Religion

The ruins of the Sumela Monastery
Taken in 2001.
Taken in 2001

The Sumela Monastery is among the most magnificent Christian monasteries I have visited in the Near East, and there is a lot of competition for magnificence in this great category of monastic facilities. The monastery is located in beautiful mountain foothills, a short bus ride from the major Black Sea Turkish port Trabzon. Two Athenian monks during in the fourth century had visions and founded the monastery on the cliff’s face. It was run by Greek Orthodox clergy until 1923, having received special dispensation from Ottoman rulers because of the place’s sacred status.

During the violent period of ethnic cleansing following the war between Greece and Turkey after World War I, which saw up to 2 million Turks and Greeks change borders, the monastery was abandoned. I could not find an accurate account upon first look of who actually was responsible for the defacing of what should be a World Heritage site, but the ancient facility provides a good example of cultural devastation, particularly along religious lines. (For details on what happened to many Christian sites in Turkey following the creation of the modern Republic of Turkey, I would recommend reading William Dalrymple’s From the Holy Mountain, in which he talks about the upheavals in Turkey during this time and later.) I strongly recommend anyone in Turkey take time to visit this very special place. You cannot help but feel something other-worldly here. I did, despite the obvious damage done to the ancient art and buildings.

Recently, Turkey’s government has allowed a few Greek Orthodox services at the monastery. That is a great sign of reconciliation and progress, I believe, between Christians and Moslems in this great country, Turkey.

Süleymaniye Mosque ritual washing
Taken at the Süleymaniye Mosque in 2001.

At one the the greatest mosques in the world and certainly in continental Europe, the Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul, men perform the wudu, or ritual wash, before prayer. I dug this one out from the digital archive vaults recently. This is a must-see place. It was actually designed by an Armenian architect (Sinan Aga), whose grave is located not far from this spot. More of my pictures from Turkey can be found on my Turkey photo gallery.

The Raven and Eagle clans

 

Taken in Sitka, Alaska.
Taken in Sitka, Alaska.

Two traditionally carved canoes on display in Sitka, Alaska, show two major clans of Southeast Alaska and British Columbia, the Tlingit and Haida bands. According to the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, tribal members people are born into either the raven or eagle clan line, established matrilineally through their mother’s family. The council’s web site notes that in Tlingit, Yeil is Raven and Ch’aak is Eagle (Wolf is sometimes used interchangeably with Eagle).

If you have ever been to Southeast Alaska, one can see why these two powerful animals are chosen. The raven is the crafty trickster, the one who helped bring man into the world according to legend. The sneaky and beautiful raven makes haunting, complex noises that echo mysteriously in the damp forests of the region and can create a feast with any food that comes its way (my favorite Alaskan animal). Greenlanders on the far side of the Arctic I met also spoke highly of the raven for being a food thief from other predators. The eagle is the great and proud hunter, with the most watchful gaze one can imagine. Seeing it catch a salmon is an unforgettable sight. But they can also be dumpster divers, going after fish scraps from fish processing plants in Alaska, sometimes with sad consequences.

Personally, I think the raven run circles around the eagle, as bird intellects go.

These photos were taken in 1999. Click on each photo to see a larger picture in a separate picture page

Eastern Turkey, crossroads of civilization
This fortress, on the Silk Road, in northeast Turkey in the border city of Doğubeyazıt, also has a very distinct and Armenian looking structure that likely predates the later fortress, seen to the left of the structure (taken in 2001). Other and more historic ruins are on the hillside, not seen, include an old Urartu complex that predates the Byzantine Empire.
The Payas Madrassa, one of several historic structures in the coast town of Payas, in Turkey’s Hatay Province (taken 2001).

I travelled throughout all of Turkey in 2001 (see some more of my photographs on my Turkey gallery). It was an unforgettable trip. These are some black and white shots I took. I quickly converted these prints to digital images, and I probably could have been smarter about by using a tripod. But I actually like the look of these now. My actual work prints, and final prints, are a lot sharper. The palace is located in Doğubeyazıt, reportedly near the spot where the Bible’s fabled Noah’s Ark landed after the great flood. This is in far east Turkey, a mostly Kurdish region, near the Iran border. A major military base is here, obviously, and stocked with American made heavy armor, from what I remember seeing. I remember seeing goats walking down the main street, outside the Internet cafe where I passed the time.The shot from Payas, of a somewhat infamous madrassa, is along the coastal area, near Iskenderun. It sits next to a famous caravansary and kalesi (castle). This building dates from the Middle Ages. (Click on each photograph to see a larger picture on a separate picture page.)

Danish colonial legacy in Greenland

 

A statue of Danish Lutheran missionary Hans Egede overlooks Nuuk’s harbor (1998).

A statue of Hans Egede stands over the harbor in Nuuk, capital of Greenland. Greenland was long a colony of the Kingdom of Denmark, and among the most prominent and I would say beneficent colonial settlers was  Egede, a Lutheran missionary who in the early 1700s established the then colonial town of Godthåb, which was later renamed Nuuk. This photo dates from 1998, and I wonder how much has changed on this hillside since. I imagine a fair bit. I ended up visiting Nuuk several times over three years. It was among the most interesting northern cities that I have explored.

Surrender yourself to art
The collection of marble sculptures from the antiquity and beyond simply stagger the imagination at the Vatican Museum in the Vatican City, in Rome (2006).

 

I took this shot from inside of the Vatican Museum, the most mind-boggling collection of historic wealth I have seen anywhere on the face of the planet. Inside that museum I finally realized just how extensive the power of the Catholic Church truly was. (Click on the photo to see a larger picture on a separate picture page.)

When reality is not quite what you thought it was
At the Dakshinkali temple near Kathmandu, male goats and cocks are sacrificed, washed in a stream, and then prepared to be eaten (taken 1989).

In the United States, one estimate pegs the number of animals killed for food production at about 10 billion annually (most being chickens). The methods are hidden from view, seldom filmed, and far from humane. That fact is important to bear in mind when contemplating this picture I took at a temple in Nepal called Dakshinkali. This is a sacred Hindu site where animals (goats, cocks) are slaughtered in sacrifice to the Hindu god Kali. Nepalese bring their farm animals for ritualistic sacrifice, with methods similar to the quick and mostly painless halal and kosher styles of killing of certain animals for consumption. I remember seeing this man kill many goats and cockerels in September 1989. Blood was everywhere. It was all very calm, if not serene. Large crowds of Nepalese stood patiently in long lines waiting for the swift act. I had never seen anything like this before. I realized at that moment that people live their lives in such totally different ways than I do, and in ways that make perfect sense to them, but may seem outright cruel to outsiders (again, remember the dead billions of factory killed chickens in our country). That is a moment I recall ever so clearly, when my perception of reality had measurably changed. That is still why I like to travel.

God’s home, at the edge of the world
North of Reykjavik sits a house of God, alone in the loneliness of the north Atlantic.

I visited Iceland in 1998 and did a drive around the island with an outrageously overpriced rental car. I enjoyed it, but was not overwhelmed by it. This location, about an hour north of the capital, Reykjavik, was among the most memorable spots. Here, at the edge of the world, sat an empty house of worship, battered by the wind and rain. I guess I have a fondness for remote sanctuaries. (Click on the photo for a larger image on a separate page.)

Nauvoo, sacred site to Latter Day Saints

In May 2007, I visited Nauvoo, Ill., a former historic Mormon community of nearly 25,000 residents in the 1840s. The Latter Day Saints’ purported prophet, Joseph Smith, and his brother, Hyrum, lived there prior to their arrest and then mob killing in Carthage, Ill., in 1844. The LDS were violently attacked and persecuted in Illinois, culminating in the burning of the Nauvoo Temple in 1848, which was further destroyed by a tornado in 1850. Much of the Mormon community headed west to Utah from here.

Nauvoo Temple, which I as a non-believer can never enter, was rebuilt in 2002. The historic area, on a bluff and bend on the Mississippi River, is a remarkably beautiful place, and tens of thousands of LDS faithful travel from around the country visit and pose for pictures in front of the rebuilt temple and statues of Joseph and Hyrum Smith. The historic site also has a visitors center that doubles, in my opinion, as a proselytizing facility for the Church of Jesus Christ the Latter Day Saints. (The dioramas inside are similar to those in Salt Lake City.) As someone who remains eternally curious about how groups express their faith, naturally I enjoyed my short visit on a lovely spring day.

The statue calls Joseph Smith a “prophet,” and also shows brother Hyrum Smith. Both were killed by a mob in nearby Carthage, Ill., in 1844, and this statue celebrates their final ride there.
The Nauvoo Temple was rebuilt and opened in 2002, more than 150 years after it was burned by arson. As with all LDS temples, non-believers are not allowed inside.
Mormon faithful by the thousands visit Nauvoo Temple every year.