Shielded by the inability of Christians in Turkey to physically protest given the restrictions associated with COVID-19, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on July 10 proclaimed the return of Hagia Sophia as an active mosque after 86 year status as a museum. It was built over 1,500 years ago on the site where two earlier church buildings once stood.
At the time of its construction it was the largest Christian church in the world. It was dedicated by Emperor Justinian in 537AD on Christmas Day as the Church of Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom) in Constantinople (now Istanbul). The church stood for centuries as the heart and center of the Eastern Church’s spirituality and the Byzantine Empire’s main worship site. After the Great Schism of 1054, Hagia Sophia stood as the center of Orthodox Christians until its fall.
In 1453 Constantinople and Hagia Sophia fell to the conquering armies of Mehmed II, sultan of the Ottoman Empire. Both Byzantium and Hagia Sophia had been in a steady state of decline before the fall. The sultan and new rulers were duly impressed by the beauty and stature of the church and decided to convert it into a mosque. The Ottoman historian Tursun Beg wrote in the 15th century, “What a dome, that vies in rank with the nine spheres of heaven! In this work a perfect master has displayed the whole of the architectural science.”
The very style of the beautiful Hagia Sophia would influence Islamic architecture as witnessed in the construction of the Blue Mosque also found in Istanbul constructed in the 17th century.
After its conquest, four minarets were eventually added. They were more than 200 feet tall, among the tallest minarets ever constructed. As explained by Elisabeth Piltz, in her 2005 British Archeological Reports series, “After the Ottoman conquest the mosaics were hidden under yellow paint with the exception of the Theotokos (Virgin Mary with Child) in the apse. Monograms of the four caliphs were put on the pillars flanking the apse and the entrance of the nave.”
In 1935, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern day Turkey, wishing to promote a secular country, converted the Hagia Sophia mosque into a museum.
Reaction from the Orthodox world has come swiftly and negatively. The head of Orthodoxy worldwide, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, joined Orthodox leaders in Turkey, Greece, Cyprus and Russia in condemning the move from museum to mosque by Erdogan. Patriarch Bartholomew warned that this move “will turn millions of Christians around the world against Islam.”
The Catholic bishops of Turkey said of the conversion from museum to mosque, “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.”
To help Western Christians to understand the pain of our Orthodox brothers and sisters over this decision of the Turkish president, Michael Talbot, an English lecturer of history at the University of Greenwich, explains, “It’s like if Saint Peter’s (in Rome) had been turned into a mosque. It’s the fact that the seat of that church is no longer operating as a church and is in the hands of a rival religion. It’s a narrative amongst certain parts of Eastern Europe and their diasporas in America and beyond.”
In announcing the conversion on television in Turkey, Mr. Erdogan said that documents from the founding of the mosque attributed to Sultan Mehmet set up to supposedly protect the mosque, contained a prophecy that said “whoever changes the foundation certificate shall suffer the curse of Allah.” Mr. Erdogan said, “The decision made today allowed us to rid our country from this curse.”
According to the Orthodox Times, Greek Roman Catholic bishops were the only bishops of the Roman Catholic Church to speak out against the move in a strongly worded statement: “The Holy Synod does not want to believe that you really intend to take such an action, which would offend the religious sentiments of 2 billion Christians around the world. If there is, even in your mind, such a thought, we ask you to withdraw such a possibility, which will create greater distances between monotheistic religions. This is unthinkable for us, especially today when an effort is being made to respect the faith of every human being and especially in Democratic States.”
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