After completing all preparations, Turkey will open Hagia Sophia for worship on July 24 at Friday prayer, the Turkish president has said.
In an address to the nation on Friday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivered his remarks on the new status of Hagia Sophia – which was used as a museum for the past decades but will serve as a mosque following a recently adopted decree on Friday.
The president said as quoted by Anadolu Agency that Hagia Sophia’s doors will be open for Turks, foreigners, Muslims, and non-Muslims as is the case with all other mosques. The Turkish president said Hagia Sophia would continue to embrace everyone with its new status as a mosque in a much more sincere way.
“I invite everyone to respect decisions taken by judicial and executive bodies of my country on Hagia Sophia,” Erdogan said, stressing that how the historical complex would be of use was a matter of national sovereignty.
Turkey welcomes all views on the issue, said Erdogan referring to the new status of Hagia Sophia, but also added that any attitude or expression beyond that would be considered a “violation” of Turkey’s “independence”.
“I underline that we will open Hagia Sophia as a mosque by preserving the common cultural heritage of humanity,” Erdogan stressed.
Erdogan noted that the visitors of Hagia Sophia, now that the complex is set to serve as a mosque, would be able to visit the historical gem without paying any fees. He added that Muslims, Christians, and Jews lived in peace in Istanbul since its conquest, and Turks treated other non-Muslim houses of prayers with utmost respect whereas many of the Ottoman artifacts in Eastern Europe and the Balkans gradually disappeared.
The president went on to say that Turkey’s rights on Hagia Sophia was not any fewer than that of those who built the historical complex nearly 1,500 years ago, adding, insisting that Hagia Sophia would remain as a museum would be an equal demand that the Vatican was turned into a museum and closed to worship.
Erdogan said the “resurrection of Hagia Sophia” was the harbinger of the liberation of Masjid al-Aqsa, and footsteps of Muslims’ will to leave hard days behind.
Earlier on Friday, a Turkish court annulled a 1934 Cabinet decree, which turned Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia into a museum, and this move paved the way for its use again as a mosque after 85 years.
The court ruled that the architectural gem was owned by a foundation established by Sultan Mehmet II, the conqueror of Istanbul, and presented to the community as a mosque — a status that cannot be legally changed.
Hagia Sophia was used as a church for centuries under the rule of the Byzantine Empire, and turned into a mosque following its conquest of Istanbul in 1453. In 1935, Hagia Sophia was turned into a museum.
Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomaios expresses grief
The Istanbul-based Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomaios has expressed grief over plans by Turkey to convert the 6th-century former Orthodox Christian cathedral of Hagia Sophia into a mosque in comments he made to Turkish columnist Asli Aydintasbas for the Washington Post.
“What can I say as a Christian clergyman and the Greek patriarch in Istanbul? Instead of uniting, a 1,500-year-old heritage is dividing us. I am saddened and shaken,” said Vatholomaios, who is the spiritual leader of 300 million Orthodox Christians worldwide.
A Unesco world heritage site, Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque by the Ottoman Turks after the fall of Constantinople (modern day Istanbul) in 1453. It was turned into a museum in 1935 under modern Turkey’s secular founder Kemal Ataturk.
The US State Department on Friday said as quoted by ekathimerini on Saturday that it was “disappointed” by the government of Turkey’s decision to change the status of Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia after Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan declared the ancient monument a mosque again.
“We understand the Turkish Government remains committed to maintaining access to the Hagia Sophia for all visitors, and look forward to hearing its plans for continued stewardship of the Hagia Sophia to ensure it remains accessible without impediment for all,” State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said in a statement./argumentum.al
