With Paul on the Egnatian Way: Thrace to Illyricum

A note from the tour host,  Dr. Mark Wilson , director of the Asia Minor Research Center:  “Several years ago while flying from Rome to Istanbul, I sat with a map of the Via Egnatia on my lap. I watched with fascination as the landscape of this ancient road unfolded some 30,000 feet below me. I determined that one day I would travel its 700-mile length. Why was the Egnatian Way so important? Constructed by the Roman governor of Macedonia, Gnaeus Egnatius, in the second half of the second century BCE, this ancient freeway was frequently used by Paul and other early Christians during their travels. During his second journey Paul connected with the road in Neapolis before proceeding to Philippi, then went to Thessalonia via Amphipolis and Apollonia (Acts 16:11-17:9). He followed the same route through Macedonia going and returning on his third journey (Acts 20:1–5). But a cryptic allusion in Paul’s letter to the Romans (15:19) written from Corinth suggests that he visited Illyricum on this journey. Where was the Roman province of Illyricum? On the Adriatic Sea where modern Albania is. How did Paul get there? There was only one road—the Egnatian Way. Our trip will visit major archaeological sites related to Alexander the Great such as Vergina, Pella, and Amphipolis. At Ohrid, called the Jerusalem of the Balkans, we will feast on its spectacular lake scenery. At various points we will actually walk on sections of the 2100 year-old road still in situ. Four fascinating countries, numerous ancient sites, breathtaking vistas—please join me for this trip of a lifetime as we travel from Thrace to Illyricum along the Egnatian Way.”