Within the scope of Denizli Metropolitan Municipality's activities in the fields of tourism, culture and history, a group of 170 Catholic religious people from different regions of Italy visited the tomb of St. Philip and the "Martyrion" church built in his memory.
Denizli Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Bülent Nuri Çavuşoğlu’s tourism efforts continue to bear fruit. As part of the efforts to promote the region’s historical and cultural heritage, the Italian visitors visited the tomb of St. Philip, the Martyrion church built in his memory, and the Church of the Holy Cross in the Ancient City of Laodicea, one of the seven churches mentioned in the Bible. The group first reached the tomb of St. Philip in the Ancient City of Hierapolis in Pamukkale, and crossed the bridge by climbing the stairs known as the “Pilgrimage Route” in order to become pilgrims. The group, who reached the point where the tomb was located, prayed here and fulfilled a part of their spiritual journey.
Ancient theatres were impressive
Lucca Fioratti, one of the members of the group, stated that they were very excited about this visit and said, “It means a lot to us to be here. As a group of 170 people, we came to discover our roots during our pilgrimage. We are very excited to see the places where the first Christian communities lived. We will visit Laodicea, following in the footsteps of St. Philip, and will complete our trip in Ephesus.” Antonio Lumare, another member of the group who attended the visit, expressed his admiration for the Hierapolis Ancient Theater and said, “It is difficult to see such a well-preserved theater even in Italy. This surprised and made me very happy.”
