Tag: Erdogan

The Meaning of Hagia Sophia: A Traveler’s Perspective
Culture and Arts

The Meaning of Hagia Sophia: A Traveler’s Perspective

The church of Hagia Sophia was the preeminent monument of Christian architecture and an active church for almost a millennium until the conquest of Constantinople in 1453, when the clergy and people were slaughtered as they celebrated their last Liturgy. Hagia Sophia was used as a mosque for Muslim prayers until 1934, when the new…

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The Death of Secularism:  Russia, Turkey, and Western Cluelessness
Orthodoxy and Modernity, Religion and Politics

The Death of Secularism: Russia, Turkey, and Western Cluelessness

“Secular” is a tricky word. Most associate it with “no religion,” “absence of religion,” or “decline of religion.” At one time, it was pretty much the consensus in the Western world that with increased modernization, which usually meant technological and scientific advancement, religion would no longer really be needed and would simply fade away. This is one of…

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Hagia Sophia’s Status as a Mosque Mocks Prophet Muhammad’s Covenant with Christianity
Culture and Arts, Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations, Religion and Conflict

Hagia Sophia’s Status as a Mosque Mocks Prophet Muhammad’s Covenant with Christianity

by Ani Zonneveld In 2019, I had the pleasure of immersing myself in the history of both Christianity and Islam, where they are woven together in the beautiful and magnificent architecture of the Hagia Sophia. During my trip, numerous Christian icons, which were plastered over during the Ottoman Empire, were being uncovered and restored, bringing…

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Hagia Sophia and the Challenge of Religious Freedom
Culture and Arts, Religion and Politics

Hagia Sophia and the Challenge of Religious Freedom

by George Demacopoulos | ελληνικά | српски Christian leaders and secular governments around the world have condemned, with good reason, the recent decision of a Turkish court to reconvert Hagia Sophia into a mosque. Indeed, this ruling is just the latest step in a century-long effort by the Turkish government to erase both the history…

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The Hagia Sophia: A Museum or a Place of Worship?
Culture and Arts, Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations

The Hagia Sophia: A Museum or a Place of Worship?

by Thomas Bremer I categorically refuse to pay an entrance fee for a church, out of principle. When I was in Bratislava, and the Catholic cathedral charged a very small fee, I did not enter. When I returned to the wonderful Cathedral Church in Trogir, Croatia, two years ago, it was selling entrance tickets—so I…

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Public Orthodoxy seeks to promote conversation by providing a forum for diverse perspectives on contemporary issues related to Orthodox Christianity. The positions expressed in the articles on this website are solely the author’s and do not necessarily represent the views of the editors or the Orthodox Christian Studies Center.

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Public Orthodoxy is a publication of the Orthodox Christian Studies Center of Fordham University