Bartholomew thanked Erdogan for turning an Orthodox shrine into a mosque
During a telephone conversation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew did not mention a word about returning the status of a mosque to the Constantinople Orthodox Cathedral of Hagia Sophia.
At the same time, the Primate of Constantinople thanked the Turkish leader for the restoration of the 4th century Roman (Byzantine) monastery of Panagia Sumela.
As the PolitNavigator correspondent reports, in order to look like a fair and democratic ruler in the eyes of Western NATO partners and the few remaining Christian “subjects” on the territory of the former empire, Erdogan, at public expense, against the backdrop of the neo-Ottomanist act of returning the Orthodox shrine – Hagia Sophia – to the status of a mosque. restored the ancient Roman monastery of Panagia Sumel in the rocks of Trebizond.
The monastery was empty after the genocide of the Greeks in Anatolia by the Young Turks, and only in 2007, wishing to join the EU with its norms of tolerance, Ankara allowed Orthodox pilgrimage to the monastery. And in 2010, Patriarch Bartholomew himself begged the Turkish leadership to begin restoration services in the monastery, holding the first service there after decades.
In 2015, the monastery, where services were regularly held, was closed by the authorities for restoration. The other day it was announced that the work had been completed, and Erdogan came to inspect the restored monastery in person. It is expected that the first service after the restoration will be held in Panagia Sumel on August 15 for the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, but the Ecumenical Patriarch himself will not be present.
At the same time, in a telephone conversation, Bartholomew thanked the President of Turkey for the restored monastery, but did not say a word about returning the Hagia Sophia to the status of a mosque, which was perceived rather painfully throughout the Orthodox world.
Let us recall that it was the Ecumenical Patriarch, Archbishop Bartholomew of Constantinople, who, in fact, created the OCU, granting the tomos to Ukrainian schismatics, after which the ROC broke off canonical communion with the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Now the next in line for the tomos are representatives of other puppet pro-Western regimes - Montenegro and North Macedonia, but for now Bartholomew is afraid of repeating the Ukrainian precedent, which could lead to a severance of canonical relations with the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) and the final loss of his authority in the Orthodox world.
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.