Most scholars agree
that the Virgin Mary lived for a time in Ephesus
although some dispute that she died there. The
evidence in favour of Mary having spent her last
years in Ephesus is both factual and logical. The
first factual evidence is the biblical historical
documentation of Mary’s relationship to St. John the
Apostle. The Beloved John, brother of St. James, was
the youngest of the twelve Apostles and, from John’s
own modest testimony, “the one He loved the most.”
The fact that he was favored is evident from his
place next to Jesus at the Last Supper, and his
being asked by the other Apostles to inquire of
Jesus as to which of them would betray Him. He was
the first to identify Jesus after His Resurrection
on the shore of Lake Tiberias. He is the only
Apostle known to have been present at the
Crucifixion. There is no dispute among historians
that John, after the death of Jesus, went to
Ephesus. While one might argue that Mary would not
leave her homeland, with all its memories of the
Apostolic life of her Son, it is much more plausible
to believe that when the persecutions broke out
against the Christians in Jerusalem her safety would
be paramount and that she would obey the command of
her Son and follow John to Ephesus. Further evidence
that Mary lived in or near Ephesus is the fact that
the third Ecumencial Council of the Catholic Church
was held in Ephesus. This council, which met in a
large cathedral known as the Double Church of St.
Mary,was primarily called to formalize the doctrine
known as “Theotokos”, Greek for “Mary, Mother of
God.” In a letter from the Council Fathers,
addressed to all the clergy announcing this
doctrine, it added that the Council was conducted in
Ephesus “in which place John the Theologian and the
Holy Virgin Mary, Mother of God were.” The word
“were” is interpreted as meaning “until death”.
Pilgrimages
The first Pilgrimage to the Virgin Mary’s house took
place in 1896, five years after the discovery of “
The House of the Virgin”. Two trains brought
pilgrims from Izmir to Ephesus. Most of them made
the ascent on foot or on horseback or by donkey. The
first pilgims from abroad came in 1906 led by Prof.
Miner and Fr. Kayser. There were 47 people of whom
10 were Protestants. Between 1914 and 1927 a mass
was celebrated at the shrine and in 1929, Fr. Euzet
found that the chapel floor was covered in cow dung.
Between 1937 and 1949 there were no pilgrimages to
the House of theVirgin Mary. In 1949, Archbishop
Descuffi and a group of Children |
of Mary celebrated
mass in the roofless chapel. A new period in the
history of the House of the Virgin Mary began in
1950. The dogma of the Assumption of Mary was
defined in Rome. Dr. Karl Gshwind of Basle, who had
been trapped in Istanbul by the war and who had used
the time to make a study of the antiquities of Asia
Minor, planned to lead a pilgrimage to the shrine on
1st November 1950, the day of the definition of the
dogma. This pilgrimage was also announced in the
Turkish press and the Turkish Ministry of Tourism
had a road constructed so that vehicles could go up
to the chapel. Since then the number of tourists and
pilgrims has increased.
Two Popes
Visited Mary’s House
Paul VI kept his word and after a triumphial entry
to Istanbul he came to pay his respects to the
Virgin Mary at Ephesus on 26th July 1967. He entered
the shrine escorted by the crowd. He prayed for a
long time in front of the altar and he himself lit
the sculpted lamp he had brought. In memory of
Sister Marie de Mandat-Grancey, he gave the superior
of the sisters of Charity who live there a gold
chalice for their oratory.
Pope John Paul II also came to the House of the
Virgin Mary on 30 November 1979, after an official
visit to Ankara. Although the pilgrimage of these
two Popes does not constitue official recognition of
this house as the place where Mary lived and died,
they did at least make known to the whole world,
through press and television, the existence of the
shrine.
Discovery of
The Home
(Anna Catharina Emmerick)
The house of the Virgin was first discovered in 1881
by Abbe’ Gouyet, of Paris, through the diligent use
of Anne-Catherine Emmerick’s descriptions. His
discovery went unpublished and was generally
discounted. Ten years later, in 1891, inspired by
the detail of Emmerick’s accounts, a group of
explorers under the leadership of the learned Father
Jung of the Order of Lazarists, again followed her
descriptions to relocate the Virgin Mary’s home.
Catherine Emmerick had revealed that Mother Mary
prepared her meals at a fireplace located in the
centre of the room and that spring water was
present. Excavations by the explorers revealed the
presence of the ashes and the spring water continues
to flow to his day. Flowing water on a mountaintop
in an otherwise arid countryside is itself a wonder.
The explorers were amazed how closely their
discoveries conformed with the description of
Emmerick. |
Pope Jean Paul's
visit to the House of Virgin Mary, Ephesus |
