GREECE: “The Journey of Paul to Greece.”

October 24-31, 2024

(Program #241003, Taught by Dr. Smith)

Thursday, October 24, 2024: Departure Day.

PLEASE NOTE: For all travelers: Remember when booking your flights, you must fly INTO Thessaloniki but OUT of Athens!

Depart the USA for Thessaloniki, Greece. If you are able during the journey, look over your notebook materials and take the time to read Dr. Smith’s “A Short History of Paul” that will be provided for you. Overnight: In flight.

Friday, October 25, 2024: Arrival Day.

Participants will be arriving throughout the day to the airport in Thessaloniki (SKG). Please forward us your flight itinerary when you’ve secured your flight. For your information, the hotel is about half an hour from the airport, and SKG is a small airport with luggage usually retrieved on one of only a few luggage belts. We recommend an air arrival schedule that allows you to have a good night’s rest (try to arrive before 5:30 PM). For those who arrive in the hotel before 7:00 PM, dinner is included in your program this evening. Overnight: Thessaloniki. (1 of 3) D.

Saturday, October 26, 2024: The Gospel’s Arrival.

Our official program begins at breakfast in our Thessaloniki hotel. After a good breakfast, we will drive eastward to the entry point of the Gospel into Europe at ancient Philippi and its nearby port at modern Kavalla (Neapolis of Acts 16:11). Our drive will give us time to introduce Paul, his life and his journeys, as well as probe important topics like “being a Greek in the first century.” Sites include: Views of Apollonia, Amphipolis, visit to Kavalla and Philippi. When we return to Thessaloniki, our group will have dinner. Overnight: Thessaloniki. (2 of 3). B, D.

Sunday, October 27, 2024: Paul and the Thessalonians.

After the beating and jailing in Philippi, the perils of the Second Mission Journey continued in what is now modern Greece, as detailed in Acts 16-18. Paul’s visit in Thessalonica was interrupted by a crowd opposed to his teachings about salvation through Jesus alone. Jason (who scholars suggest may have been the cousin of Paul) was arrested in order to press Paul to leave the city after only a few weeks stay. Today we will visit the archaeological remains of an ancient shopping district uncovered in the heart of the modern city, as well as some of the chief attractions of modern Thessaloniki, with a view toward the seven basic practices Paul pressed the early believers to emulate (1,2 Thessalonians). Sites include: Christian-Byzantine Museum, A walking tour in the city including the Agora excavation, a visit to the upper city. Overnight: Thessaloniki. (2 of 3). Famous for its fish, you will want to reserve a table at one of the exciting local restaurants (suggestions will be provided). Overnight: Thessaloniki. (3 of 3). B.

Monday, October 28, 2024: Paul’s Outreach to Macedonia.

We will depart early this morning, for there is much to see! No visit to Greece would be complete without some look at the contributions of King Philip and Alexander the Great in spreading Hellenism to the whole Mediterranean region. Today we will both be stunned by the beauty of the finds in some ancient tombs, and also visit a quiet cemetery with faces on the graves of people who may have met Paul, Silas, Timothy and Dr. Luke at Berea. We will journey on to a brief visit to the cultic centers of Dion, the nearby port city from which Paul may have ventured to Athens via ship. Sites include: Berea (Veria), Vergina (Tombs of Macedonian Kings), Dion. Overnight: Volos. (1 of 1). B, D.

Tuesday, October 29, 2024: The Trek to Athens.

The Second Mission Journey was an emotional low point for Paul, so we will follow the story of his struggle to Athens. Arriving mid-morning in the city, we will visit some important sites from the “Golden Age” of Athens: Acropolis (with Parthenon and Erechtheion), view of Herod Atticus Odeon and Theatre of Dionysius. Overnight: Athens. (1 of 3) B, D.

Wednesday, October 30, 2024: Paul in Athens.

Greeks of every class engaged the Gospel at the time of Paul and just after him under the ministry of the Pastoral leadership of Dionysius (led to Jesus by Paul). Sites include the Areopagus, the cemetery archaeology of Keramikos (time and conditions permitting) and an exciting walk in the ancient Agora Paul was stirred in so long ago, as well as a close up look at the Hephaestus Temple, the Stoa of Attalos and other excavated monuments in the ancient city. We will have some time for a bit of shopping in Plaka as well. When we return to the hotel, you will want to make an arrangement at one of the great Taverna restaurants in the city for dinner with some of your traveling companions (suggestions will be provided.) Overnight: Athens. (2 of 3). B.

Thursday, October 31, 2024: Free Day in Athens.

For those departing for the US, book flights for anytime today, transfer from the hotel in Athens to the airport. You will arrive later today in the US, or perhaps the next day (depending on your flight booking).

For those on the cruise extension, we have much to do today! Click here for Program #241003A.

Every effort will be made to complete the full itinerary. Yet, because conditions are often unpredictable in travel, we reserve the right to make changes during the tour.