Turkey - 'Islamist' Pres Erdogan is preparing to pray in the Hagia Sophia on Good Friday.

Turkey - 'Islamist' Pres Erdogan is preparing to pray in the Hagia Sophia on Good Friday. (AN).

The Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan is preparing to go to pray next Friday April 14 in Saint Sophia in Constantinople, the church declared a museum by the father of Republican Turkey Kemal Ataturk in 1934.

Erdogan will not be alone: ​​He will be accompanied by representatives of his party AKP (Muslim extraction) and religious leaders in Istanbul.

According to the Christian calendar next Friday is Good Friday and the event will take place just two days before the April 16 referendum strongly backed by Erdogan in Turkey to establish an absolutist Presidency of Neottoman and Islamic extraction.

Thus Erdogan, nicknamed the "new sultan" for his political extremism, will seek to channel Muslim faithful in favor of a Yes ( "Evet") vote. According to the Muslim calendar the month to April (Nisan) is the month of the birth of Mohammed.

The news is carried in pro-government newspapers, presenting the latest book by Turk historian Mustafa Armagan - titled "The Saint Sophia intrigue" (Aya Sofia Entrikalari).

In doing so they seek to create and prepare the climate for the prayer, as the will of the Turkish president. The book argues that the decree signed by Kemal Ataturk in 1934 which turned the Hagia Sophia from mosque into a museum, is not authentic.

According to Armagan, the Kemal Ataturk signature on the decree is false. Therefore the act has no legal value and therefore Santa Sofia can in fact be used as a mosque, as was the case after the Turkish conquest of Constantinople in 1453.

Hagia Sophia it was built in 537 by Emperor Justinian and dedicated to God's Wisdom. To justify his remarks, the Turkish historian reports that the Kemal Aturk  signature on the 1934 Decree is unlike any other signature penned by the Father of Republic in prori acts.

Various sources are cited in the book which claims, according to the author, that the transformation of Hagia Sophia into a museum, was the result of pressure from various Western international forces, headed by the then US Ambassador Joseph Grew.

Mustafa Armagan also notes the news that Kemal Ataturk had visited St. Sophia in 1935, three months after its proclamation as a museum, was not reported in any Turkish newspaper of the period, but only by the Greek language journal, Apogevmatini, published on February 7, 1935, in Istanbul. The author recalls, in that same period, the strong reaction of the Egyptian newspaper "El Risale ", strongly opposed to the transformation of Hagia Sophia into a museum.


In this way the pre-referendum climate is becoming increasingly tense and polarized. On the other hand, the climate has been fostered and created by Erdogan himself with his recent statements against the Kemalist period, when he proclaimed: "That period, which began in 1923, is about to end. And that's that". And that is, woe to the vanquished.  Hmmm.......Erdogan is pushing for a new 'Holy war' between Christianity and Islam.

Islamist 'Dictatorship' Turkey nominates permanent imam for Hagia Sophia.

Islamist 'Dictatorship' Turkey nominates permanent imam for Hagia Sophia.(Ekathimerini).

A few months after a controversial decision by Turkish authorities to allow readings from the Quran to be broadcast from Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, reports on Friday said Turkey had decided to appoint a permanent imam for the venue.

According to the Anadolu state news agency, the country’s religious affairs directorate and the mufti of the Fatih district have agreed to assign a permanent imam who will lead five daily prayers, instead of the current two.

While the position was foreseen in the plans of 1935, when Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque under Kemal Ataturk, until recently prayers were led by visiting imams.

There had been no official reaction from Athens by late Friday.

Built as a Christian basilica in the 6th century, Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque following the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottoman army in 1453.


In June, readings were held at Hagia Sophia for the first time in 80 years – a move seen by critics as a violation of the monument’s formally neutral status. The move drew protests from the Greek Foreign Ministry.

Last month, the Turkish strongman attacked the 1923 Lausanne Treaty that defined the borders of modern Turkey. Read the full story here.

UPDATE! 25 October:

#Turkey gov't appoints a full time Imam to lead daily & Friday prayers at Hagia Sophia in Istanbul after 80 years in hiatus. pic.twitter.com/Rbu0u9Qn6e

— Abdullah Bozkurt (@abdbozkurt) October 25, 2016

The new Imam who led the first Friday prayer in Hagia Sophia decades after is a fan of kickboxing & martial arts pic.twitter.com/aAMnRCmq1k

— Abdullah Bozkurt (@abdbozkurt) October 25, 2016

'Islamist' Turkey - Hagia Sophia turned in to a mosque for Ramadan period

How the Hagia Sophia looked before Turks invaded Constantinople.

'Islamist' Turkey - Hagia Sophia turned in to a mosque for Ramadan period. (Orthodoxy).

The Qur'an will be heard inside Hagia Sophia in Constantinople during the Ramadan. This is a provocative decision of the TV channel of the Turkish state TRT Diyanet.

According to information published by the Turkish Daily Sabah newspaper, the Turkish state channel will broadcast from St. Sophia the program "sahur", that is to say the morning prayer before fasting.

The transformation of Hagia Sophia into a mosque last thirty days, June 6 through July 7. This transformation, yet temporary, caused the "delirium" of the Turkish pro-government press, which was quick to applaud this decision.

It is no coincidence that, since that was known broadcasting the morning prayer from Hagia Sophia, the deputy of the AKP bet [the party of Erdogan] of Constantinople, Samil Tayyar, hastened declare that since the United States "embraced" the PKK and Fethullah Gulen [between the refugee regime in the US, ndt] and that Germany "has fallen into the lie of genocide [Armenian ndt]" the friendship is no longer on the agenda.

Therefore, as he said, Turkey must retaliate and Hagia Sophia should open the "pilgrimage" that is to say what is to become again a mosque, which would amount to close doors a monument of world cultural heritage and sacred places in Christendom.

Dora Bakoyannis, a Greek politician and former minister of foreign affairs said the decision to hold Islamic prayers there essentially turns the Hagia Sophia into a mosque, in a "provocative and incomprehensible act,” showing “disrespect against Orthodox Christians across the world.” More here and here.

Reopening Hagia Sophia to prayers is my dream, Turkish tourism minister says.

Hagio Sophia before the Turkish invasion.

Reopening 'Stolen' Hagia Sophia to prayers is my dream, Turkish tourism minister says. (HD).

Culture and Tourism Minister Yalçın Topçu has said he wished for the Hagia Sophia museum in Istanbul to be reopened to prayers for Muslims.

“Opening the Hagia Sophia to prayers [for Muslims] is my personal dream, my goal, my ambition. Although there are several debates over its judicial status, the issue is more of a political debate,” said Topçu, who was nominated as culture and tourism minister in the interim government by Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu ahead of the snap polls scheduled for Nov. 1.

Topçu, the former chair of the Islamist-nationalist Great Union Party (BBP), was a surprising name in the new cabinet.

“There is an international dimension too, because the symbolic meaning of the Hagia Sophia is great. The final decision will be given by this nation rather than the world. A referendum might be the most serious solution,” he said.

He also said demands for the museum to become a mosque again have been reflected as a “radical demand” by the media. Hmmmm......With over 85,000 mosques they're bound to be one short.Read the full story here.

Related: 2013: 17,000 new mosques built under Erdogan Some 17,000 new mosques have been built during Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan's 10 years of leadership, Milliyet reports. In the same period the amount of public schools has remained at 32,000 while the number of mosques has jumped from 76,000 to 93,000. Turkey's secular opposition has accused Erdogan of having a ''secret plan'' to re-Islamisize the nation.

Thousands of Turkish 'Islamists' perform morning prayer near Hagia Sophia, call for reopening as a mosque.

Original look of the Hagia Sophia before the Muslims stole it.

Thousands of Turkish 'Islamists' perform morning prayer near Hagia Sophia, call for its reopening as a mosque. (TZ).

The huge group prayer in front of the Hagia Sophia, called Aya Sofya in Turkish, was held to commemorate the 562nd anniversary of the conquest, according to organizers.

A number of groups from across İstanbul and Turkey gathered in front of the Hagia Sophia at 4 a.m. on Sunday as part of an event organized by the Anatolian Youth Association (AGD), which aims for the Hagia Sophia museum to be open for prayer again. The organization made statements such as “Chains to be broken, Aya Sofya to be opened” and “Come with your prayer rug.”

Speaking to the crowd gathered in front of Hagia Sophia, AGD head Salih Turhan called for the museum to be turned into a mosque again. “You demonstrated an important stance by coming here from the different parts of Turkey to break the chains of Aya Sofya,” Turhan said.

AGD İstanbul head Ali Uğur Bulut defined the Hagia Sophia as the symbol of İstanbul and the conquest and stated that it is unacceptable for it to be closed to prayer.

After the speeches delivered by AGD members, Firas Qazzaz, the muezzin of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, appeared on the platform established by the AGD, and recited the adhan (call to prayer). Following the adhan, Seccad Mustafa lead the morning prayer.

The Hagia Sophia Museum was first dedicated as an Orthodox patriarchal basilica in the year 360. Until 1453 it served as the Greek Patriarchal cathedral of Constantinople, as the city was then named.

Following the city's conquest by the Ottoman Empire, the building was turned into a mosque in 1453 and remained a mosque until 1931, when it was closed to the public for four years. It was reopened by the Turkish republican authorities in 1935 as a museum.

Nationalist Turks believe that barring worship at Hagia Sophia is an affront against Sultan Mehmet, who designated it as a mosque and who, like other Ottoman leaders, served as caliph to the Islamic world.

There have been claims that Hagia Sophia will be reopened as a mosque in the run up to the general election on June 7 to boost support for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) among religious Turks.

Istanbul - Hundreds of Turkish 'Islamist' call for Hagia Sophia to be converted into mosque.

Original look of the Hagia Sophia before the Muslims stole it.

Istanbul - Hundreds of Turkish 'Islamist' call for Hagia Sophia to be converted into mosque. (HD).

Hundreds of people demanded that the historic Istanbul Hagia Sophia museum be converted into a mosque during a rally in Istanbul on May 24.

People gathered outside Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia, in the historical Sultanahmet district, with some carrying signs that read: “Hagia Sophia needs to be reopened as a mosque,” and “Let our lives be sacrificed for Islam.”

The protest was led by many Turkish nongovernmental organizations, including the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (İHH).

Designed as a Christian basilica in the sixth century by Anthemios of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus, Hagia Sophia is now a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Hagia Sophia remained a center of Orthodox Christianity until 1453, when the city was conquered by Ottoman Turks under Sultan Mehmed II, known as the Conqueror of Istanbul. After 916 years of service as a church, he ordered Hagia Sophia to become a “victory mosque,” symbolizing the Muslim conquest. The mosaics of the church were covered with plaster and were successfully restored in the 20th century.

Hagia Sophia was used as a mosque for 482 years. Following the Ottoman Empire’s collapse, it was converted into a museum by republican officials in 1935. Hmmmm.....Erdogan unraveling Attaturk's legacy stone by stone.

IHH   Turkey - ISIL testimony alleges involvement of Istanbul charity and heroin use.

More on the IHH Can be read here.

'Islamist' Turkey reclaiming the Hagia Sophia? First Quran reading in 85 years inside Hagia Sophia.

The Hagia Sofhia as it was originally, the Muslims did not build that, just stole it.

'Islamist' Turkey reclaiming the Hagia Sophia? First Quran reading in 85 years inside Hagia Sophia. (AA).

A Muslim cleric has for the first time in 85 years recited the Quran in the Hagia Sophia, the world famous landmark of Istanbul which is now a museum after serving as a church and a mosque, reports said Saturday.

The Hagia Sophia was turned into a museum accessible to all by the secular founders of modern Turkey in the 1930s and secular Turks are wary of any moves to re-Islamise the building.

A passage from the Quran, the holy scripture of Islam, was recited late Friday at a ceremony in the Hagia Sophia to mark the opening of a new exhibition "Love of the Prophet."

It was read by Ali Tel, imam at the Ahmet Hamdi Akseki Mosque in Ankara, the official Anatolia news agency said.

The ceremony was attended by top Turkish officials including the head of the country's religious affairs agency Diyanet, Mehmet Gormez.

Anatolia said it was the first recitation of the holy Quran in the Hagia Sophia for 85 years.


The magnificent edifice was constructed in the sixth century as a church in the Christian Byzantine Empire and was the seat of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the former name of Istanbul.

When Ottoman forces under Mehmet II conquered the city in 1453 he ordered the immediate conversion of the Hagia Sophia into a mosque. Islamic minarets were built around its Byzantine dome.

It served as a mosque until after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire when in the mid-1930s the authorities of the new Turkish state under secular leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk ordered it to become a museum for all.

But under the rule of the Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP), co-founded by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan which came to power in 2002, there have been noises about reconverting the Hagia Sophia into a mosque.

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc caused a furore in November 2013 when he indicated that he hoped to change the status of the Hagia Sophia, saying it looked "sad" but hopefully would be "smiling again soon".

Greece reacted furiously at the time, saying such statements "are offending the religious feeling of millions of Christians."  Hmmmm....Undoing everything Ataturk accomplished step by step, that's Erdogan's 'Mission from God', Notice they choose the 'Orthodox Good Friday' to read from the Qoran.

Pope Francis may pray inside Istanbul's Hagia Sophia, one of Christendom's greatest cathedrals.

Hagia Sophia Cathedral before the Muslim invasion

Pope Francis may pray inside Istanbul's Hagia Sophia, one of Christendom's greatest cathedrals.(Bugun).

Officials said religious tolerance and fighting extremism would be high on the agenda in Ankara on Friday when Francis meets President Tayyip Erdogan and Mehmet Gormez, the top cleric in the majority-Muslim but constitutionally secular nation.

Turkey is sheltering close to 2 million refugees from Syria. For some of the thousands of Christians among them, that is a reversal of their ancestors' flight a century ago, when World War One and the emergence of the post-Ottoman Turkish state made Turkey a hostile land.(Armenian Genocide).

In Istanbul, the leader of the world's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics will meet Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, spiritual head of 300 million Orthodox Christians worldwide, as part of an effort to forge closer ties between the ancient western and eastern wings of Christianity.

They will issue joint calls on human rights and religious freedom as well as on the fear that Christianity is disappearing from its birthplaces in the Middle East, according to Rev. Dositheos Anagnostopoulos, spokesman for the patriarchate.

Francis said on Tuesday that while it was "almost impossible" to have a dialogue with Islamic State insurgents, the door should not be shut.

The Turkey trip will be the third by Francis to a mainly Muslim nation, after Jordan and Albania. Anagnostopoulos said Francis may pray inside Istanbul's Hagia Sophia, one of Christendom's greatest cathedrals for 900 years, one of Islam's greatest mosques for another 500, and now officially a museum.

Such a move could upset some Muslims in Turkey, who would like to see it revived as a mosque.

The "War on Christianity" -Hagia Sophia museum’s mosque status not to lead to Christian-Islamic confrontation.

It's A CHRISTIAN BUILD CHURCH!

The "War on Christianity" - Hagia Sophia museum’s mosque status not to lead to Christian-Islamic confrontation. (TAZ).

Hagia Sophia museum's operation as a mosque should not be regarded as a confrontation between Muslims and Christians, Turkish Minister of Religious Affairs Mehmet Germez said, Anadolu agency reported on July 15.

He said the Hagia Sophia museum's functioning as a mosque should not be viewed solely from the perspective of Islam. Germez noted that hundreds of Islamic sanctities misused today in several Balkan countries.

Earlier it was reported that the Deputy Chairman of the Turkish oppositional Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), Yusuf Halacoglu said in November, 2013 that the Hagia Sophia museum in Istanbul should function as a mosque.

He said there are forces in Turkey, who do not want Hagia Sophia's functioning as a mosque.

Earlier it was reported that Halacoglu made a proposal to bring back the mosque status to the Hagia Sophia museum.

An appeal was sent to the Turkish parliament to restore the museum's mosque status.

Earlier, another oppositional party of Turkey - Great Union Party (BBP) - also offered to return to the mosque status to the Hagia Sophia museum.

Tens of thousands Turkish 'Islamist' demand Istanbul's Hagia Sophia be turned into a mosque.

Tens of thousands Turkish 'Islamist' demand Istanbul's Hagia Sophia be turned into a mosque. HT: TIP.

Tens of thousands of Turkish Islamists held a triumphalist gathering outside Istanbul's Hagia Sophia museum on Saturday.

Originally built as a cathedral in 537 by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, it was converted into a mosque by the Ottomans following the fall of Constantinople in 1453.

The former religious site was re-opened as a museum in 1935. The Islamists who prayed at the site on Saturday did so with the hope that it would be converted back into a mosque by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The protest also coincided with the anniversary of the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople on May 29, 1453, an event for which Erdogan has encouraged the celebration.

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the modern Turkish republic, converted the massive structure into a museum in 1935.

For Turkey's Islamists, Hagia Sophia serves as a symbol of Islam's triumph over Christianity.

"Ayasofya is a symbol for the Islamic world and the symbol of Istanbul's conquest. Without it, the conquest is incomplete, we have failed to honor Sultan Mehmet's trust," Reuters quoted Salih Turan, head of the Anatolia Youth Association, as saying. The association claims it has collected 15 million signatures asking for Hagia Sophia to reopen as a mosque.Read the full story here.

Related: The AKP Hagia Sophia Campaign

Turkish Parliament Considers Converting Hagia Sophia to Mosque.

  Artist depiction Hagia Sophia before the Islamic conquest.

Turkish Parliament Considers Converting Hagia Sophia to Mosque.(Aina).By Luke Montgomery.In a surpise move, a commission of the Turkish Parliament last week accepted a petition from a Turkish citizen to reopen the Hagia Sophia as a place of worship for Muslims.
The center of Orthodox worship in the Eastern Roman Empire for over a thousand years (360 -- 1453), the Church of the Holy Wisdom, more commonly known by its Greek name Hagia Sophia, has been a museum since 1935 and draws millions of visitors every year. After the conquest of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453, it became the first imperial mosque of the Ottoman Empire, and the call to prayer sounded from its minarets for almost 500 years.
The decision by Atatürk's government to designate the building as a museum was an obvious attempt at reconciliation between the Turks and Greeks, who had been feuding for centuries.
The fact that the Turkish Parliament would consider opening the building for use as a mosque may reopen old wounds. The former church still prominently features six gigantic green medallions with the names of Allah, the Prophet, and Islam's first four caliphs.
Conservative groups in Turkey, such as the Anatolia Youth Association, have been conducting campaigns to have the structure rededicated to Islamic worship. It's conversion to a museum has long been viewed as a betrayal of the Ottoman Empire by Muslim groups.
One such group conducted a survey in the Turkish city of Kocaeli, just east of Istanbul, and found that 97.8% of the respondents supported reopening the Hagia Sophia as a mosque. This survey was also submitted to Parliament. In the following days, the Parliamentary Petition Commission received 15 more petitions asking that the structure be redesignated as a mosque.
The decision by the parliamentary commission caused an explosion on social media like Twitter. A twitter account called Islamic Brotherhood tweeted, "We want to do our prayers in the Hagia Sophia!" The tweet had a link to a picture of the building and a caption that read, "We don't need a ticket to enter; our ritual washing should be enough to get us in."
Another person said, "Oh Hagia Sophia, how You must miss the call to prayer and we miss performing our prayers inside You."
These calls for the former church to be reopened as a mosque echo statements made last year by Bulent Arinc, the 22nd House Speaker of the Turkish Parliament, about a church in Trabzon that, like the Hagia Sophia, had served as a mosque before being converted to a museum.
"The Hagia Sophia Mosque in Trabzon has, unfortunately and for no good reason, been used as a museum until now. This sort of thing won't happen as long as we are in power. Mosques are for worshipping Allah. No law can ever change its original purpose. If Allah is willing, we will all together reopen the Trabzon Hagia Sophia as soon as possible. If Allah is willing, we will go to Trabzon. We will line up for prayer and say 'Allahu Ekber' in the mosque of our ancestors."
The neo-Ottoman aspriations of Islamist politicans like Arınç are no secret. Statements like the preceeding are standard fare in Turkey's cultural war.Hmmmm...“Thank God Almighty,” said Mr. Erdogan in 1994, when he was the mayor of Istanbul. “I am a servant of Shariah.” .Read the full story here.


Related:    Greatest Church Soon To Be Mega Mosque?

Christianity's Historic church St. Sophia in Nicaea, becomes mosque of Nicaea.

Friday prayers will be held at Hagia Sophia: Turkish conservative group

   17 Th Century painting of how the Hagia Sophia probably looked before the Turkish invasion




Friday prayers will be held at Hagia Sophia: Turkish conservative group.(HD).A group calling itself the Anatolian Youth has announced that it is planning to hold Friday prayers in the square outside the Hagia Sophia, and is awaiting the day when prayers will be held inside the museum, Doğan news agency has reported. The group's members gathered at Hagia Sophia Square today to hold a press conference, saying the event was planned in accordance with the 559th anniversary of the Ottoman capture of Istanbul. The head of Anatolian Youth, Salih Turhan, told members of the press that Hagia Sophia had been turned into a mosque by the Ottoman ruler Fatih Sultan. "Fatih Sultan held his first Friday prayers here in the Hagia Sophia. Hagia Sophia awaits the day it will be reopened for prayers." The group said they would continue campaigning to turn the museum into a mosque.Hmmmm......Erdogan: "The mosques are our barracks, the domes our helmets, the minarets our bayonets and the faithful our soldiers..."Read the full story here.


The church of Hagia Sophia (literally "Holy Wisdom") in Constantinople, now Istanbul, was first dedicated in 360 by Emperor Constantius, son of the city's founder, Emperor Constantine. Hagia Sophia served as the cathedra, or bishop's seat, of the city. Originally called Megale Ekklesia (Great Church), the name Hagia Sophia came into use around 430. The first church structure was destroyed during riots in 404; the second church, built and dedicated in 415 by Emperor Theodosius II, burned down during the Nika revolt of 532, which caused vast destruction and death throughout the city.Immediately after the riots, Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–65) ordered the church rebuilt. The new building was inaugurated on December 27, 537. Architects Anthemios of Tralles and Isidoros of Miletos most likely were influenced by the mathematical theories of Archimedes (ca. 287–212 B.

The vast, airy naos, or central basilica, with its technically complex system of vaults and semi-domes, culminates in a high central dome with a diameter of over 101 feet (31 meters) and a height of 160 feet (48.5 meters). This central dome was often interpreted by contemporary commentators as the dome of heaven itself. Its weight is carried by four great arches, which rest on a series of tympana and semi-domes, which in turn rest on smaller semi-domes and arcades. This complicated structural system was prone to problems: the first dome collapsed in 558, to be rebuilt in 562 to a greater height. Earthquakes and earth subsidence have also taken their toll on the building over the centuries, although the surviving main structure is essentially that which was first built between 532 and 537. The interior of Hagia Sophia was paneled with costly colored marbles and ornamental stone inlays. Decorative marble columns were taken from ancient buildings and reused to support the interior arcades. Initially, the upper part of the building was minimally decorated in gold with a huge cross in a medallion at the summit of the dome. After the period of Iconoclasm (726–843), new figural mosaics were added, some of which have survived to the present day.

After Mehmed II's conquest of the city in 1453, Hagia Sophia was converted to a mosque (Ayasofya Camii), which it remained until the fall of the Ottoman empire in the early twentieth century. A view of Hagia Sophia during the conquest is conveyed in a woodcut by Pieter Coecke van Aelst depicting the procession of Süleyman the Magnificent through the Hippodrome (28.85.7a). During this period, minarets were built around the perimeter of the building complex, Christian mosaic icons were covered with whitewash, and exterior buttresses were added for structural support. In 1934, the Turkish government secularized the building, converting it into a museum, and the original mosaics were restored.Read and see more about this marvel of CHRISTIAN architecture here.