DAY 12&13: GOODBYE ETHIOPIA, HELLO ISTANBUL
LEAVING TESFA MENDER
Leaving Tesfa Mender was bitter sweet. Hugging everyone and saying goodbye was so special. Many hugs, tears, and laughter- understanding the next time we see everyone, there will have been many big changes. We also went down to the Filtered Hope Ministry to say our goodbyes. As we walked down the road to get on our bus, we were singing and waving - filled with gratitude for the experience God made for all of us.
Dinner at Koki and Belay’s house was such a treat. They are just so generous with their gifts. Belay gave us a tour of his house - he stated being inspired by Fixer Upper - he being Chip. Most everything in his house, he constructed and made. Very gifted.
Again with goodbyes… If you know anything about Ethiopian culture the - we are leaving in 10 minutes means an hour with multiple hugs in the house, as you are leaving the house, on the way to the bus, and finally getting onto the bus. It was a wonderful way to end such an impactful mission trip. God is good!
Goodbye Ethiopia, for now.
Baadaye.
- Janel
THE LONG ROAD HOME
Our return home started late Friday night, trekking through multiple layers of airport security with 70+ bags and 21 people (plus Greta and Sydney who were sick and not quite feeling human at the time), losing multiple watches at said security (which were all found!), and saying goodbye to Reese and Benu, who are continuing their travels with two weeks in South Africa to visit Benu’s family.
Everyone mostly slept during the redeye to Istanbul. We planned to catch a free shuttle tour of the city during our layover, but ended up being told we were 15 minutes too late. (What?!?!) But this ended up being a blessing in disguise. We found a private shuttle that only cost $14/person and would allow us to get out of the car and tour the Hagia Sophia—1000 times better than our original plan!
Istanbul (which was Constantinople from 330 AD until the Great Tragedy in 1453) is one of the most influential cities in world history. It is also the only city on Earth located on two continents: Europe and Asia (the Bosporus separates them). Hours earlier, we had left children and friends we love in Ethiopia. In a few hours more, we would be back on American soil. In this moment we were literally between two “worlds” and two continents.
Also noteworthy is that Christianity reached Ethiopia very early after the Resurrection through the same eastern Mediterranean world that included Constantinople (see Acts 8:26-40). The Christian faith took root in Ethiopia and Turkey centuries before many European nations became Christian, and by the fourth century, both Ethiopia and the Byzantine Empire were important centers of Christianity. Our team had just served in one of the oldest Christian nations on earth, and now we were touring another ancient city from which Christianity profoundly shaped history.
For over 1,000 years, Constantinople was the largest Christian city in the world. From here, empires rose and fell, councils shaped Christian doctrine, missionaries were sent, and today millions still need to hear the good news of Jesus. This city has been Roman, Christian Byzantine, Ottoman Muslim, and modern secular Turkey. Very few cities have shaped Christianity more!
In 330 AD, Constantine the Great made Constantinople the capital of the Roman Empire. Christianity transitioned from persecuted to protected, and the city became the center of Christian scholarship.
In 381 AD, one of the most important gatherings in church history happened there: the First Council of Constantinople. Leaders clarified doctrine about the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, and the Nicene Creed. Many churches today still affirm these doctrines because of decisions made here.
In 1453, the “Great Tragedy” occurred when Ottoman Turks conquered the city and Constantinople fell. The fall of this great city signaled the end of the Byzantine Empire; horrific days of bloodshed and looting followed, and many churches were forced to become mosques. This marked the first time the armies of Islam had spread into Europe from Asia. On the day the city fell, a crescent moon appeared in the sky, and that is why Islamic nations today have a crescent moon on their flags.
One interesting result of this tragedy was that many people, fearing death or forced conversion to Islam, fled westward across the Adriatic Sea to Italy. Some of these people had a wealth of ancient art and knowledge and ended up helping to ignite the Renaissance.
On our tour we were able to visit the Hagia Sophia (after purchasing head coverings for the women in our group).
It is known as the "Eighth Wonder of the World" and was the world’s largest cathedral for nearly 1,000 years. From a Christian perspective, there is arguably no building outside Jerusalem and Rome that has had a greater influence on church history.
In 537 AD, the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I dedicated Hagia Sophia after nearly six years of construction. At its dedication, Justinian is reported to have exclaimed, “Solomon, I have outdone thee!” (Not a good look, Justinian!) The name Hagia Sophia means “Holy Wisdom”, referring Christ who is “the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24).
For almost a thousand years, it served as the cathedral of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire. Emperors were crowned, major Christian councils, feasts, and state ceremonies were celebrated, and Christians from across Europe, Asia, and Africa made pilgrimages to worship there.
The church was intentionally designed to help worshippers experience the glory of God, and visitors often described feeling as though they had stepped into heaven itself:
The enormous dome appeared to float on light, symbolizing heaven.
Thousands of oil lamps illuminated the space.
Walls were covered in gold mosaics reflecting candlelight.
Images of Christ, Mary, angels, prophets, and saints reminded worshippers of our “great cloud of witnesses” (Hebrews 12).
The Great Schism occurred in 1054, formally splitting the Church into the Western Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. At this time, the Hagia Sophia became the spiritual center of Eastern Orthodoxy.
Then Ottoman Turks entered the Hagia Sophia in 1453 and converted the church into a mosque. Bells were removed and minarets added. In some cases, Christian mosaics were plastered over rather than destroyed, and remarkably, many survived for centuries beneath the plaster.
In 1935, modern Turkey’s first president transformed the Hagia Sophia into a museum as part of his efforts to secularize the nation. This allowed extensive restoration to begin and revealed many of the concealed Christian mosaics. But in 2020 by presidential decree, Erdogan (Turkey’s current president) converted the Hagia Sophia back into an active mosque.
This history of the Hagia Sophia reminds us that no earthly kingdom lasts forever. As Jesus promised, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18) The Hagia Sophia is magnificent, but our perfect hope rests in Christ Himself!
Buildings don’t preserve our faith, people do. As 1 Peter 2:5 says, we are “like living stones…being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” The one true Church is a body of people, not buildings.
After touring the Hagia Sophia, we saw the Blue Mosque from afar (it’s across the Sultanahmet Square from the Hagia Sophia). One of the most iconic landmarks in Istanbul, the Blue Mosque was built in 1616 and remains an active mosque.
Sultanahmet Square is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the former site of the Hippodrome of Constantinople, a circus that was the sporting and social center of the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. The word hippodrome comes from the Greek hippos, meaning horse, and dromos, meaning path or way. Horse-racing and chariot-racing were popular pastimes in the ancient world and hippodromes were common features of Greek cities in the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine eras.
There is so much more to see in Istanbul, but that’s all the time we had. While waiting for the shuttle to take us back to the airport, we shopped for souvenirs in a little shop, including Turkish tea cups, journals, and genuine Turkish delight, but not honey or saffron (which we discovered was CRAZY expensive!).
Our final flight home was fairly uneventful (you can ask Macey and Janel about the one exception), and we arrived in Denver on Saturday evening, tired, a little stinky, but very happy to be greeted by family and our own beds. I’ll conclude with this final reflection…
Turkey’s population today is about 86 million, nearly all who identify as Muslim. Evangelical Christians make up well under 1% of the population, and many Turkish people have never personally met a follower of Jesus. The history we learned today of Istanbul tells a sobering story. For centuries it was arguably the center of Christianity, but now Christians make up only a tiny fraction of the population. This teaches some simple truths: Church buildings alone do not preserve faith. Political power does not preserve faith. Christian heritage does not preserve faith. Only each generation faithfully passing the gospel to the next does, and this has implications for each of us.
In our time with Hope for the Fatherless, we learned that they are not simply building houses or programs or classrooms. They are building lives and families and followers of Christ. This is lasting work, and we were so blessed to see it in action these past two weeks. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for your prayers and support that make our trip and work possible!
- Parker
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