Exiled to Patmos, inside the Cave of Revelation John the Theologian received divine visions and recorded them in his Apocalypse: the Book of Relevation.
Around 95 A.D., John the Theologian was exiled to the Greek island of Patmos in the Aegean sea fifty miles south of Ephesus, used by the Romans as a penal colony under the rule of Emperor Domitian.
“I, John, your brother, who share with you the distress, the kingdom, and the endurance we have in Jesus, found myself on the island called Patmos because I proclaimed God’s word and gave testimony to Jesus.” – Revelation 1:9
Tradition holds that John heard the voice of God through three small fissures that appeared in the rock that symbolize the Trinity when he entered the Cave of the Apocalypse. John dictated the Word of Revelation to his disciple Prochoros.
In 1088, the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian was built on the Cave of Revelation by Christodoulos Latrinos of Patmos in part with Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos’ desire to colonize the islands of the Aegean sea.
In 1999, the pair together was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Today, thousands of pilgrims travel each year to see the site of the Revelation and touch the triple fissure for themselves.
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Fascinating. Thank you for explaining that. I have recently visited the cave of the apocalypse on the Island of Patmos and was curious as to why it is thought that John wrote his book in a cave. I would assume that ‘tradition’ means that there is no direct evidence to this being the case? Or if there is direct evidence can someone please direct me to it. thank you and God bless