s room, I experienced a deep sensation of the light of love exploding in my chest, as one of the poems called us to notice – and nurture. There is a very special spirituality here. I believe it’s because of the message, of love and peace, and the seekers’ prayers.
