Metropolitan Hilarion Alfayev who heads the external relations department of the Russian Orthodox Church has clarified the official position of the Russian Church on Hagia Sophia. He has stated that it is NOT the official position of the Russian Church that the conversion of Hagia Sophia is a result of God’s punishing the Church of Constantinople for its intervention in Ukraine. The Metropolitan has affirmed an opinion however that the Ukrainian schism weakened the ability of Orthodoxy to respond to the events around Hagia Sophia.
Orthodox Christians look for anything good to come out of acts of madness such as the actions undertaken by the Erdogan government in Turkey. The show of support for Hagia Sophia that is coming not only from Orthodox Christians, but from Muslims, Roman Catholics, Protestants, Hindus, Jews and secularists is very welcome indeed. It is nice to see the world coming together peacefully and in a spirit of civility on behalf of a Church.
Hagia Sophia has seemingly brought light from heaven into the world. The world has been plunged into madness over the past several months with the coronavirus and the economic devastation followed by the horrific murder of George Floyd and the riots. Hagia Sophia has brought Christianity to the world’s attention and the world is noticing the glorious iconography of Jesus Christ in his full glory on the walls of Hagia Sophia.
Contrast the displays of support for Hagia Sophia as a Christian Church from all faith communities throughout the world with the violence and destruction perpetrated by the secular utopians in America and Europe. Religious faith can be seen to be more tolerant than militant secularism in this case. The Erdogan government is an aberration as far as religious faith is concerned right now.
Meanwhile, the Greek government has announced plans to set up a “working group” regarding Hagia Sophia. This is a rather bizarre announcement considering that in two days Hagia Sophia will be used as a Mosque. The announcement by Athens that they will establish a useless bureaucracy is too little, too late. The Turks have already altered Hagia Sophia and have installed carpets for use in Muslim prayer.
Greeks have lost Constantinople and Hagia Sophia. What the Greek world needs is to recapture the faith that produced Constantinople and Hagia Sophia. Greeks should respond by going to Church more often and should return to the faith of their ancestors. I would also suggest that the Greek world start to rebuild their relationship with the Russian Church that has been damaged by the unacceptable intervention of the American State Department in Church affairs.
“Working groups” for Hagia Sophia should have been established years ago when it was obvious this was coming.
One reply on “Hagia Sophia Diaries Day 8”
‘Working Group’ regarding Hagia Sophia. Translation: More useless civil servant positions in Greece that accomplish nothing and only add to the bureaucracy. I expected more from Mitsotakis, maybe I overestimated him? At any rate, even that is more than we’d have gotten out of Tsipras-who would have appointed a few hundred of his cronies to a ‘Commission’ to look into the matter, but would have instead spent every working hour campaigning for SYRIZA. Regardless of which party is in power in Greece you’ll get pretty much the same thing, endless talk with little action. True Hellenic leadership always comes out of the ranks, never down from the top-like at Thermopylae and in 1940 against the Italians.