At the tomb of St. John the Apostle and Evangelist

In God’s providence, I had the opportunity to visit the Basilica of St. John in Ephesus on his very feast day.

There was once a massive basilica here and I walked among the ruins of the site. Here are a couple snaps:

It helps now and again to recall how much death brings concreteness and tangibility to lives lived. How much of travel and pilgrimage would be diminished without regard for the deceased and our connection to them. We are more involved with death than we know. And, paradoxically, this is what so enhances life and even adventure.