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Armenian Church Outraged By Turkish Nationalist Prayer

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  • Armenian Church Outraged By Turkish Nationalist Prayer

    Armenian Church Outraged By Turkish Nationalist Prayer
    Saturday, 02 October 2010 17:20
    Azatutyun:

    The Armenian Apostolic Church on Saturday expressed outrage at a
    Muslim religious service held in an Armenian holy site in eastern
    Turkey, calling it a serious blow to efforts to improve
    Turkish-Armenian relations.

    In a written statement, the church's Mother See in the Armenian town
    of Echmiadzin strongly condemned the Turkish government for allowing
    the country's leading ultranationalist party to hold a Friday prayer
    at the 11th century Holly Virgin Cathedral in Ani, the ruined capital
    of a medieval Armenian kingdom.

    `This action is a political provocation that has nothing to do with
    spiritual-virtuous feelings and religious freedom and rights,' read
    the statement. `At the same time it is an attempt to negate the
    Armenian origin of the Ani cathedral, which was deprived of prayer as
    a consequence of the [1915] Armenian Genocide.'

    `It is also absolutely unacceptable to make a Christian shrine
    available for `namaz' (Muslim prayer) while consistently forbidding
    legal heirs to the Christian heritage [in Turkey] to perform worship
    in their own temples,' it said. `Thus, the Turkish authorities are
    continuing their steps aimed at destroying Armenian monuments and
    misappropriating historical Armenian holy sites and cultural
    treasures.'

    `It is also evident that with this step Turkey is once again scuttling
    efforts by Armenia and the international community to establish
    Turkish-Armenian dialogue and normalize Turkish-Armenian relations,'
    added the statement.

    The Armenian Church and its supreme head, Catholicos Garegin II,
    similarly condemned Ankara for failing to restore a cross atop another
    medieval Armenian church located in the same region in time for a
    landmark mass held there on September 19. Garegin abandoned his
    earlier plans to send two high-ranking clerics to the ceremony, in
    protest against the delay.

    The cross was reportedly placed on the dome of the 10th century Holy
    Cross church on Akhtamar island in Lake Van on Thursday.

    The Ani and Akhtamar churches are among few surviving examples of the
    ancient Armenian civilization in what is now eastern Turkey. Hundreds
    of Armenian churches built there since the early Middle Ages were
    destroyed, ransacked or turned into mosques during and after 1915
    slaughter of more than one million Armenians in the Ottoman Empire.

    The Armenian government has not yet officially reacted to the Ani prayer.



    Original link: http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/2174645.html




    From: A. Papazian
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