Antioch

Antioch.

"Yes, Master. But where do you send them?

- To Antioch."        

It is the cradle of a future active Christian community.

Inhabitants or natives

Alphée of Antioch, Amiclea, Anne of Ptolmai, Berenice, Cassius, CornElijah, Philip, Lazarus’ steward, Zeno the wealthy Greek merchant.

Description

For the Apostles, this capital of the Roman province of Syria was the end of the world. Theophilus, the father of Lazarus, Martha, and Mary, was its governor. Jesus sends Sintica and John of Endor, pursued by the Pharisees with the complicity of Judas. They take refuge in one of the last properties owned by Lazarus and establish one of the first Christian communities there.

"Here is Antioch with its towers on the ramparts. We will enter through the gate near the river. Lazarus' house is not far from the walls. Very fortified. Walls of grand height and thickness, besides the hundred towers which, as you see, look like giants standing on the walls, and impassable moats at their feet. Even Silpio (Sulpius) has placed its summits at the service of defense, like buttresses of the walls in the most delicate places."

"From one of the terraces of Zeno's house," writes Sintica, "I see Antioch with its quays on the river, the Legate's palace on the island, its royal streets, its walls with hundreds of powerful towers, and if I turn around, I see the peak of Sulpius dominating me with its barracks, and the second palace of the Legate."

The palatial districts seem to be grouped in the Onpholus and Nimpheus quarters. The green ridge of the mountains surrounding Antioch is dominated by the peaks of Casios and Aman.

In EMV 461, Maria Valtorta mentions "the rich palaces of Onpholus and Nimpheus." There were indeed monuments in ancient Antioch, as in other Roman cities, named Omphalus and Nymphaeum where official ceremonies were held.

The NYMPHAEUM or NYMPHEUM (numphaion or numpheion) was a building dedicated to the nymphs. Under this title, it designated a large, elevated room decorated with columns, statues, paintings, featuring a fountain in the middle from which pure water flowed, creating a pleasant and fresh retreat. The Nymphaeum of Antioch, particularly grandiose, supplied water to the whole city. It was destroyed during the earthquake that devastated the city.

THE OMPHALOS or “navel” was originally a sacred stone at Delphi. It was supposed to indicate the center of the world. Similar stones were then erected in several cities around the Mediterranean. Then the name Omphalos was given to the central square of the city. In Antioch, Antiochos Soter, son of Seleucus Nicator, erected the Omphalum at the city center where stood a remarkable statue of Apollo. Libanius, (314-393), describing the governor's palace which occupied a quarter of the river island, specifies that the intersection of the two main colonnaded avenues ("stoas") was marked by the quadrifrons ("omphalos"), also mentioned as the "Tetrapylon of the Elephants" by Malalas.

It was precisely near the Nymphaeum.

Notable facts

Peter and six of his companions accompany Syntyche and John of Endor forced into exile on the lands of Lazarus

Establishment of the first Christian community outside Palestine by Sintica, after the death of John of Endor. She takes refuge in the house of Zeno the Greek merchant.

Its name

The current Antakya on the Turkish-Syrian border, capital of the Turkish province of Hatay. It is located on the left bank of the Orontes, near Mount Silpius (509m), and 25 km from the sea by the river.

Coordinates: 36° 12' N / 36° 097' E

Where is it mentioned in the work?

There are more than fifteen mentions of Antioch in "The Gospel as it was Revealed to Me"

EMV 310.4

EMV 322
EMV 461
EMV 632

Learn more about this place

"The numerous and relevant descriptions of the city, 'this little Rome, of this great city, queen of the East,' and its surroundings cannot but catch the attention even of the most skeptical reader." Jean-François LAVERE

Historical references

Seleucus Nicator, general of Alexander the Great and first of the Seleucid line, founded in 300 BC on the site of "Epi Daphne," the city "of Antiochos" so named in memory of his father Antiochus.

It was also called "Antioch on the Orontes" to distinguish it from fifteen other cities founded by the same Seleucus Nicator, all bearing the same name. Then populated by seven to eight thousand inhabitants, it ended up counting up to 700,000 inhabitants.

A prosperous commercial city, a major center of the textile industry and rich in workshops working precious metals, Antioch enjoyed great prestige and played an important role in the East. Arranged amphitheater-like, mountains protected the city, complemented by 12 km of crenellated walls reinforced by 150 towers.

From the heights of Mount Silpius, the city tiered down to the banks of the Orontes. Cultivations stretched as far as the eye could see around the city: carefully cultivated olive trees and vineyards which produced wines "sweeter than those of Rhodes."

From its countless gardens came all sorts of fine foods. No other city in the East was as well supplied with water: fountains and springs were abundant; norias irrigated the orchards.

In 25 BC, Antioch became a major Roman garrison city known as "Colonia Caesareia Antiochia."

The Jews themselves were well treated, obtained the same rights as the other inhabitants, all Macedonians or Greeks, and formed a large colony with its own ethnarch, as Josephus informs us (Antiquities XII, 3, 1; XIV, 42, 6). A little later, the city becomes a refuge for those fleeing Jerusalem during a persecution.

Germanicus died there poisoned in AD 19. The city was then the third largest city of the entire Roman Empire, after Rome and Alexandria. Tiberius had the long colonnades of Herod extended along Silpius and strengthened the city walls.

In 1882, Émile Isambert noted that 50 towers out of the original 130 still remain.

Biblical references

"The Disciples had scattered following the persecution after the death of Stephen. They went as far as Phoenicia, the island of Cyprus and Antioch, but they only preached the Word to the Jews. However, some of them, who were from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and also spoke to the Greeks, preaching the Good News about the Lord Jesus. And the Lord was with them; a great many people believed and turned to the Lord. Soon the Church in Jerusalem heard the news. It sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived, he saw what the Grace of God had accomplished and he was filled with joy. He encouraged all the believers to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast courage. Barnabas was indeed a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith. And a great many people attached themselves to the Lord. Barnabas then went to Tarsus to look for Saul. When he found him, he brought him to Antioch. They spent a whole year teaching together in the Church and taught many people. It was in Antioch that, for the first time, the disciples of Jesus were called 'Christians'".

"There were prophets and teachers in the Church at Antioch: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen, a childhood friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul."

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