News

The Christian Quarter in Jerusalem was attacked

Residents of the Christian quarter of Jerusalem are becoming victims of attacks by extremists; this time not only were the shrines of the believers desecrated, but also their houses, reports the Linga portal.
On Tuesday, May 5, three Christian public organizations of Jerusalem – “Youths of the Christian Quarter”, “Development of the Christian Quarter Committee” and “the Seed of a Better Life” center published a joint statement in which they condemned the latest events occurred on the territory of the old city’s famous district. According to the human rights activists, a group of individuals made a barbaric raid on the Christian quarter. As a result, a monastery belonging to a jurisdiction of the Ethiopian Church was damaged together with a number of houses and shops belonging to Christians.

New Turkish sites on UNESCO list

Ten new cultural and natural Turkish heritage sites have been included in the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List.

Culture and Tourism Minister Ömer Çelik said they were informed about the situation on April 23, adding, “Van’s Akdamar Church, Istanbul’s Yıldız Palace, Antalya’s ancient city of Aspendos, the Dağlık Phrygia region in Kütahya-Eskişehir-Afyon, Edirne’s Uzun Köprü, Siirt’s İsmail Fakirullah shrine, Muğla’s ancient city of Stratonikeia, Bolu’s Mudurnu Ahi City, Amasya’s Harşena Mount and Pontus King and Rock Tombs and Kahramanmaraş’s Eshab-ı Kehf social complex are among these places. The number of our heritage sites on the UNESCO list increased to 62. Every year, we can submit two sites to the UNESCO Tentative List; one is a natural site and the other is a cultural site. From now on, we will start working to determine the ones among these sites to be submitted to the permanent list.”

Large Number of Filipinos Join Orthodox Church : Mass Baptism Held

With Great Joy and Gladness, we would like to announce the reception of 200 former Aglipayan (Philippine Independent Catholic Church)  faithfuls to the bossom of the Orthodox Church. This 200 newly baptized Filipino Orthodox Christians comes from the following places:

Turkey’s top religious body publishes Armenian translation of Quran

Turkey’s top religious body, the Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), has published a translation of the Quran in Armenian.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency on May 6, Diyanet Director-General for Religious Publications Dr. Yüksel Salman said 4,000 copies of the Quran, translated into the western and eastern Armenian dialects, would be distributed to libraries and NGOs in Turkey for free. Its sale will begin later.

Historic Hagia Sophia in a Turkish province to be re-opened as mosque

A ruined Hagia Sophia dating back to the 12th century in the western border province of Edirne will be renovated as a mosque, despite former statements made about the possibility of restoring it as a museum.

Following the conversion of two Hagia Sophia into museums, which were initially built as churches and then turned into mosques and, subsequently, museums, the third Hagia Sophia in Edirne’s Enez district will be reconverted into a mosque, according to Foundations General Director Adnan Ertem, despite previous debates on turning it into a museum after reconstruction.

The Catholicosate of Cilicia demands its Property in Sis from the Turkish Constitutional Court

On Tuesday 28 April 2015, the attorney of the Catholicosate of Cilicia in Turkey submitted a brief to the Constitutional Court in Turkey, requesting the return of its Centre in Sis (Kozan).

Convinced that recognition of the Genocide and compensation should go together, His Holiness Aram I, on the year of the 100th anniversary commemoration of the Armenian Genocide of 1915, has filed a lawsuit at the Turkish Constitutional Court for the return of the Spiritual Centre of the Catholicosate in Sis. In initiating this effort, His Holiness is setting a precedent for the descendants of the martyrs to reclaim their family belongings.