Important responses to the decision to turn Hagia Sophia into a mosque. Read Theophilos III, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem and Cardinal Charles Bo, who warns that in previous epochs of history we know that the seizure of one another’s sacred and holy buildings and sites has caused untold distress and bitterness and in our generation we should not be so foolish as to repeat the mistakes of history.He insists that Freedom of religion or belief is a foundational human right for everyone, of every faith and none; and recalls that in Syria and Iraq sacred places have been wantonly destroyed while in China shrines have been destroyed, the Cross removed from places of worship, and even churches, like Xiangbaishu Church in Yixing, demolished.
Three must read articles about Hagia Sophia, shared with me by Nina Shea:
Theophilos III, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem where he holds the seat of St. James, and leads the world’s oldest Christian community writes in USA Today:
Our experience in Jerusalem is that to attempt to treat contested holy sites in an exclusive manner is simply a recipe for bitterness and suffering. When our holy sites are open to all, there is peace and mutual respect. Even the holy sites that belong particularly to Christians are open to all who wish to visit, and are shared among the various denominations…
The Republic of Turkey is a country with great potential to show the world the benefits of our common humanity and our common human destiny. The Orthodox world appeals to the Turkish government: We urge Turkey to live up to that potential, and show the world the value of coexistence between its various communities. Turkey has the power to demonstrate that we can maintain our historic holy spaces for all without distinction as beacons of hope and peace. We therefore call upon the government of Turkey to maintain Hagia Sophia as a museum, open to all.“
Dr. Paul Marshall, Senior Fellow with Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom, authored the following piece for Providence Magazine: https://providencemag.com/2020/07/implications-hagia-sophia-conversion-mosque/?fbclid=IwAR3OGIy-ohlRpcvJiIhjZMjeW8WDgLmzjYVh8nb-XjOH3eNgsvamKWu0Ay0
Hagia Sophia’s conversion is the culmination of Erdoğan’s long campaign to transform Turkey into a neo-Ottoman state or even empire…. On March 31, 2018, Erdoğan himself recited the first verse of the Quran there, dedicating his words to the “souls of all who left us this work as inheritance, especially Istanbul’s conqueror.”
Erdoğan’s reference to the conqueror of then Constantinople, Mehmet II, was quite deliberate and illustrates his desire to imitate the Ottoman sultan. As part of its reopening under the COVID-19 pandemic, Turkey had planned to reopen its mosques on June 12, but Erdoğan pushed for the reopening to take place on May 29 instead, the 567th anniversary of Constantinople’s capture by the sultan. Hence, the mosques’ reopening would also be a celebration of the act of conquest.
In the Wall Street Journal, Charlotte Allen asserts important geo-political observations, including those from Dr. Elizabeth Prodromou, who co-chairs with me the Center’s Working Group on the Protection of Christians and Religious Pluralism in the Middle East: https://www.wsj.com/articles/turkey-retreats-from-modernity-11595545661
Ms. Prodromou says Mr. Erdogan envisions Turkey displacing Saudi Arabia as leader of the Sunni Muslim religious world. “He is telling the Kemalists: Your interlude was a parenthesis.”
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Hagia Sophia – Cardinal Charles Bo warns that “in previous epochs of history we know that the seizure of one another’s sacred and holy buildings and sites has caused untold distress and bitterness and in our generation we should not be so foolish as to repeat the mistakes of history.” He insists that “Freedom of religion or belief is a foundational human right for everyone, of every faith and none” and recalls that in Syria and Iraq sacred places have been wantonly destroyed while in China shrines have been destroyed, the Cross removed from places of worship, and even churches, like Xiangbaishu Church in Yixing, demolished.
HAGIA SOPHIA
STATEMENT BY HIS EMINENCE CHARLES CARDINAL BO
Freedom of religion or belief is a foundational human right for everyone, of every faith and none. The right to choose, practice, express and change one’s faith – or have no faith at all – is the most basic freedom for any soul. And it is a freedom I have consistently and passionately defended for Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews and Christians of all traditions, in my own country of Myanmar and throughout Asia.
Indeed often I have spoken in defence of the persecuted Muslim peoples in Myanmar, and I will go on doing so without hesitation and unequivocally. For true freedom of religion requires respect for others’ freedom to practice, as well as the exercise and defence of one’s own liberty.
For that reason, the decision in Turkey to turn what was for 1000 years the world’s largest Cathedral – Hagia Sophia – into a mosque grieves me. And as President of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences, it is incumbent on me to say so.
It grieves me not because I want to deny my Muslim brothers and sisters places of worship. On the contrary, I defend their right to do so as much as I defend everyone’s. Nothing I say here should be taken by those who persecute Muslims – in Myanmar or beyond – as justification for their actions: it never can be. Persecution of any kind should be countered by people of faith, hope and love and by humanity. But nor can the decision to turn Hagia Sophia into a mosque be seen as anything other than an unnecessary assault on freedom of religion or belief.
Faith is an affair of the soul, heart, mind and spirit. The temples of faith are within people, not buildings. Nevertheless, sacred buildings represent and embody history, heritage, art, iconography and the life-story of faiths throughout the millenia. When subverted, however, they can be used as symbols of power and subjugation.
In my country, Myanmar, mosques have been razed to the ground and I have spoken out – frequently and at some risk. In China, the Uyghur Muslims are facing what amounts to some of the contemporary world’s worst mass atrocities and I urge the international community to investigate. In India and Sri Lanka Muslims have faced appalling violence and I have condemned such inhumanity.
Similarly, In Indonesia, Ahmadiyya Muslim mosques have been destroyed by other Muslims, and churches have been forcibly closed. In Iran the Baha’is face an intense assault on their freedoms, and in Syria and Iraq sacred places have been wantonly destroyed while, sadly, closer to home, we have seen the same phenomenon in China with shrines destroyed, the Cross removed from places of worship, and even churches, like Xiangbaishu Church in Yixing, demolished.”
Turning Hagia Sophia into a mosque represents a similar undermining of freedom of religion or belief, love for each other, respect for the dignity of difference.
At a time when humanity is enduring intense strains due to the global pandemic, we need to come together, not drive communities apart. We need to put aside identity politics, abandon power plays, prevent ethnic and religious conflicts and value the dignity of difference among every human being. And we must cherish diversity and the unity we find within it.
How does turning what was once the world’s largest cathedral into a mosque do anything except sow tensions, divide people and inflict pain? How does placing Hagia Sophia into the hands of people who have no sense of its history and heritage and who will destroy its Christian identity help bring people together? How does seizing Hagia Sophia uphold Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights? It doesn’t. It merely reopens wounds and exacerbates divides at a time when we should be healing humanity.
I work with my brothers and sisters from every major faith tradition every day of my life. And I will go to the ends of the earth to defend their rights. I will defend every mosque, every synagogue, every temple possible. And I know my fellow religious leaders working for peace would do the same for me. That’s the spirit we need – to respect and defend each other’s freedoms to worship as we wish, to express our faith in accordance with our traditions, to convert freely according to our conscience, but never to be coerced, never to impose and never to seize or grab.
In previous epochs of history we know that the seizure of one another’s sacred and holy buildings and sites has caused untold distress and bitterness and in our generation we should not be so foolish as to repeat the mistakes of history.
Reciprocity is a human and natural virtue.
Let Hagia Sophia be.
