A journey to Edessa

To see the tomb of Saint Apostle Thomae

  From the letters of a 4^th century pilgrim

FORWARD

     When the historian and archaeologist Gamurrini disclosed his finding of a very: old manuscript describing the pilgrimage of, an unknown woman to Egypt, Palestine and Syria in 4th century in 1884, only theologian showed some interest in it. It seemed that this manuscript was to be lost in the archives of numerous libraries, and consequently to go into oblivion but it did not happen though. Over the years the indistinct voice of, the unknown pilgrim began to sound clearer trying to tell us of the past.

     As the manuscript told its tales more vividly with the time, its voice reached not only the limited scholars circle but the public at large as well. Having been the inspiration for many of scholars the manuscript can even now boast about a great variety of publications on its matter.

     The current publication accounts for all corrections made in the previous years ever after the first edition by Gamurrini in 1887 as well as after the first Russian translation by Pomjalovski in 1889. In this publication I basically used the edition and translation, namely H. Petre, Etherie: Journal de Voyage. Texte Latin, introduction ettraduction (sources chretiennes 21, Paris, 1948), and the Latin edition by E. Franceschini and R. Weber, Hinerarium Egeriae, in CLL (Corpus christianorum, series Latina), (Turnhout, Paris, 1953); besides, I found, very useful references in the works by G. Gingras, J. Wilkinson, I. B. Segal and A. Bludau.

    The original manuscript that was discovered by Gamurrini in the library of St. Mary's Brotherhood in Arezzo, dates back to the 11th century and presumably came out of the Monte-Cassino monastery. The manuscript is made up of 22 pages of continuous narration as well as the part of St. Illari's and two psalms also attributed to him.. It is a regret that «The Pilgrimage» re- written by an unknown monk in the 11^th century, is too far from the complete copy as it lost its introductory part and misses its completeness in the middle part and more strikingly it never gives a reference to authorship, or place where it was written or the time pilgrimage was made. Gamurrini called it «Peregrinatio ad loca sancta» in its first edition.

     Since Gamurrini's finding no other copy of «Pilgrimage» has ever been discovered except several fragments published by Dom de Bruyne in 1909.

     Anyway, who was that unknown pilgrim woman? And what we really know of her? Many publications have been made about her since it was first discovered.

     Scholars have failed to identify her so her mystery remained unknown until Dom Ferotin published a letter of monk Valery to his brothers dated 650 AD in 1903. In his letter the monk praises spirituality of the blissful Ageria. Dom Ferotin thought that the letter said of the pilgrim woman in question. This suggestion is maintained by the similarity of the places described in the letter as well as that of its style. Therefore all the scholars accepted Ferotin's suggestion to identify the pilgrim with Ageria (or Eteria) mentioned by the monk Valery.

     As a matter of fact, nobody knows when this pilgrimage was really made. The scholar Dekonik defined time boundaries for the pilgrimage in question. He suggested that it had happened before 363 AD just when the emperor Julian gave up the town of Nissibin to the king Sapor and the pilgrim could not come to this town until 540 AD when Hosroi' s Persian soldiers destroyed Antioch just where she could have spent a week or so.

     However these time boundaries are so wide or probably incorrect that many scholars have tried to define them more correctly. Most of them tended to accept Gamurrini's supposition that the pilgrimage was made somewhere between 378 and 388 AD, and its description could well be made later.

     The pilgrim woman told of her visiting to the chapel and tomb of St. Thomas in Edessa. In the time of the Edessa bishop Kyr the bones of St. Thomas were taken out to the ci7 basilica. This happened in August 22n 394 AD. .

     Ageria also points put that she has a copy of the letter Jesus Christ wrote to Abgar. Although this copy is only save fragment of the letters, it contains the pledge of Christ to guard Edessa. Rufin of Aquiley made the first Latin translation of the letters in 403 AD. The same year he made a translation of the church history by Evsevius from Greek including the letters of Jesus Christ, our Lord. But this was an official edition. Rufin could make the translation of the letters in 370s AD when he was in Edessa. This woman might know Rufin then in her homeland and if so she might get from him those copies as well. Therefore she obviously knew about the letters when she was visiting Edessa (circa 380 AD), and could tell someone that she had some incomplete copy of them.

     It is no doubt that everything the pilgrim said in her letter would shed a light on the pilgrimage. It apparently was made in the late 370s AD.

JOURNEY TO THE TOMB OF

ST. THOMAS IN EDESSA2

     A little later in the name of Our Lord I decided to return to my own land for three years had passed already since I came into Jerusalem and visited all the holy places where I always had wanted to send my prayer to. But thanks to Our Lord I in- tended to go back on the road again and visit Mesopotamia of Syria (I) to see holy monks who are said to be in high numbers. The life of monks there is very unusual and difficult to describe. Also, I wanted to come to Edessa and pray at St. Thomas tomb just where his un-decaying body was (2). Jesus, Our Lord, declared in his letter to the king Abgar sent along with Ananii that he should send St. Apostle Thomas to Edessa upon his ascending. Now this letter is worshipped in Edessa along with the tomb of St. Apostle Thomae I beg you to take your love to believe that there is no Christian who would get as far as Holy Jerusalem without visiting Edessa for a prayer. It usually takes 25 days to ride from Jerusalem to Edessa (3). And as on my way back to Constantinople I had to pass Antioch because that is the shortest way to Mesopotamia. And I was spared by Our Lord to do so.

     In the name of Our Lord I left Antioch for Mesopotamia via towns in the Syrian province Kele subjected to Antioch stopping over in different hostels. Then crossing the province of Augustophrate. I came to its capital the city of Ierapolis (4). As Ierapolis is a very beautiful rich town and it is just outside Mesopotamia. I decided to come and stay there. After Ierapolis I rode 15 miles before I reached the Euphrates which is the 'Great Euphrates as it is rightfully called in the Holy Scripture. It really is a big river, which is as fast as the Rhone, but larger, and as this river could only be crossed by a large boat. I had to stay till noon. Then by our Lord we made it safe across the river and came into Mesopotamia of Syria.

     Having spent some time on the road making several stops overnight I came into Vatanis a town mentioned in the Holy Bible and still existing in the world. There are a great number of martyrs tombs along with a living church headed by bishop a righteous man both monk and confessor (5).

     The streets of the town are filled with people as the garrison augments the local population.

     From here we went on further until we came into the town of Edessa as our Lord spared us. Jesus Christ. As soon as we entered we went promptly to see the church and the tomb of St. Apostle Thomae (6).

     Here we prayed and did what we usually do while on a visit to a holy place. Additionally, we read some fragments of the bible relating to St. Apostle Thomae. This church is big and very beautiful as it was built in a modern fashion. In my opinion it really deserves to be a house of God (7).

     Here all around me I saw so many things I really cared to see that I decided to stay another three days. In town I went to see the tombs of martyrs as well as many holy monks living both near those tombs and far off the town in solitary places. The bishop of the town, a reverend man, monk and confessor alike who gave me a very kind reception, he said, a daughter of mine I know that it's your faith that brought you here from the distant land, so if you want it, you will be shown the places every Christian would like to see too'. Having praised our Lord I was happy to ask him to do what he offered me (8).

     First he took me to see King Abgar's palace and his statue, very big and as said, very identical to the original (9). It was made from marble which shines so brightly just like pearl. If the statue is viewed from upfront, one can see a wise and worthy man embodied in the sculpture. The blissful bishop told 'me with this, 'Here is King Abgar who never saw our Lord but came to believe in him like in the true Son of God’. There was another marble statue next to it. It was Magnus, the son of Abgar. His face showed nobleness too. Then we went inside the palace. We found there water pools filled with fish I never had seen before. The fish was so large, shiny and very delicious (10). In town there is no water source other than that silver flow running from the palace (11). At this point the bishop told me the following story.   Some time after the King Abgar wrote to God, and God wrote him back sending out a messenger, Persians came and encamped themselves around the town (12). Abgar came to the walls with God's letter in his hand. They all prayed by the walls. As they did, he said, 'Our Lord Jesus, You promised us not to let the enemy enter this town. But hear us, Lord, for the Persians are coming on us now' (13). After the King uttered these words holding the letter up in the air, thick darkness fell upon the Persians so that the town was all covered and hidden from them as well. In turmoil the enemy retreated as far as three miles away from the town. As they were demoralized, they could not hold the ground there, nor even organized a watch. As their confusion grew, they could not find away into the town. But they set up a side anyway putting up a three-mile echelon all around the walls. The siege lasted for many months. Only after the Persians realized that they would be unable to take the town, they decided to cut off the water for the town. My daughter, the citizens formerly took water supplies from wells in the hill that stands over the area. Seeing that the enemy cut it off to turn its flow backward toward their campsite. But on the day they were trying to cut off the water from the city, by God' s provision the springs that you see here now started all at once. Thanks to Jesus Christ, the springs still come out, but the water that the Persians cut off would run dry the very moment they did. This way the enemy was left without a drop of it even for a day. And even now those springs run dry. So by God His promises came true, and the Persian troop had to turn back. And ever after enemies tried to take the city; this letter was brought for a reading outside the gates. And as soon as they did it, God's word by mouth made the Persians flee' (14).

     Then the blissful bishop said, 'the spot where the springs burst out was just a field before within the city limits. This field was lower than Abgar's palace, which was built on a high place just where you see it now. Then it was a custom to build a palace on a high place. However, Abgar decided to erect a palace for his son, Magnus, whose statue you can see next to his father's now. As he did so, the springs were enclosed in the pal- ace premises'.

     Having told me all this, the bishop added, 'Let's go to the gates. Through them the letter of Jesus was brought into town'. When the bishop came to the gates, he stopped for a prayer, and then he read out the letter, blessed us and said another prayer (15). The holy man also told us that since the day God's messenger Ananius came through the gates, they demand that no unclean man, nor the man in grief nor the dead man should ever be allowed through the gates. Then the Reverend bishop showed us the tomb of Abgar and his family. The tomb is very beautiful (16), though it was built in the old style. Then he took us to see the upper palace, Abgar's former residence as well as some other places of interest.

     What satisfied me more greatly were copies of the letter I mentioned more than once before. The bishop was so generous when he offered me them. Those letters were Abgar to Our Lord and Our Lord' s answer to him. Despite I had copies in my home-place already I was very happy to get them again anyway, because the ones that had reached us before were not complete. But the copies I got from bishop now were apparently more complete. If I am spared by Our Lord, Jesus Christ, to return safe way home, then you, my mistresses, will certainly read them.

COMMENTS

1.Mesopotamia includes Syrian Kele with its main city, Antioch, Augustophrate province with its main city Ierapolis and also Mesopotamian Syria on the other side of Euphrates. This region was under Rome since 115 AD. It was when Trojan set up two provinces, Mesopotamia and Assyria. In 4th century the region was divided into two provinces, Mesopotamia with its main city Amyda, and Osroene with its main city Edessa.

2. According to Apocryphic acts of Apostle Thomae his holy bones were transported from India to Edessa. The scholar A. Rith thinks it happened long before 233. This day is celebrated on July 3rd. The Syrian legend has it that Apostle Thomae sent out Phaddeus, one of seventy disciples, to build a church in Edessa (Gingras and Segal). The pilgrim never mentions acts by Apostle Phaddeus, which tell, of his journeys to Edessa to see Abgar.

3. As Pomyalovski says, 25 night stops are equal to a distance of some 600 miles.

4. lerapol (or Mabbog) was on the way Ito Euphrates from Antioch. It was in the center of Atargatis cult. In the time of Konstantin the emperor this city was turned into the main city of the province 'Euphratensis' and the bishop's residence alike. Near the famous temple Atargatis encircled by the walls there was a holy fish pool. It should be emphasized that the healing effect of water played a very important part in all pagan temples of Osroene province. The fish that was dedicated to the goddess Atargatis was sacred. As Lucian of Samosata tells a story the fish was a rare species and very tamed to come on someone's call. Such fishponds were quite frequent in Asia Minor.

5. Batanis or presently Serouid are 40 kilometers away from Edessa, south of Harran. Ammian Marcelin points out that there is always some fair in this town in early September every year. Maybe it is linked with some religious feast. Abraham, the local bishop was present at the first clerical convention in Constantinople. Another bishop, Dada participated to the convention that was held in connection with Iowa of Edessa in Antioch (Pomyalovski).

6. «Ad ecclesiam et ad martirium St. Thomae». This phrase stirred some de- bates among scholars. But it is obvious that nothing exactly could be drawn from the pilgrim's words. Whether the tomb of St. Thomae in the church built in the south- western part of the city or outside the city wall, as it then was a custom to bury the dead beyond the city? This Roman tradition was observed ~ill 350 AD. Probably later the bones were kept inside churches of the city for fear of Persian or nomadic raids. For example, the reverend Efrem Syrin speaks of St. loan's bones (?) kept in the big baptizing room, built in 369- 70 AD. As Edessa chronicles say, the first church, the 'church of Christians', was customary built in the western part of the city over the spring of water just where the pagan temple used to be.

This church being built on a low land was actually destroyed by flood in 20 1 AD. It was built for Our Savior. It had beautiful decorations, marble columns in the middle. Legend has it that Apostle Phaddeus used to preach there. In 313 bishops Canon founded a cathedral convention probably on the site of this 'Church of Christians'. Then circa 345 bishop Abraham erected a house (temple) in commemoration of martyrs Gurij, Samon and Aviva. In 369-70 bishop Varsis built a big baptizing room as part of the temple. In 379 bishop Evlogius raised the temple of St. Daniel. In August 394 the tomb of St. Apostle Thomae was carried inside the high temple which had been chosen for him by bishop Kyre, to the north of the fish pond. A temple, which enclosed the bones of St. Apostle Thomae, existed till. 394. The pilgrim described it as a very beautiful temple built in a new fashion. Socrates as describes the 372 AD events tell of 'famous moratorium of Apostle Thomae, where gatherings of people were frequent' (Pomyalovski). However, some scholars’ suspect that the pilgrim's remarks were referred to the church of the Twelve Apostles, which was ‘remarkably well proportioned and full of luxury’, built in 435 (Segal).

7. The history of Edessa. It is a very old and famous town. According to St. Isidor Nimrod built the town of Edessa in Mesopotamia after he left Babylon. There he was  "the ruler, and later the town was called Erekh or Orcheus.  Under Selevkides it was called' Antioch by the nice fast river' (Callirhoe), the name that bears on its basins and river, dedicated to the goddess Atargatis. One of the rulers, Selevk Nikagor gave the name of Edessa to the town, which it kept very long. The capital of Makedonia then was called Edessa as well. This name evidently stemmed from the word 'water' as the later capital of Macedonia was Vodena. By the new era Edessa had become a major city of Osroene province. Its rulers came and went. Edessa in different periods fell under Rome or Persia. In 195 Septimus Sever took over some northern lands and called them Mesopotamia. The kingdom of Edessa existed for 370 years as it began on the day when Selevkides left Mesopotamia to the rule of Parfius. Edessa was the main point on the route from Antioch to the East, China and India before Rome finally strengthened its power (132-240 AD). It was a big beautiful city with 'very nice buildings' as the writer put it. The town was famous not only for its temples or palaces but also for hospitals and schools. Among schools most notable were Armenian, Persian and Syrian. Efrem Syrin who lived in 4th c. was the most remarkable saint and religious writer altogether. He composed many prayers and psalms, and undertook scientific research work. Paladium, bishop of Helenopol wrote about him, 'In 373 shortly before he passed away, St. Efrem know of poor people's tribulations during the famine in Edessa and addressed the rich for help. The rich people gave him silver and turned some homes into hospital wards with up to 300 beds as medical facility. St. Efrem was always at hand to feed the sick or bury the dead. The blissful Efrem asked people to bury him along with poor and thieves. Later his holy bones were reburied in the local sacred place much ex- posed to pilgrims or visitors. At the time there were many remarkable hermits and monks living all around the place. All of them were famous for their deeds and miracles. Such was Julian, a man of many exploits. He exposed himself too much hardship and acquired a great gift of healing eventually (Paladium). The famous Abraham had the same quality as well. Actually he was Efrem's contemporary who spent all his days in fasting, meekness doing a lot of charity as well (Sozoman). Edessa was at the time famous for its stoics. Stoic Feodul spent 48 years standing on a pillar somewhere outside Edessa in the late 4th c. Then similar pillars in the big numbers were just scattered all around Edessa.

8. The pilgrim woman calls bishops of Batanis, Harran and Edessa confessors. If one suggests that she visited Edessa in 380s, or in 370s. If that was the case, the bishop of Edessa was Evlogius (378-388), Vitus in Harran, and Abraham in Batanis. They all had to suffer for their Orthodox belief during persecutions in the time of Valent the Arianin (The History of the Church).

9. As the pilgrim says, Abgar had two palaces in Edessa. The winter palace was built on some elevation (now it is the remnants of a fortress) so that any flood should be avoided. The summer palace was erected in and around the water springs that ran into the fishpond,

10. In Edessa, now it is Urfa, there still are two wells that feed the fish bones.

11. Edessa chronicles describe the topography of city as a town enclosed in walls with several gates. The most remarkable gates were in the western part where Ananius the messenger of Jesus Christ entered. The Deisan river used to run across the city. 25 springs fed the river.

12. Now it is about the letter from King Abgar to Jesus and the latter's reply. Edessa was not only famous for its temples, sacred places and hermits, but also for it being the first -state where Christianity was officially proclaimed. Armenia by the way has declared that it was the first Christian state in the world (302 AD), probably following Edessa. Evsevius in his History of the Church tells of a disease of King Abgar Okkama (black). Apparently the king wrote Jesus Christ about his suffering from an incurable disease begging him to heal him.

Evsevius disclosed the text of Jesus Christ's answer and further consequences of Heir correspondence. After Jesus ascending the Apostle Thomae sent out Apostle Phadeus (Mar Addai) to preach in Edessa. Eventually the King Abgar was healed and both he and his people were baptized. Now archeologists have found some definite proof of it (Segal). Some fragments of letters in Greek were found and read on the stone by a tomb (Kirk Masara), by the city gates of Philippes in Makedonia, and on two more stones in North Anatolia {Euchaita). Also, fragments of the letters were found on parchment scrolls and stones in the Coptic, Arab and Ethiopian languages. One of the texts was created by a monk in Upper Egypt in 4th c. Apocryphic acts by Apostle Phaddeus bear on this legend though with some variations.

13. Evsevius never reports on this promise anywhere though. Some variations as well as introduction of appendixes into the original text were made over a time span. This letter of Promise is enclosed in the Acts of Apostle Phaddeus as well as in the letter to the blissful Augustin dated back circa 429. This variation of the text had not reached the West yet, while its appendix was introduced in the East in 4th c. The pilgrim woman points out that the copies she has in her home place are incomplete, and if that is the case, they apparently do not have this appendix at all. It was Rufin of Acquiley who translated the Evsevius History of Church into Latin circa 403. But it is rather likely to have some parts of the Jesus and Abgar letters translated by him shortly after he visited Edessa circa 370-374. It also can be supposed that the pilgrim might know Rufin personally and get a translation copy from him.

14. 'There is a story of some unhappy Persian military campaign in Edessa written by Jesus the Stoic. It tells of Kavada, the father of Hosroi of Anushir who once experienced the work of Jesus Christ's promise on him. Greek historians unanimously hold that the attack on Edessa was launched in association with Hosroi and support the pilgrim's narration in a sense that as Prokopius once suggested that Hosroi's troops evidently lost their way and halted for the night time in the same place the next day. They repeated this action again. The pilgrim makes a wrong supposition about it here as she attributes the event to the time of Abgar, the Christ contemporary' (according to Pomyalovski).

15. It is not very clear from the pilgrim's narration whether the letter of Promise was carved on the gates, or it was just brought for her to read as a sign of respect. Furthermore, the time of carving this letter on the gates is not defined. In the time of the reverend Efrem the letter was not there.

16. A mausoleum or 'tower tomb' of Edessa kings was built by Abgar 6th in the year of 88289 by their own calendar. The chronicles say it was a great building with very rich sculptural ornamentation (Segal).