Hagia Sophia Home
Angeliki Papagika and partners want the Hagia Sophia to be returned to the Christian church.
Hagia Sophia Home
If you believe in the just case that Hagia Sophia should be restored to its proper religious role as a church, for which it was built in the first place, then we ask you to support our petition to the EU Parliament that Turkey should not be admitted as a member of the European Community until it restores Hagia Sophia to its original purpose as a church and not a museum.
We need a minimum of 1.000.000 signatures in order to force the European Union to consider this proposal seriously and debate it immediately as one of the conditions to allow Turkey to be admitted as a new member of the EU.
As you know, Turkey is doing everything it can today to convince the European Union that it is a worthy country to join it. If you agree with us that Turkey should not be admitted to the EU before restoring justice to Hagia Sophia, please click on “Your Signature” and send us your message.
It is a disgrace and disrespect to a religion and god when holy places are unwillingly turned purely into tourist attractions. How would the Muslims feel if one of their holiest places was turned into a museum for tourists by a conquering power?
With its conversion into a museum in 1934, Hagia Sophia was frozen in some past age, vaguely Byzantine. Directed by the then historicist paradigm that saw the past as unchanging, Hagia Sophia was also understood through the aesthetic of the great museum, that is, aloof and imposing. Both traits were useful to a Turkish government that wanted to break with the Ottoman era that lasted until after World War I. The church of Heavenly Wisdom became thus what the official Turkish act of secularisation called a �unique architectural monument of art� and hence was valued more for its age, art and historical value than for its practical and religious use.
Interesting idea but which Christian church is this monument of a great Christian past going to: the Greek-Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Coptic Church or some other branch?
And if this is going to be the rule:
It is a disgrace and disrespect to a religion and god when holy places are unwillingly turned purely into tourist attractions. How would the Muslims feel if one of their holiest places was turned into a museum for tourists by a conquering power?
…what about the Alhambra? There is going to be a mosque in the vicinity of the Alhambra but should it be given to the Muslims again (and to what branch?)? Perhaps an exchange between the Hagia Sofia and the Alhambra?
I guess you ommit the fact that Hagia Sophia (and the broad-broad area) was militarily invaded in 1450+- by the Ottoman Turks and today belogns to people other than the ones that built it. I don’t know about Alhambra but I thought that Arabs were invaders in 7th century modern Spain, and, also, is Alhambra the Mecca of Islam -as is Hagia Sophia and Instanbul for Orthodox Christians-? Lastly, Hagia Sophia could be the base of all Orthodox churches, it doesn’t need be Greek or Russian or else only. BTW, the Ecoumenical Patriarch of the Orthodox church is still where he was based since ever, in Instanbul -this is, until the Turkish government erases this last piece of evidence that there was something else there beofre them, something great-. Sincerely,George