International Group Calls for Lift of the 557 year Blockade on Agia Sophia, The Great Christian Church in Istanbul, Turkey

 –“End the Blockade of Orthodox Christians – Let Us Pray”

 –Mass Gathering and Prayer in Holy Site on September 17, 2010

 ———————-

Washington, D.C., August 6, 2010–Chris Spirou, President of the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia,” www.freeagiasophia.org, has asked Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to return the ancient Basilica of Agia Sophia, the seat of Orthodox Christianity for over one thousand years, located in Istanbul, Turkey, to a functioning Orthodox Church.

 Agia Sophia, named for God’s holy wisdom, was violently and illegally seized by the Ottoman Turkish forces during the conquest of Constantinople in 1453. It was then converted into a mosque, its religious icons, frescos, and holy sites desecrated, and is currently a state-run museum.

 “Lift the 557 year blockade on the holy Church of Agia Sophia – so we may pray, in it” said Mr. Chris Spirou, president of the International Congregation.

 “Mr. Prime Minister – you and your government have it in your power to do the right thing, to undo the sacrilege of the seizure of our holy church, Agia Sophia, and return it to Orthodox Christians, which was and remains the center of worldwide Orthodox Christianity, just as the Vatican represents the locus of worldwide Catholicism.”

 A representative delegation of the International Congregation will travel to Istanbul on September 17, 2010 to conduct the first holy liturgy in the Basilica after 557 years. The Congregation has invited Prime Minister Erdogan, leaders of the Muslim faith, and people of all faiths to join them to pray for peace.

 Representing the International Congregation is Lanny J. Davis, attorney at the legal/media/legislative strategies firm of Lanny J. Davis & Associates and former Special Counsel to President Clinton in 1996-98 and member of President Bush’s Civil Liberties and Privacy Oversight Board in 2006-07.

 In a letter written to Prime Minister Erdogan dated June 28, 2010 and copied to Turkish Ambassador to the U.S., Namik Tan, Davis said, “I am convinced that you have a strong inner sense of right and wrong—and of doing the right thing, regardless of political consequences.”

 Davis said, “I do believe there is no question that it is the right thing to do, to restore Agia Sophia, the holy place and the heart and soul of the Orthodox Christian religion, to its original status as a Christian Church.”

 Further, he asked the Prime Minister to meet with him to “find a resolution of this issue in a way that would be welcomed by you and your Government as the right thing to do.”

 The leadership of the Congregation will also hold a worldwide press conference at the beginning of September prior to the delegation’s trip to Istanbul to explain their efforts to date and their hope that Prime Minister Erdogan, leaders of the Turkish government and Islamic leaders from Turkey and around the world, will join them on September 17 to pray at the holy site of Agia Sophia.

Davis

June 10, 2010

When several years ago I first met Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and had the pleasure to have two private conversations with him, he immediately struck me as the ultimate “purple” leader. As The Washington Post wrote recently, “Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party has religious roots, but it also draws conservative entrepreneurs and liberals with its free-market policies.”

But Erdogan has recently appeared to be hostile not only to Israel, but also to the U.S. — flirting with Holocaust denier Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and undermining (apparently unintentionally) the world’s efforts to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

Concerning the recent flotilla incident, there is no question Israel made serious mistakes in planning, intelligence and execution and the onboard deaths were horrible and tragic. But Erdogan’s harsh criticism struck many people, even friends of Turkey, as way over the top, ignoring basic facts.

So I ask Prime Minister Erdogan, who I still believe has a good heart and wants to do the right thing, to assume that he faced the following purely hypothetical facts as leader of his country:

Suppose for years Greek Cypriots were shooting rockets intentionally aimed at Turkish Cypriot civilians, causing many deaths and injuries, and as a result, Turkey instituted a blockade, insisting on searching all ships for armaments;

Suppose that you learned there was a flotilla of ships leaving Greek ports destined for Greek Cyprus, called the “Free Turkish Cyprus” flotilla and sponsored by a Greek organization with leaders hostile to Turkey and with associations with an anti-Turkish terrorist organization;

Suppose that after you ordered that these ships be inspected for armaments and the leaders of the ships refused, your soldiers boarding the ships were accosted by people with pipes, iron bars and long knives, putting the Turkish soldiers in mortal danger; and your soldiers, seeing their brothers and sisters in such danger, reacted instinctively by shooting live ammunition, tragically killing nine people, some of whom were members of the same organization linked to an anti-Turkish terrorist organization.

Mr. Prime Minister: If all of the above were true — and in fact, each of the above “hypotheticals” precisely tracks the circumstances Israel faced — what would you and Turkey have done?

Now, you and your Turkish colleagues may argue that the big difference is that Israel is “occupying” the West Bank. Oh, really? An awful lot of Greeks and much of the rest of the world believe, rightly or wrongly, that Turkey is occupying one-half of Cyprus after a military invasion years ago. I know you and your fellow Turks feel that Turkey intervened to protect Turk Cypriots.

A lot of Turkish Muslims somehow believe that there is religious sacrilege by Israel in “occupying” holy sites in East Jerusalem and on the West Bank. Oh, really? Tens of millions of Orthodox Christians throughout Russia, Greece, Romania and Eastern Europe would remind you that in 1453, the Turks not only occupied the holiest site in all of Orthodox Christendom — the Holy Agia Sophia Church, which is to Orthodox Christians what St. Peter’s and the Vatican are to Roman Catholics — but also continue to this day to desecrate that site, which Turkey retains as a museum, with the priceless religious frescoes obscenely painted over and icons smashed, and refuse to allow the restoration of Agia Sophia to the Orthodox Church.

Compare what the Turks did to Agia Sophia to Israel’s protection of the sanctity and guaranteed absolute access by Muslims to the holy sites on the ancient Temple Mount of the al-Aqsa Mosque facing Mecca and the Dome of the Rock ever since Israel regained control over Jerusalem in 1967. These are facts, Mr. Prime Minister. Do you deny them?

I am hoping that once you discover the entire truth about the risks to Israel’s safety and security represented by these Gaza-bound ships, and recognize that Turkey’s history and role in being an occupier is not free from criticism, you will find a way to re-engage your prior friendship and relationship with Israel, especially with regard to the peace process, and open discussions with Israeli leaders, who I know appreciated the constructive role you have played over the years.

Even if publicly you cannot do this, I am hoping that you can privately — which would be consistent with my impression of the man I came to know and admire after just two meetings. I can only hope and pray that you do so, and that the world doesn’t lose you as a peacemaker in the Middle East and elsewhere.

This piece appears in Mr. Davis’s regular weekly column in The Hill “Purple Nation” and “The Daily Caller” an online political website.

Mr. Davis, with his own Washington firm, Lanny J. Davis & Associates PLLC, served as special counsel to President Bill Clinton from 1996-98 and was a member of President George W. Bush’s Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board in 2006-07. He is the author of Scandal: How “Gotcha” Politics Is Destroying America (Palgrave MacMillan 2006).

Anthimos

Remarks made by The Honorable Chris Spirou, President of the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia,” during a joint press conference with His All Holiness, The Metropolitan of Thessaloniki, Anthimos.

Holy Metropolis of Thessaloniki, May 7^th, 12:30 p.m.

Your All Holiness, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The “International Congregation of Agia Sophia” was founded in the United States of America in 2005.  It is recognized as a non for profit organization.  The International Congregation of Agia Sophia is active in Europe as the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia,” based in Luxembourg.  And as the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia – Greece,” based in Athens.

The mission of the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia” and the Free Agia Sophia Council of the United States and Europe is to restore Agia Sophia as a functioning Church of the Christian faith, as the Cathedral of Orthodox Christianity, just as it was when it was consecrated before the fall of Constantinople in 1453.

Members of the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia” are tens of thousands Greek Orthodox Christians around the world and thousands of other Christians, as well as individuals of different ethnic and religious background.

We the members of the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia” consider ourselves to be the decedents of the faithful who were inside the Great Church of Agia Sophia the day it was conquered by the Ottoman Turks on May 29^th, 1453.

For us, the members of the International Congregation of Agia Sophia, it is a fundamental principle that no government has or should have the right to determine the use of Holy Sites, to appoint religious leaders and determine their religious responsibilities.

“The International Congregation of Agia Sophia” has already notified the Prime Minister of Turkey, Mr. Tayip Erdogan of its decision to be in Istanbul on September 17^th, 2010 and conduct Holy liturgy Services in Agia Sophia.

Thessaloniki is a special historical point as it relates to the Great Church of Agia Sophia in Istanbul.  As you all well know, the conqueror of Constantinople, Mohamed II the Conqueror, converted Agia Sophia from a Christian Church to a Mosque to serve his personal religious needs.

As far as we know today, Mohamed II did so because his mother was a Christian and he was also a crypto Christian.  The Conqueror converted Agia Sophia into a Mosque in order to protect the Great Church from other Ottoman leaders who were, fanatical anti Christians, and who took part in the conquest of Constantinople.

The Conqueror offered his mother the nearby Christian Church, of Agia Irene at Top kapi, for her Christian religious needs.  In order for his mother to pray in Agia Sophia, he made his mother Sultan of Thessaloniki and issued her by decree giving her the “little” Agia Sophia, here in Thessaloniki.

The “Little” Agia Sophia, as you know, is the Cathedral of the Metropolis of Thessaloniki, as it was throughout Byzantium.

Under the prism of these historical facts, the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia” asked His All Holiness Anthimos, the Metropolitan of Thessaloniki, for his blessings for our efforts and requested that he conduct Holy Liturgy in “Little” Agia Sophia.

His All Holiness kindly agreed and for this we sincerely thank him.  On Sunday, May  23^rd 2010, the day we celebrate God’s Holly Wisdom, His All Holiness will conduct  Holy Liturgy Service in “Little” Agia Sophia, in the presence of members of the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia”.

Thus, from the “Little” free Agia Sophia we will be able to say…

Hronia Polla enslaved Mother, Agia Sophia…

We will be with you September 17^th!

On Saturday February 27th / March 13^th 2010, His Beatitude, the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III, met with Mr. Chris Spirou, former Chairman of the New Hampshire State Democratic Party in the United States of America, and President of the Hellenic American Union in Athens. Mr. Spirou is also President of the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia,” based in the United States. The mission of this world-wide movement is to restore the great church of Agia Sophia located in Istanbul (Constantinople), Turkey, as a functioning church of the Orthodox Christian Faith. 

Mr. Spirou was accompanied by the Deputy Administrator of the non-governmental organization (N.G.O.) “Romiosini”, Dr. Aikaterini Diamantopoulou. Also present at the meeting was Dr. Fotios Demitrakopoulos, Professor of Byzantine Literature of the University of Athens. 

His Beatitude, the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III discussed with Mr. Chris Spirou the present condition of the Holy Cross Monastery and its Library, as well as the “Holy Cross Theological Seminary”, which functioned between 1845 and 1909, and the prospects for its restoration and re-opening. 

Μinared

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Agia Sophia

September 16, 2009

His Excellency Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

Prime Minister, Republic of Turkey

Ankara, Turkey

Your Excellency Prime Minister Erdoğan,

I am writing to inform you that our organizations, “The International Congregation of Agia Sophia,” the “Free Agia Sophia Council of America,” and the “Free Agia Sophia Council of Europe,” and our members from throughout the world will visit Istanbul in September of 2010. The purpose of our Congregation’s visit is to conduct Holy Liturgy Services in the Holy Church of Agia Sophia, the Great Church of Christianity and the Symbol of the Orthodox Christian Faith until the Holy Church’s seizure by the Ottoman Turkish forces on May 29, 1453.

We, the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia,” are the religious heirs to the Great Church and the Holy Basilica’s Congregation. We are the Congregation of the Holy Site where for nearly a thousand (1000) years (537 to 1453 AD) our forefathers sang the praise and sought the blessings of God Almighty.

Mister Prime Minister, five hundred fifty six (556) years have passed since the occupation of our church: more than five centuries of occupation, desecration, sacrilege, abuse, neglect, and disrespect— actions which are neither practiced nor condoned by the religion of Islam. Years and actions that a world which claims to be civilized should no longer accept or tolerate.

Prime Minister Erdoğan, on Friday, September 17, 2010, our Congregation will come to Istanbul to conduct Holy Liturgy Services in the Church of Agia Sophia. September 17 is the day the Orthodox Christian religion celebrates the holy feast day of Sophia, Faith, Hope and Love.

As the political leader of the State in which our Holy Church, Agia Sophia, is located, we invite you to join us in what shall be a “Pilgrimage to the Holy Church of Agia Sophia,” similar to the pilgrimages in which our religious ancestors took part for 916 years before the Great Church was violently taken from our Christian forbearers.

Prime Minister Erdoğan, we shall invite on the same date, September 17, 2010, other major religious and political leaders of the world to join us in what will be the first International Pilgrimage and Prayer in 556 years to be held in the Holy Church of Agia Sophia, one of the oldest Christian churches in the world still standing.

We expect the International Gathering and Prayer in the Holy Church of Agia Sophia to serve as the focal point for an International Summit of Peace and Prayer under the golden dome of the Holy Church of Agia Sophia, the dome under which the Great Schism of the Eastern and Western Christian Churches took place in 1057 AD. Under that same dome on September 17, 2010, not only Christians but people of all faiths will be invited to come together. Where the great separation occurred, the seeds of unity and peace shall be planted.

We believe the International Pilgrimage and Prayer in the Holy Church of Agia Sophia provides a unique opportunity for the political and religious leaders of the world to gather and to unite in peace and prayer.

What better place than in the Holy Church of Agia Sophia, God’s Holy Wisdom, for the world’s leaders to pledge that they shall not participate in wars “in the name of the Lord,” shall not incite religious hatred, shall not pit one religion against another, and shall not use political and military might to deny a human being his or her most fundamental rights, those of freedom of expression and of religious worship.

Prime Minister Erdoğan, the United Nations’ Commission on Human Rights, on April 24, 2003 adopted resolution 2003/54 entitled “Elimination of All Forms of Religious Intolerance.” The resolution carries this mandate:

“The Commission on Human Rights, urges states to recognize the right of all persons to worship or assemble in connection with a religion or belief and to establish and maintain places for these purposes.”

Mister Prime Minister, please allow me a historical note which refers to the identity and the Holiness of the Mother Church of Christianity, Agia Sophia. Mr. Prime Minister, in 537 AD, the Christian Roman Emperor Justinian completed the construction of the Holy Church of Agia Sophia. On December 23, of the same year, the Christian Patriarch of Constantinople Menas, consecrated the Great Church and named it Agia Sophia, “God’s Holy Wisdom”.

It is said that upon entering the majestic Cathedral, the day of its Consecration, Emperor Justinian exclaimed: “Solomon, I have outdone thee!” comparing the Holy Church of Agia Sophia to the Great Temple built by King Solomon in Jerusalem.

Prime Minister Erdoğan, nothing like the Holy Church of Agia Sophia had been built in the Orthodox Christian world before or has been built since. Nothing!

The Holy Church of Agia Sophia, as it stands today was conceived, was built, was consecrated, and functioned as the Great Church of Christianity, the Basilica and the Symbol of the Orthodox Christian religion for nearly a thousand (1000) years. In the hearts, in the minds, and in the souls of the Christian faithful around the world, and in particular for Orthodox Christians, the Holy Church of Agia Sophia has never ceased to be their, our holy place and the Mother Church of all Christian Churches.

Prime Minister  Erdoğan, on May 29, 1453, the Ottoman political and military leaders of that time violently seized the Holy Church of Agia Sophia, killed the faithful who were praying inside, and beheaded their religious representatives.

Following it’s seizure, the Ottoman political and military leaders converted the Holy Church of Agia Sophia to a mosque, an action that symbolically reinforced the dominance of the ruling Ottoman Sultans, but one that blatantly violated the Islamic precept of respect for the Religions of the Book.

In the 20^th century the Holy Church of  Agia Sophia was converted into a so-called “museum,” which to this day serves as an exhibition center for cheap artifacts, household consumer goods, musical concerts and fashion shows. In other words, Prime Minister Erdogan, today, the Holy Church of Agia Sophia serves as an international tourist and trade attraction and a senseless bazaar site for the promotion of material goods, concerts and street vendor artifact sales, trampling on the sensibilities of the faithful.

Mister Prime Minister, the International Congregation of the Holy Church of Agia Sophia, and the thousands who are its members throughout the world, believe that no government should participate in or condone actions which abuse, demean, or violate religious beliefs, or deface holy figures.

No government, Mr. Prime Minister, in the 21^st century should dare to believe that it has the power to interfere with religion,to anoint priests and to appoint religious leaders. And no government should interfere with the free expression of religious beliefs, intimidate or deprive the faithful of any religion of the right to individual or collective prayer.

And most certainly, Prime Minister Erdoğan, no government has the right or should have the right to deny the faithful of the religious use of such a long- established Holy site, as the Great Church of Agia Sophia. George W. Bush, the former President of the United States, put it succinctly when in February 2001 he declared: “The days of discrimination against religious institutions simply because they are religious, must come to an end.”

Prime Minister Erdoğan, we look forward to having you join us on September 17, 2010, when we gather in Holy Prayer in the Holy Church of Agia Sophia. Together on that day, September 17, 2010, we can put an end to years of anti-religious practices, which are in violation of the fundamental laws of nature and civilization. Practices which offend United Nations and Council of Europe Treaties and Resolutions on Human Rights and Religious Freedoms to which your State is a party, and are contrary to the Acquis Communautaire of the European Union, of which your State aspires to become a part.

The world watches as you personally endeavor to bring democracy and social justice to your country. Joining us in the Holy Church of Agia Sophia, on Friday, September 17, 2010 will fully justify the European Union’s designation of the historic City of Istanbul as the Cultural Capital of Europe for 2010.

Finally, Prime Minister Erdoğan, it is our intent formally to petition the new leaderships of the European Commission and the European Parliament, when they begin their tenure, to designate the “Pilgrimage to the Holy Church of Agia Sophia 2010” as an integral part of the festivities celebrating Istanbul as “City: Cultural Capital of Europe 2010.”

We count on your understanding of the power of faith as well as on your commitment to basic human rights and the free expression, and look forward to your support.

Sincerely,

Chris Spirou, President

International Congregation of Agia Sophia

Cc:       -H. E Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the United Nations

-H.E José Manuel Durão Barroso, President of the European Commission

-H.E Samuel Žbogar, Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe

-H.E. Hillary Rodham Clinton, United States Secretary of State

-H.E. Nabi Sensoy, Turkish Ambassador to the United States

-H.E Oguz Celikkol, Turkish Ambassador to Greece

Via Overnight Express, Email and Fax.

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Athens, July 9^th, 2009

φωτεινη δαρρα αγια ειρηνη

Chris Spirou, President of the “Free Agia Sophia Council of America”and the “Free Agia Sophia Council of Europe” today condemned the decision of the Government of Turkey to authorize a popular music concert inside the Orthodox Christian Church of AGIA IRENE in Istanbul, Turkey.

At a packed news conference in Athens, Greece, President Spirou issued the following statement:

Statement by the Honorable Chris Spirou, President of the Free Agia Sophia Council of America and the Free Agia Sophia Council of Europe

“On June 13^th, 2009, the Government of Turkey, under the banner “The City – Cultural Capital of Europe 2010,” held a popular musical concert inside one of the holiest Christian sites, the historic Christian Church of AGIA IRENE in Istanbul.

On behalf of the “Free Agia Sophia Council of America” and the “Free Agia Sophia Council of Europe,” which I represent and on behalf of all people who believe in and respect religious rights, equality and human rights, I wish to express my indignation with the decision of the Government of Turkey to showcase its new cultural image by continuing to violate the Holy Christian Church of AGIA IRENE.

AGIA IRENE, the Holy Church of Christianity for over 1500 years, has been converted recently by 21^st century “intellectuals” into a concert hall, a fashion exhibition site and now into the Beacon of Turkey’s modern cultural image.

The use of AGIA IRENE for purposes other than those which it was consecrated, prayer and liturgy, at a time when prayer and liturgy are forbidden within the Church, represents an anachronistic Ottoman behavior in its worse manifestation.

Authorizing popular (not religious) musical concerts inside an Orthodox Christian Church and in fact a historic Church, such as AGIA IRENE, offends not only the Orthodox Christians of the world, but all people who believe that the 21^st century cannot be ushered in with 15^th century barbaric behavior disguised as a celebration of cultural heritage.

The Turkish Government’s obsession to violate and humiliate the Orthodox Christian Faith, ridiculing the Holy Church of AGIA IRENE by holding a popular musical concert inside it, but also by forcing the Patriarch of the Orthodox Church to be present, reminds us of Ottoman Turkish tactics  which have been used for 557 years.

If the Turkish Government continues to believe that it has the right to violate Agia Sophia, the Mother Church of all Christian Churches, that it has the right to violate other Holy sites under its occupation by conducting musical concerts and fashion shows inside them, and in offending the Christian faith in its entirety, then its new cultural image has been warped.

Would the Turkish Government ever dare to conduct a popular musical concert inside a Roman Catholic Church under its control and invite the Pope to attend?

Would the Turkish Government ever dare to conduct a popular musical concert inside a Mosque and oblige the Grand Imam of Turkey to attend?

Would the Turkish Government ever dare to conduct a popular musical concert inside a Synagogue under its control and force the chief Rabbi of Turkey to be present?

What century are we living in? What kind of civilized behavior does the violation of a Holy Church express? Through this sacrilege, what kind of example do we give the children of Europe and the world of our cultural identity in the 21^st century?

I call on the government of Turkey to stop its attempts to force Ottoman values which are contrary to the values of Europe and to stop using occupation hostages to promote its new, peculiar, cultural rebirth.

The Turkish Government must understand once and for all that the basis of Western and in fact European culture is the respect of human rights.  Violating and humiliating religions, religious symbols and church leaders offends fundamental human rights and is alien to the values, to the principles and to the culture of Europe.

“The City” (Istanbul), and for that matter any city in a country which violates human rights and forbids free religious expression, cannot under any circumstances be the declared “The City-cultural capital of Europe 2010”.

You should be reminded that in 1998 the Ottoman Turks sentenced the current Prime Minister of Turkey Tayip Erdogan to 10 months in jail for his religious beliefs when he served as Mayor of the City of Istanbul (today’s designated “The City Cultural Capital of Europe 2010”

Moreover in 2008, by a margin of one vote, Prime Minister Erdogan escaped losing his position as Prime Minister of Turkey. Turkey’s Constitutional Court, by a 6 to 5 vote refused to remove Mr. Erdogan from the office of Prime Minister. The only crime that Prime Minister Erdogan once again was accused of committing is defending his Islamic religious beliefs.

A few days go I returned from the United States where the Free Agia Sophia Council of America is based. I wish to inform you that our Council voted unanimously to go to Istanbul and to conduct Holy Liturgy and International Prayer in the Holy Church of Agia Sophia in 2010.

In the fall, we will inform the Turkish Government and the general public of the specific occasion and date we will conduct the Liturgy and International Prayer in Agia Sophia.

We are certain that our decision will be welcomed and supported by the officials of the Government of Turkey.

Government officials who see fit to authorize popular musical concerts inside Holy Churches should have no problem accepting and actively participating in a religious activity such as Liturgy and Prayer held in the Mother Church of Christianity, Agia Sophia.

What better cultural and human rights activity can justify the declaration of Istanbul as the Cultural Capital of Europe 2010 if not for the singing inside Agia Sophia of the Prayer “Free at last, Oh Lord, I’m Free at last!”

Nicolas Sarkozy

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Pope Benedict

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Recep Tayyip Erdogan

FREE AGIA SOPHIA COUNCIL OF AMERICA

Chris Spirou, President
His Excellency
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Ρrime Minister
Republic of Turkey
Ankara, Turkey

Manchester, New Hampshire July 9, 2008

Mr. Prime Minister,

As the President of the “Free Agia Sophia Council of America,” based ίn the State of
New Hampshire ίn the United States of America, and of the “Free Agia Sophia
Council of Europe,” based ίn Luxembourg, the European Union, Ι am writing to
respectfully call upon your govemment to immediately put an end to all sacreligious acts that violate the sanctity of Agia Sophia, the Mother Church of Christianity, located in Istanbul.
Mr. Prime Minister, now is the time for your country to once and for all put an end to
the uncivilized and outdated occupation practices which offend and degrade two great
religions: Christianity and Islam. The offensive and militaristic Ottoman behavior
which for 557 years continuously violates the sanctity of Agia Sophia, the Church of
God’s Ηοly Wisdom, the Church of all Churches and the Basilica of the Orthodox
Christian faith must end immediately. It is your govemment which has the legal and the moral obligation to ensure that this happens.
Ι am certain, Mr. Prime Minister, that you are fully aware of the Free Agia Sophia Council of America and the Free Agia Sophia Council of Europe and the purpose of their existence, since a high ranking official of your country’ s Embassy ίn Washington, D.C., was present when the Human Rights Caucus ofthe Congress of the United States held a Public Ηearing regarding the currentstatus of Agia Sophia οn
June 20, 2007.
Present at the Congressional Ηearing was Counselor Murat Lίitem, who listened
carefully to the testimony that Ι and other witnesses presented to the Congressional
Human Rights Caucus οn the violations Agia Sophia has been subjected to, ever since
its function as a holy Christian church of worship was forcefully halted by invading
Ottoman forces in 1453. Ι am enclosing a copy of the testimony Ι gave at the public
hearing for your reference.
Prime Minister Erdogan, it is imperative that you personally take the necessary steps
to put an end to over five centuries of continuous violations of Agia Sophia.
The Mother Church of Christianity, the Church of all Christian Churches, the symbol
of the Orthodox Christian faith, and the oldest Christian Church still standing ίn the
entire world, must be respected, must be protected, and must be preserved.
It is a shameful commentary οn the civilized world, that ίn 2008, the Church of God’s
Ηοly Wisdom has been transformed into a sanctuary for neighborhood rats, the
breeding ground and sleeping quarters for dirty street pigeons, the exhibition hall for
cheap art and commercial products and a gathering place where the obnoxious and
disrespectful behavior of tοurists is οn full display οn a daily basis.
The Ottoman military policies which have transformed one of Christianity’ s holiest
places into an intemational bazaar must come to an end now. Five hundred and fιfty
seνen years is shamefully long enough!
Ι am enclosing a few indicative photographs which speak for themselves, taken οn
June 8, 2008 by visitors, both Christian and Muslim, who visited Agia Sophia ίn “the
hope of praying to God Almighty,” if οnly ίn “secret,” just to find the Great Church ίn
total disgrace and disarray.” And indeed those are the remarks of the visitors who
took the photographs.
Mr. Prime Minister, after you read my testimony to the Congressional Human Rights
Caucus and carefully view the photos that Ι have enclosed, Ι am certain that you will
take the necessary actions to ensure that Agia Sophia is nο longer subjected to further
violations. Υou, more than anyone else in Turkey, should be sensitive to religious
rights, human rights, and respect for other people’s religious beliefs and places of
worship. Ι am sure that you consider Mecca in Saudi Arabia, St. Peter’s Cathedral in
the Vatican, the Aqsa Mosque and the Westem Wall in Jerusalem holy places of
worship sacred to all mankind. Ι certainly do. Prime Minister Erdogan, Ι would like you to know that Ι am fully aware that the conquest of Agia Sophia and the violations which the Church of God’s Holy Wisdom has endured are not the result of another religion’s animosity toward or intolerance of
Christianity. For centuries the Ottoman Conquerors led the world to believe that the
religion of Islam was responsible for the plight of Agia Sophia. Το the contrary, as a
practicing Muslim yourself, you know, that Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him)
in his Sayings (Hadiths) is perfectly clear: There shall be ΝΟ νiolations against
Christian Churches and there shall be ΝΟ disruptions of Christian priests or
Monks in the pursuit of their religious practices. And YES, Muslims shall be free
to pray inChristian churches. (Qur’an 5:82).
It is said that when Caliph Umar, the successor to Prophet Mohammed entered
Jerusalem in 638A.D, he entered on foot, not onhorseback out of respect for the Holy
City. When the Christian Patriarch of Jerusalem Patriarch Sophronius invited Caliph
Umar to pray in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Caliph refused and went to
pray in an open space which later became the site of the Aqsa Mosque. When Caliph
Umar was asked why he did not pray in the Christian Church he said that he feared
his followers would misinterpret his actions and would convert the Church into a
mosque.

Prime Minister Erdogan, as a political leader and a devout Muslim yourself, are you
aware of any historical evidence which indicates that a religious leader or leaders of
the Muslim faith have sanctioned the conversion of Agia Sophia fYoma Christian
Church to a Mosque? “The Agia Sophia Mosque.” And do you have any evidence
which indicates that a religious leader or leaders of the Muslim faith have sanctioned
the conversion of the ”Agia Sophia Mosque” into the “Agia Sophia Muzesi?”
Μy knowledge of history may be incomplete, but Ι have yet to find any such
evidence. One thing is abundantly clear: The thought process, the attitudes and the
political practices which conceive of and foster policies of religious intolerance and
religious practices which conform to state demands and which lead government
officials to detennine the use ofholy places and holy sites are Ottoman political practices imposed by the point of the sword or the barrel of a gun!
These are, Mr. Prime Minister, the remnants of Ottoman behavior, the same practices,
the same souy excuses and the same legal and Ροlίtίcal ιηaηeuveήηgs that you have
had to endure throughout your political career. It is the remnants of the Ottoman
behavior in your country that is responsible for all political, religious and human
rights violations, including those which have been unleashed upon Agia Sophia. If
these remnants of Ottoman behavior can find ways to violate your human, political
and religious rights, then they can find ways to further violate the sanctity of a Ηοly
Church like Agia Sophia. If we tolerate the violations on Agia Sophia any longer, we
may well see a proposal to convert the great Church from a “museum” to an
intemational casino in the future.
Finally, Prime Minister Erdogan, please take one more close look at the photographs Ι
have enclosed. They are photographs taken only a few days ago. Perhaps the ugly and
tasteless exhibits, the dirty street pigeons and the neighborhood cats are still inside
Agia Sophia; the tourists shown in the photographs and the neighborhood rats may be
missing. Ι strongly urge you to visit Agia Sophia yourself. Thousands of religious,
political and military leaders of all religions have visited Agia Sophia over the
centuries. Patriarchs, Popes, Rabbis, Sultans, Kings and paupers have kneeled before
the Ηοly Grace of Agia Sophia to pray to God Almighty ..
Mr. Prime Minister, the Ottoman leaders while having dared to change the Christian Church’s use, never dared to change its consecrated holy name: ”Agia Sophia.” The
Church of God’s Ηοly Wisdom. The Great Church’s holy spirit has outlasted
Conquerors, Kings, Su1tans, Presidents, Prime Ministers and Military Despots from
537AD to date, 1471 years, and Ι believe it will outlast all of us as well!
How a State can justify the display of puppet dolls and fοlk10ήc art showing naked
female busts inside Agia Sophia and how a State can justify the selling of tourist
admission tickets to a museum called ”Agia Sophia Muzesi,” the Museum of God’s
Ηοly Wisdom in the 21st century is beyond any imagination.
Mr. Prime Minister, the Free Agia Sophia Council of Αmerica and the Free Agia
Sophia Council of Europe will soon make a fonnal demand to the Turkish State
asking that Agia Sophia be restored to its original holy status as a Christian Church
and as the Basilica of the Orthodox Christian faith. With this correspondence we
request that you personally see to it and take the necessary actions to prevent any
further sacreligious practices οη Agia Sophia which offend the two great religions,
Christianity and Islam.

Chris Spirou, President
Free Agia Sophia Council of America
Free Agia Sophia Council of Europe

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