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The '''Cave of the Apocalypse''' is situated between the villages of Skala and Chora on the island of [[Patmos]] in Greece. It is in this cave that Christians believe St. [[John the Theologian]] saw Christ and visions of "fire and brimstone" that John dictated to his disciple, [[Prochoros]], in what is known today as the [[Book of Revelation]]. It is said, that the Voice of God could be heard coming from the cleft of the rock that is still visible in the cave today. This rock is divided into three which Christians say symbolises the [[Holy Trinity]]. The cave is considered to be the first hermitage on the island because of the saint's presence. The view from this cave and the mysticism of the atmosphere is incredible.
Today, a pilgrim can see the place at which the Apocalypse was written, the place where St. John stayed, the massive rock that opened up in there and through which God dictated the Apocalypse to St. John, the point were the Evangelist lay his head to rest and a curve on the rock, which he would hold onto, in order to rise - the southern part of the cave has been turned into a church. This is a UNESCO World heritage site <ref> UNESCO, World Heritage Site #942, webpage : [http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/942 WHC-UNESCO-942]</ref>
==History==
In this Holy cave, a little church was also built to honour the [[Translation (relics)|translation ]] (metastasis) of the Evangelist, St. [[John the Theologian|John]] (honoured every year [[September 26]]). Later, in the time of St. Christodoulos (1088), another little church was added to honour St. Anna, the mother of the [[Theotokos|Virgin Mary]].
With the passing of time, the chain of hermits at the Cave, have contributed to the addition of cells and little churches around the Cave forming the current building structure in the region today.
== References ==
<small><references/></small>
[[Category:Churches]]
[[Category:Places]]
[[Category:Orthodox UNESCO World Heritage Sites]]
[[Category:Pilgrimage Sites]]
