We are excited to announce our next Interpreter Foundation Study Tour. Based on the results of our travel survey and since we will be studying the New Testament next year in Sunday School, we have decided that our next tour will be to Turkey!

Did you know that two-thirds of the 27 books in the New Testament were either written in Turkey or were addressed to communities there? This is where Paul was born in Tarsus, where Peter is said to have started the first community of Christians in Antioch, where many think John the Beloved wrote his Gospel while he lived in Ephesus, and where the Seven Churches are located to whom the Book of Revelation was written!

For several years, the U.S State Department has said it was unsafe to travel to Turkey. This has been heartbreaking to many of us who have been wanting to travel to Turkey, “the other Holy Land.” So, we were excited to learn in the past few months that the State Department has changed its assessment and determined that it is once again safe to travel to Turkey!

Of course, in addition to the events of the Bible that took place there, this is also the land of the city of Troy, which until its ruins were discovered in 1871, was thought only to be a mythical place. And also, where the Nicean Creed was drafted, which was among the first of the Christian creeds.

We will start things off in one of the greatest cities in the world, ancient or modern: Istanbul, which was Constantinople, but now it’s Istanbul, not Constantinople. If you’ve ever wondered why Constantinople got the works, you’ll now have your chance to ask some Turks!

In the months leading up to our tour, we will also provide a list of reading material, videos, and podcasts. And like before, we will hold a live lecture series where we can start to get to know each other, followed by a photo directory of everyone who is joining us.

The main tour runs from October 9-18, 2023, with an extension running from October 18-22, 2023. We hope to see you there, but you’ll need to make your reservations soon. Everyone wants to travel now, so tours have been selling out fast. Please visit the Bountiful Travel website right away to review the full itinerary and make your reservation: https://bountifultravel.com/trips/turkey-bible-tour/. We also have a page with information about the tour on our website at https://dev.interpreterfoundation.org/study/study-travel/turkey-2023/.

Also, to begin our lecture series, we are very excited to learn that one of our hosts on the tour, Murat Cakir, is in town preparing to translate for General Conference. While he is here, he will be speaking at the Jordan Event Center on October 5, 2022, at 7 PM.

Murat was the former Branch President in Istanbul and is a former member of the Mission Presidency in Turkey. He helped translate the Book of Mormon into Turkish and is now working on translating the Doctrine & Covenants. Murat will make a presentation about some of the things we will see in Turkey and will share with us his story about growing up as a Muslim near Ephesus and later joining the Church. You will love his presentation and you will love him too. If you have signed up for our tour, you can attend the presentation for FREE! Otherwise, it will cost $6 to attend the lecture. You can also sign up to watch his presentation on a live stream, which will cost $10 per household (free streaming is not available).

The Jordan Event Center can hold up to 90 people, so reservations are REQUIRED to accommodate everyone who is attending even if you are paying at the door. Jordan Event Center is located at 9112 South Redwood Road in West Jordan (behind the Cruise Lady office). To make your reservation, call 801-916-7677.

I’ll be there to hear Murat and answer any questions you may have about the tour. I hope to see you there!

And, again, to join us on our Turkey Sacred Sites Tour, go to: https://bountifultravel.com/trips/turkey-bible-tour/