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Valid? Dhimmis might believe Al Jazeera...but they didn't report this latest in a long line of sacrilege.
Armenian church destroyed by the barbarous Muslims in Turkey
Posted on 11/19/2007 10:24:47 AM PST by longtermmemmory
Turkish Forestry Officials Vandalize Historic Church
November 15, 2007
New York – In response to unlawful destruction of an historic Orthodox Christian Church by eight officials of a local Ministry of Forestry in Turkey, His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew sent an official letter to Mevlut Kurban, the District Elder of Princess Islands, expressing his “strong disappointment and shock.” The Ecumenical Patriarch emphasized that Christ the Savior Monastery “had survived numerous fires and earthquakes throughout hundreds of years. In is uncivil to brutalize a sacred building that carries so much cultural history, and unjust to destroy it, especially when Istanbul has been picked to be the capital of civilized Europe in 2010.”
Dr. Anthony J. Limberakis, National Commander of the Order of Saint Andrew, condemned the illegal actions of Turkey’s Forestry officials. “On behalf of all peoples of faith who value religious freedom, basic human rights and the dignity of every human being, we call upon the government of Turkey to stop immediately the destruction of this historic Monastery and to put an end to the incessant harassment of the humble caretaker and workers who live on the Monastery’s property.”
Dr. Limberakis emphasized that the Archons in America are strong advocates for Turkey’s admission into the European Union and asked that all friends of Turkey urge the government to “treat all Turkish citizens equally and fairly, regardless of their religious persuasion… Muslim, Jewish, or Christian.”
The Monastery, which is undergoing renovation due to a generous grant from Dr. Stephen and Dr. Anna Yallourakis of Kingsport, TN, was vandalized on Tuesday, November 13, 2007. Local government officials removed and threw away roof tile, broke all the windows and destroyed the window frames. The officials threatened the residents and demanded that they abandon their homes because the houses were being demolished. Dr. Yallourakis remarked, “We here in the U.S. enjoy all of our freedoms and believe all people should enjoy basic unalienable rights given to us by our Creator. The Ecumenical Patriarchate, founded by the Apostle Andrew, is the Sacred See for 250 million Orthodox Christians around the world. We pray for a positive resolution to this tragic event and anxiously await the repair of the damage which has destroyed our beloved Monastery.”
Much of the "official" turkish position is that the christian faith is an "extinct" religion.
The Turkish government is setting up policy after policy in order to preclude the succession of Echumenical Patriarchs. In fact they now object to the word Ecumenical.
Keep in mind Turkey has a HUGE problem with black market antiquity sales. These ancient churchs and monestaries are a priceless goldmine for art thieves.
The Ottoman empire tried this in Eastern Europe for centuries and still couldn’t finish the job, but it looks like they’re succeeding in their own backyard.
Turkish islamic barbarism. Keeping the Armenian Genocide in mind, I guess I already know the Turkish reaction to this attack: denial.
I’ve been supportive of the Turkish government in relation to the rogue Kurds in Iraq that have been attacking it’s troops. That being said, this is disgusting.
Orthodox ping.
When I was in Istanbul a few years ago, friends took me to see a church made of iron that had been built elsewhere and brought down the Bosphorus from the Black Sea in the late 1800’s to early 1900’s. It was ugly as could be on the outside, but when the caretaker opened the front doors, there were magnificent paintings and artifacts inside, of Orthodox origin. Is this possibly the same building that was vandalized?
This has been going on for decades. I think back to Turkish troops invading Cyprus back in the late ‘70’s or early ‘80’s and setting up their puppet government in northern Cyprus.
It became a green light to sack the ancient Christian churches and monasteries on the island. Some of the art works plundered dated back to before the fall of the Western Empire. And a lot of them were offered on the black market in Europe and elsewhere. A local art dealer got in hot water for purchasing some mosaics and re-offering them for sale. Fortunately, the Cypriot government and FBI got involved, seized them and after a trial were returned the Cypriot Orthodox church.
The churches being sacked by the Turks date back to the Apostle Paul’s letters. This is sad and outrageous.
Here is an article with photos of the restoration, so you can compare to your memory.
Actually, he is not...but nonetheless, those damned Turks had better leave the Orthodox churches alone. Anyone who believes that the Turks are our friends is sadly mistaken.
There is the famous case of the Kanakaria Mosaics which were litigated in the US courts after an american antiques dealer “aquired” them in the 1980s.
Churches in cyprus are routinely looted and now many are used for animal stables. Where the knights once prayed, donkey poop is stored.
ping
Nothing has changed with Turks’ mentality since its invasion of Constantinople.
Is there a valid news source about this event?
Also, do you have valid sources linking the Turkish state with the "grey wolves" or any state-sponsored violence against Christian or Jewish faiths?
RE: "Much of the 'official' turkish position is that the christian faith is an 'extinct' religion."
That is most interesting because the government is secular. I am not saying that the secular government does not have an "official" position on religion I'd just like to know if that is it, verified by a neutral source.
Why did Constantinople get the works?
That’s no one’s business but the Turks.
That just Turks being Muslim. Muslims are violent and malevolent. It would be surprising if Turks didn’t destroy Christian Churches. It’s just what Muslims do, along with murdering innocents.
The Kanakaria case is the one I wrote of in my original post. Before the mosaics were returned to Cyprus, the Cypriot government allowed them to be displayed publicly in the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox church in Indianapolis. The presentation was a way of saying “Thank you” to the people of Indianapolis for having the mosaics returned to their rightful owners.
The mosaics were stunning in their beauty even after their desecration. The people who crafted them were not that far removed from those Apostles who actually knew the living Christ. I was awestruck.
Yes, they were truly stunning, they are on display now in nicosia the capital of Free Cyprus (aka the Republic of Cyprus is actually the entire island. It is just an “occupied north” propped up by turkey)
The MSM has no substantive stories on this. I found a few web sites which had this but it was essentially reprinting this specific news release.
FNC is totally mute on this.
now if it was a mosque...
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Valid? Dhimmis might believe Al Jazeera...but they didn't report this latest in a long line of sacrilege.
Various enemies of the Turks living here in the U.S. toil tirelessly to influence the U.S. government and citizens to side with their and with their native people's animosity toward the Turks.
I respectfully say to them: OK, but either go home and fight or give us honest reasons why we as Americans should join you in hating the Turks.
Are they willing to help Ms Pelosi and others trying to sabotage our forces in the Middle East? Seriously. That was not intended to be a "cheap shot."
Prove with events of today that the U.S. should join in the hatred of Turks. Is that asking too much?
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