Turks push to turn iconic Hagia Sophia back into a mosque

[rug]

Nikolia Apostolou, Special for USA TODAY
Published 10:54 a.m. ET Feb. 25, 2017 | Updated 7 hours ago

ATHENS — For eight decades, the iconic Hagia Sophia museum in Istanbul has stood as a symbol of Turkey's commitment to a secular society. Now that tradition is under siege by growing calls to convert the historic structure back into a practicing mosque.

The 1,500-year-old structure originally was built as an Orthodox Christian cathedral. It was turned into a mosque in the 15th century after the Ottoman Turks defeated the Greek emperor in Constantinople and renamed the city Istanbul. In the 1930s, the founder of modern Turkey, Kemal Ataturk, turned it into a museum in his drive to create a secular republic on the ruins of the Ottoman Empire.

Now that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is promoting a more prominent role for Islam in Turkey, whose citizens are overwhelmingly Muslim, the idea of turning the popular tourist attraction into a house of worship again has become more appealing.

"We want Hagia Sophia to open as a mosque," said Yusuf Yalcin, 37, of Istanbul, an information technology manager who co-founded a group devoted to that cause. "Hagia Sophia is the relic of our ancestors and symbol of our freedom."

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/02/25/turkey-iconic-hagia-sophia-mosque/98169256/

[hrmjustin]

1. Oh this will cause an issue.

[rug]

2. Yup.

Either Turkey is a secular state or it's not.

[lynintenn]

3. Visited in 2012

There were longs lines and they charge for entrance. It is a huge tourist attraction. There are several very large mosques in Istanbul including the Blue Mosque. I doubt this will happen.

[edhopper]

4. The more Erdogan wants to make Turkey

Last edited Sun Feb 26, 2017, 12:14 PM - Edit history (1)

a less secular country, the smaller his chances of getting into the EU.
He should decide which part of the world he wants to be part of.

[rug]

5. The government is doing the same thing in St. Petersburg.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/02/25/russians-protest-against-the-greed-of-putin-s-favorite-church.html

One of the first things a government does as it lists rightward and becomes authoritarian is to enlist established religions. So, prominently, we now have Ankara, Moscow, and Washington.

[edhopper]

6. good point

Oligarchy + Theocracy, bad combination.