Tarsus

Between the two big cities of Adana and Mersin, in southern Turkey, lies Tarsus, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Although today it is overshadowed by its two bigger neighbors, Tarsus was a very important city in ancient times. It was here that Cleopatra supposedly met Mark Antony. It was also the birthplace of St. Paul. In Acts 21:39, Paul is proud of his city and says, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city”.

Many armies marched through the pass north of the city in the Taurus Mountains, including the Persian Xerxes and Alexander the Great. The pass was later named “Gates of Judas” by the crusaders.

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