A discovery in the "city of apostolic miracles" confirms a biblical story (4 photos)

Archaeologists have made a stunning discovery in the biblical city of Lystra, in modern-day Turkey, where the Apostle Paul healed a lame man. The newly discovered basilica is decorated with gilded mosaics and exquisite frescoes.





The discovery confirms the biblical accounts, showing that Lystra was a genuine Christian community. It was large enough to hold worship services, have governing structures, and carry out the activities described in the Acts of the Apostles. Among other things, miracles of healing occurred there.

Lystra's location near modern-day Hatunsaray in Central Anatolia also corresponds to the geographical details mentioned in Scripture. This underscores the historical veracity of the biblical narrative.



Lystra, mentioned repeatedly in the Bible (eight times), has long attracted the attention of researchers. Excavations provide concrete archaeological evidence of the city's important role in the spread of Christianity in the region.

The basilica likely served not only as a place of worship but also as an administrative center. This discovery provides a better understanding of the development of the early Christian church structure in Anatolia.

Lystra was founded as a Roman colony under the Emperor Augustus.

According to the New Testament, the apostles Paul and Barnabas visited this city during their missionary journeys in the first century.

Acts 14:8-10 states: "A certain man sat in Lystra, crippled in his legs, having been lame from his mother's womb and having never walked.

He listened to Paul speaking. Looking at him and seeing that he had faith to receive healing, I said with a loud voice, 'I say to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, stand up straight on your feet.' And immediately he leaped up and walked."





According to the Bible, many local residents witnessed this miracle. They mistook Paul and Barnabas for the gods Hermes and Zeus.

Timothy, Paul's "spiritual son," was appointed one of the first bishops in the region.

Acts 16:1-3: "And he came as far as Derbe and Lystra. And behold, there was a certain disciple named Timothy, whose mother was a Jewess who believed, and whose father was a Greek. And the brethren who were at Lystra and Iconium were bearing witness to him." Paul desired to take him with him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those parts. For everyone knew of his father, that he was a Greek."

The excavations also provided a better understanding of the Seljuk era, a Turkic dynasty that ruled vast territories from the 11th to the 13th centuries. They had their greatest influence in Anatolia.



Archaeologists found amazing artifacts: coins and turquoise beads in children's graves. The items resemble "nazar bonkugu"—talismans that protect against the evil eye. They illustrate a period of cultural and religious interaction between Christians and Seljuk Turks.

Ilker Mete Mimiroglu of Necmettin Erbakan University, who led the excavations, told Arkeonews: "This demonstrates that the local Christian community did not disappear with the arrival of the Seljuks. They lived under Seljuk rule in a tolerant environment."

Some parts of the basilica have become chapels, and a Roman funerary stele has been installed in the altar. This demonstrates how different civilizations adapted the sacred site to their needs.

"From the miracle of the lame man to the majestic basilica, the city embodies hundreds of years of religiosity, art, and cultural exchange," Mimiroglu noted.