Patmos and Lipsi stand out for religious pilgrimages – They are a magnet for tourists

August 14, 2022

Robert

Patmos as well as Lipsi claim their share of the visitors attracted by the religious monuments

Tourist destinations that stand out for their religious pilgrimages are a pole of attraction in the summer season throughout island Greece. The fifteenth of August may have been identified with Tinos and the pilgrimage to the Holy Church of Panagia Evangelistria and Paros to Panagia Ekatontapyliani, however Patmos and Lipsi claim their share of the visitors who are attracted by the religious monuments.

Patmos: “The Holy Island”

With religious monuments as a vehicle, Patmos is already recognized as a world destination for pilgrimage tourism. Being UNESCO world heritage sites, such as Chora, the Holy Cave of the Apocalypse and the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian, Patmos has gained worldwide recognition and this is reflected by the increased number of foreign visitors. Of the dozens of pilgrimages on the island of the Apocalypse, the Holy Cave of the Apocalypse and the Holy Monastery of the Annunciation stand out.

The Holy Cave of the Apocalypse

Located on the hill between Skala and Chora, the Holy Cave of the Apocalypse is one of the landmarks not only of Patmos, but of Christianity worldwide. This cave was the refuge of Jesus’ disciple John in 95 AD. , when the emperor Domitian exiled him to Patmos, punishing him for preaching the word of God in Ephesus. But as John himself testifies, he does not arrive at Patmos as an exiled loser or a political prisoner in troubled times, but as an exile “on a spiritual mission”, continuing to spread the Word and Essence of God, always with the evidence mentioned on the official website of the municipality.

Today, the Holy Cave of the Apocalypse has been transformed into a place of worship, where the pilgrim is given the opportunity to see the place where the Apocalypse was written, to touch the triple cleft in the rock, to process the spot where the Evangelist rested, as well as to touch the pits in the rock from where he was holding onto to get up, while the lectern of Prochorus has still been created at a height of human stature.

The Holy Monastery of Evangelismos

The Holy Monastery of Evangelismos, the largest women’s Monastery on the island, is located in the southwestern part of the island and overlooks the Gulf of Gardens, since it is built on the edge of the rock.

In 1613 the Abbot of the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian built a hermitage at this spot, dedicating it to Saint Luke the Evangelist who cured him of a fatal illness. In 1937 Elder Amfilochios Makris converted the hermitage into a Monastery by building new buildings and dedicated it to the Annunciation of the Virgin.

The icons and frescoes of the Monastery date from the 15th to the 17th century. An important role was also played by the nun Olympias, a student of the famous hagiographer Fotis Kontoglou, who painted a significant number of the icons of the Monastery, while at the same time passing the art on to her own students.

The Monastery played an important role during the Italian occupation, as the nuns in their effort to preserve the Greek language, engaged in teaching it to young children.

Today the monastery is inhabited by nuns. Their main activity is embroidery with the infamous Patiniot stitch, which is said to have been preserved since the Byzantine era. Their other occupations are gardening and beekeeping, while the monastery develops a large philanthropic activity.

New tourist products enrich the portfolio of Patmos

Patmos is betting on new tourist products in order to expand its tourist season and also to boost its tourist revenues. As the mayor of the island Lefteris Pentas points out to the Athenian Macedonian News Agency, Patmos already offers a series of experiences to its visitors, beyond religious tourism. Walking tourism, as well as the island’s gastronomy, has already been “embraced” by its visitors, while the mayor is betting on strengthening marine tourism, specifically cruises.

Patmos is the second cruise destination after Rhodes, although the island of the apocalypse does not offer the possibility for the respective cruise ship to call at a port, with the disembarkation of visitors today being done by “Lanza”. At this point, Mr. Pentes emphasized that it has been decided to modernize the port on the island and it will be on track for implementation, in order to dock at the port normally at a pier. In this way, it is estimated that Patmos will become a pole of attraction for more cruise ships, with all that this entails for the increase in tourist income.

The action agenda for the next period includes the modernization of the road network and the infrastructure of the island in general, with an emphasis on the rational management of water.

With approximately 5,000 rooms available, Patmos at its zenith accommodates 18,000 guests. It is characteristic that at the peak of the tourist season, in August, there is no free room available. Tourism also drives the local economy on this island, with the residents directly or indirectly relying on tourism. For this reason, the extension of tourist traffic is a request of the local community, which relies on tourism for its financial support during the winter days.

The Patmos of refinement and nobility

Having remained true to its genuine character and traditional architecture, Patmos combines sophistication with world-class monuments and for this reason it is chosen by visitors from all over the world. Patmos has a stately beauty, notes Mr. Pendes, and for this reason it has a very large number of repeat visitors. At the same time, many Italians have invested in real estate in the “Town” of Patmos and every summer the island is flooded with visitors from Italy. Remaining on the island’s tourism map, marine tourism on the island owes its flourishing to visitors from Turkey, as the marina is flooded with yachts from the neighboring country.

Lipsi: The religious feeling in Lipsi reaches its peak on August 23

A few miles east of Patmos are Leipsoi which have recently developed into a pole of attraction for pilgrimage tourism, a fact due to the image of the Virgin Mary. The specific icon of Panagia tou Haros is located in Greece, in a small Byzantine church built in Leipsos in 1600 by monks from Patmos. They called it “Our Lady of Grace” because of the relic it housed. An image of the Virgin Mary that does not hold Christ in her arms as usual, but the Cross with Jesus on it. The church, built in Byzantine style, has a low dome, irregular arches, few and narrow windows. The passage of time left the Church intact, respected the holy relic, the miraculous icon of the Virgin Mary, but deserted the surrounding cells of the monks. According to local tradition, in April 1943, a resident of Lipsi placed some lilies on the image. These dried and remained dried in the image for months.

But when the festival approached, the dried lilies began to show streaks and juices. In fact, until the day of the festival on August 23 – the nine days of Panagia – many buds sprouted. This miracle is repeated every year, Eleni Germanidou reports to APE-MBE, who also voluntarily takes care of opening and closing the Temple. These lilies, the lilies of the Virgin Mary, are collected after her feast and offered as a blessing to the pilgrims, he says.

Eleni Germanidou reports that visitors from every corner of the world visit the Temple every day. From Canada, Sweden, England, Italy, etc., they come as visitors to worship the image of the Virgin Mary, he says. Eleni Germanidou, a teacher by profession, left Serres, where she was born, and came to the uninhabited island to practice her profession. More than two decades have passed and Eleni Germanidou has not regretted her choice. Now retired, he has voluntarily dedicated a large part of his personal time to the “Grace of the Virgin”, as he says. Eleni Germanidou is the one who welcomes the visitors and tirelessly shares the history of the church and of Panagia tou Haros. For those who find themselves on the secluded island, visiting hours are from 9.30 in the morning to 1.30 in the afternoon.

The sandy island that has become known for its unique beaches as well as the actions of the municipality on the sustainability front. Since the municipality, as explained to APE-MPE by the mayor, Fotis Maggos, does not allow the construction of swimming pools in holiday homes or rental accommodation, at the same time the island’s beaches have not been occupied by beach umbrellas. The reason is simple. The municipality wants the beaches to remain unaltered by human intervention and in this context has not allowed the organization of them by umbrellas and sunbeds.