St. Pierre Church

On the western slope of Mount Stauris, the Mountain of the Cross, beside the road from Antakya to Reyhanlı, a natural cave was fitted out as a church. St. Pierre ranks as the world's earliest cave church, and visitors tour it with the modern city in view.

History

According to tradition, St. Pierre, the apostle Peter and one of the twelve disciples of Jesus, came to Antioch between AD 29 and 40 and tried to spread Christianity from here. Religious gatherings are said to have been held in the cave, and the community was first called Christian here, which is why the church counts among the earliest Christian places of worship. It is also described as the first church from the time before Christianity divided into Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant branches.

Pope Paul VI declared the church a place of pilgrimage in 1963, and every 29 June the Catholic Church holds a service here.

Architecture

The cave itself is natural and was turned into a church by additions. In the 12th and 13th centuries the Crusaders built an extension onto its front, giving the building a Gothic look. Fragments of mosaic from the 4th and 5th centuries survive on the floor of the cave.

Inside are an altar, a small marble statue in a niche and water regarded as holy. A tunnel, made so that the congregation could slip away unseen if attacked, also belongs to the church.

Visiting

Hours and fees can change; check the museum page on muze.gov.tr. The MüzeKart is valid for Turkish citizens. The 5th-century Monastery of St. Simon, in the countryside of Aknehir neighbourhood in Samandağ, is another site nearby.