Awkward: Hagia Sophia
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| Hagia Sophia | Catholic Register |
Word has officially broke in several places that Hagia Sophia will be opened as a mosque. The grand church was converted to a mosque by Mehmed the Conqueror in 1453. It's art was subsequently defaced. In 1934 it was designated a museum by the founder of modern Turkey, Kemal Ataturk. Up until President Erdoğan's announcement, it's status was that of a Unesco World Heritage site. The mosaics that remain will be covered during muslim prayers.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, she said, cited Turkey’s Islamic history in his speech on Hagia Sophia to announce its destiny and its “natural right” as “the leader of Muslims worldwide.”
On July 2, a Turkish court ruled that the 1934 conversion of Hagia Sophia from a mosque to a museum was unlawful. The decision was announced July 10, and then Erdogan announced that Hagia Sophia would be converted back into a mosque.
Turkey’s destiny and its “natural right” as “the leader of Muslims worldwide.” There's a worrisome amount of chutzpah or bravura in that claim. Response from rival muslim leaders in 5, 4, 3, 2, ... .
A rather limp statement was issued June 18, 2020 by the Catholic bishops in Turkey at the pending announcement and change, in effect saying 'Hey, it's none of our business.'
OXFORD, England -- Catholic bishops in Turkey pledged not to contest plans to turn Istanbul's ancient Hagia Sophia cathedral that now serves as a museum into a Muslim place of worship.
In announcing their decision June 18, the bishops backed government claims that the monument's future is a question of national sovereignty.
"We are a church deprived of juridical status, so we cannot give any advice on this country's internal questions," the Turkish bishops' conference said in a statement sent to Catholic News Service.
"Although we would wish Hagia Sophia to retain its character as a museum, it isn't for us to intervene or even give our opinion on a decision which solely concerns the Republic of Turkey," the bishops said.
With friends like that...?
We shouldn't be surprised if our Eastern brethren show us similar support should we express interest in the return of Catholic churches appropriated by the state during the Reformation in England.
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