Researched by Frank Dougan 02/04/2022
Jesus Christ denouncing Turkish devil ERDOGAN for desecrating and turning one of the
greatest Christian Churches in the world the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople into the
House of Satanic for the worshippers of the Satanic Verses “By Salman Rushdie”.
Jesus of Nazareth - Hypocrisy of the Scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 23)
https://youtu.be/mD--lHALcm0 via @YouTube
https://youtu.be/mD--lHALcm0
Blaise Misztal
Jul 23, 2020
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16 min read
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Erdogan’s Hagia Sophia Speech (English
translation)
On July 10, 2020, a Turkish court cleared the way for the Hagia Sophia
to be converted from a museum back into a mosque. That same day,
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivered a speech lauding the
“resurrection” of the Hagia Sophia. No full English transcript of that
speech has been made available, although a video with English subtitles
is available here. Below is transcription of those subtitles, checked
against the original Turkish to correct mistakes and clarify phrasing.
(Credit to Bradley Davis for the transcription and Nicholas Danforth for
translation.)
My dear nation, I extend to you my most heartfelt greetings
and affection. The Council of State today annulled the 1934
Cabinet Decree which had enabled the Hagia Sophia’s
conversion from a mosque to a museum. Based on that
ruling we have issued a presidential decree to facilitate the
reopening of the Hagia Sophia mosque. Thus, after 86
years the Hagia Sophia will be able to start serving as a
mosque once again as stated in the foundation charter of
Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan. I wish this decision to be
auspicious to our nation, the ummah, and all of humanity.
Our Ministry of Culture and Tourism has immediately
begun to work on the administrative and technical
preparations with our Presidency of Religious Affairs on
religious aspects of the matter.
With the termination of its status as a museum entrance to
the Hagia Sophia will be free of charge. Like all of our
mosques the doors of the Hagia Sophia will be wide open to
all — locals and foreigners, Muslims and non-Muslims.
Under its new status, the Hagia Sophia, a common heritage
of humanity, will continue to embrace everyone in a more
sincere and authentic manner. By completing the
preparations quickly we plan to open the Hagia Sophia to
worship on Friday, July 24, 2020 with the Friday prayer
service.
I call on everyone to respect the decision that our country’s
judicial and executive bodies have made regarding the
Hagia Sophia. Surely, we will welcome all kinds of views
voiced on this matter in the international arena. However,
to what purpose Hagia Sophia will be utilized is a matter of
Turkey’s sovereign rights. Opening Hagia Sophia for
worship following a new regulation is merely an exercise of
our country’s sovereign rights. Converting Hagia Sophia
into a mosque in line with its foundation charter is no less a
right of the Republic of Turkey’s than its flag, its capital, its
adhan, its language, its borders, and its 81 provinces. In
this regard, we view any behavior or statement which goes
beyond the voicing of opinions, as a violation of our
independence. Just as we as Turkey do not interfere in
decisions on places of worship in other countries, we expect
the same understanding about us protecting our historical
and legal rights. Moreover, this right dates back exactly 567
years ago, not just 50 or 100 years. If today a faith-oriented
discussion is to be held the topic of that discussion should be
not Hagia Sophia but Islamophobia and xenophobia
increasing with each passing day in all parts of the world.
Turkey’s decision is solely related to its own domestic laws
and historical rights. I express my gratitude to all political
parties and leaders, non-governmental organizations, and
every individual of our nation who stand behind this
decision.
My dear nation, the conquest of Istanbul and the
conversion of the Hagia Sophia into a Mosque are among
the most glorious chapters in Turkish history. On 29 May
1453, Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan entered the city after a
long siege and headed directly to the Hagia Sophia. As the
Byzantines awaited their fate, afraid and apprehensive,
inside the Hagia Sophia, Fatih entered the Hagia Sophia,
giving assurances to the people regarding their lives and
freedoms. The Conqueror of Istanbul, as a symbol of the
conquest, hoisted his flag at the mihrab in the middle of the
Hagia Sophia, shot an arrow towards the dome, and
recited the first adhan. Thus, he registered his conquest.
Then, in a suitable corner of the Hagia Sophia, he
performed two rak’ahs of prayer out of gratitude. With this
move, he demonstrated that he had converted the Hagia
Sophia into a mosque. Sultan Mehmed carefully examined
this great place of worship, Istanbul’s pearl, from its floor
to its roof.
According to historians, Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan who
climbed to the dome of the Hagia Sophia, recited the
following famous Farsi poem upon encountering the
building and its surroundings in ruin. “A spider spins its
web in the palace of the caesars, an owl hoots in the towers
of Afrasiab.” Yes, Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan had taken
over such a devastated, worn-out, and miserable Istanbul
and Hagia Sophia. Essentially, the Hagia Sophia, which
Fatih took over, had been built for the third time, since the
first two churches which stood on the same spot were
burned and destroyed during the times of turmoil. After the
conquest, with three days of hard work, the Hagia Sophia
was prepared for worship — for the first Friday prayer.
Fatih, who entered the mosque with leading statesmen and
soldiers was welcomed with praise and salutations that
resonated from the domes. Fatih then performed the
sermon of the first Friday prayer in the Hagia Sophia and
his mentor, Akshamsaddin, led the prayer services. Fatih
also enabled the development of the Orthodox Church which
had been excluded by other Christian sects, by bringing
them under his auspices. The domes and walls of this great
place of worship have resonated with adhan, takbirs, and
mawlids for 481 years since then. Istanbul, which had been
devastated by earthquakes, fires, looting, and neglect for
centuries, was once again brought back on its feet with the
conquest. The symbol of this process was the Hagia Sophia.
After Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan, every sultan strived to
make Istanbul and the Hagia Sophia even more beautiful.
The Hagia Sophia, which was designated as the Great
Mosque of the city, has been transformed into a complex,
with buildings that were added in time and served believers
for centuries. In almost every century that followed, the
Hagia Sophia went through major repairs to further
beautify it with additions and is regarded as our nation’s
precious gem. So much so that we did not even attempt to
change its original name which means the “Wisdom of
God”. This temple, which was about to be crushed under the
collapsing ruins of an old state was not only transformed
into a mosque by our ancestors but it was also exalted and
revived.
Therefore, for centuries, the Hagia Sophia has had a special
place in the hearts of all the members of this nation. As for
ourselves, we also had a love of Hagia Sophia in our hearts
since we were young. We believe that we have provided an
important service to our nation by reopening this mosque,
in accordance with its foundation charter. While the
conquest was the minor struggle [jihad] the development
construction, and charity activities of the Hagia Sophia
were the greater struggles [jihad].
As the Hagia Sophia was being built during the Eastern
Roman period, materials were transported from across the
empire — from Egypt to Izmir and from Syria to Balikesir.
Fatih and the sultans who came after brought the
craftsmen from all over Anatolia and Rumelia to Istanbul
and rebuilt both the Hagia Sophia and the city. In doing so,
they made the most of the legacy they had taken over. For
example, Fatih preserved the fixes mosaics in the Hagia
Sophia and only removed movable statues from the
building. Mosaics that remained in place for centuries were
covered gradually during subsequent repairs, thereby
protecting them from external influences and ensuring that
they survived until the present day. Viewing the members
of different beliefs with tolerance is fundamentally an
attitude essential to our religion.
Our Prophet, while continuing his message did not interfere
with communities from other religions that did not commit
aggression against Muslims. When the caliph Omar took
Jerusalem, he protected the Christians and Jews in the city
with their rights and places of worship. Like all the states
established by our ancestors, the rulers of the Ottoman
Empire followed the same path. What Fatih and his
followers did in Istanbul consisted of following this ancient
tradition. Mimar Sinan, one of the most important figures
in our civilization’s history, is one of the top contributors to
the Hagia Sophia. In 481 years, the Hagia Sophia became
what it is today with its altar, pulpit, minarets, sultan’s
throne, plates, embroideries, chandeliers, carpets, fountain,
and all other elements. With the most crowded
congregations of Istanbul, that have gathered through
history, the Hagia Sophia has been a piece of truly
spectacular scenes during exceptional days such as
Tarawih, Laylat al-Qadr, and Eid. Therefore, the Turkish
nation’s right to the Hagia Sophia is no less than that of the
first builders of this work approximately 1,500 years ago.
On the contrary, because of its contributions and strong
ownership, our nation has more rights over the Hagia
Sophia which is considered as one of the most important
works of human heritage today. With the conquest,
Istanbul became a city where Muslims, Christians, and
Jews lived together in peace and tranquility. History is the
witness of the great struggles we made to ensure that
prosperity, trust, peace, and tolerance prevailed
everywhere we conquered. Today, besides our mosques in
every corner of our country, there are thousands of
historical shrines of every faith. In addition, churches and
synagogues operate wherever there are congregations.
There are currently 435 churches and synagogues open for
worship in our country. This situation, which cannot be
encountered in other geographies, is the manifestation of
our understanding which sees differences as richness.
However, as a nation, we have not been able to escape
examples of the very opposite treatment in our recent
history. In Eastern Europe and the Balkan geography,
where the Ottomans had to withdraw, only a few of the
works built by our ancestors for centuries are still standing.
Based on the phrase that “a negative example cannot set a
precedent,” we do not take any of these bad examples into
consideration and we are resolutely maintaining the stance
of our own civilization, which is based on construction and
revival.
My dear nation, the debate over the Hagia Sophia, which is
once again in the spotlight today, due to the decision to
reopen it to worship, is nearly a century old. During the
time when Anatolia and Istanbul were under occupation,
there were discussions about turning the Hagia Sophia into
a church. As the first step toward this goal fully equipped
occupying troops arrived at the doors of the Hagia Sophia.
The French commanders of the troops informed the
Ottoman officer assigned to the Hagia Sophia that they
would take control of it and that Turkish soldiers must
leave the mosque.
Major Tevfik Bey, who defended the Hagia Sophia with his
soldiers, gave them the following answer: “You cannot and
will not enter here because this is our place of worship. If
you are going to attempt to enter by force, our first
response will be with heavy machine guns, and then the
demolition charges that were placed in the four corners of
the mosque. If you can afford the collapse of the Hagia
Sophia onto your heads, you can try to enter.” He thus
crushed the invaders’ hopes of taking the Hagia Sophia.
Foreigners maintained an interest in the Hagia Sophia in
the following years, hiding behind various excuses such as
repairing the mosaics.
Meanwhile the single-party era government closed the
Hagia Sophia to worship in line with a new decree that
required mosques to be at least 500 meters apart from one
another. Later, on February 1, 1935, the Hagia Sophia was
instated as a museum and opened to visitors. During the
years, when the Hagia Sophia was closed to the worship,
the heirloom was exposed to neglect and pillaged. The
Hagia Sophia Madrasah, the first Ottoman university in
Istanbul built by Fatih adjacent to the mosque, was
destroyed without reason. Rare carpets laid on the floor of
the Hagia Sophia were cut and distributed here and there.
Antique chandeliers were taken to the foundry to be melted.
Masterpiece plates that were still in place could not be
moved out through the door because they are very large
and were therefore moved to the warehouse. These plates
were later hung on their respective spots on the wall during
the Democratic Party period. The destruction suffered by
Hagia Sophia is not limited to these. Those who wanted
nothing left of the time when the Hagia Sophia was a
mosque would even have demolished its minaret.
As a matter of fact, the minaret of Little Hagia Sophia
which was converted into a mosque during the reign of
Sultan Bayezid II was destroyed overnight without any
legal basis. Historian, journalist, and museologist Ibrahaim
Hakki Konyali, who saw that the time had come for the
Hagia Sophia immediately wrote and published a report.
They then decided not to tear down the minarets since
Konyali said in his report, “These minarets are the support
of the dome if they are taken down, the Hagia Sophia will
collapse.” In the same period, similar disasters happened to
many mosques, madrasahs, and relics of our ancestors.
Actually, this decision taken during the single-party period
was not only betraying history but was also against the
law. Because the Hagia Sophia is neither the property of the
state nor any institution but a property of a trust, when
Faith conquered Istanbul, he also earned the title of the
Roman Emperor and therefore had all the rights of
ownership over the property of the Byzantine dynasty.
According to this law, the ownership of Hagia Sophia was
given to Fatih and the foundation established by him.
During the Republican period, an official copy of this deed
was prepared in the new Latin letters and issued to
officially register its legal status. If Fatih did not hold the
deed for the Hagia Sophia, he would not have the right to
endow it legally.
In one of the pages of his foundation charter, which is
hundreds of pages long, dated 1st June, 1453 and including
the Hagia Sophia, Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan said, “He
who changes my foundation, which covers this Hagia
Sophia into a mosque, attempts to alter, annul or amend
one of its articles, if he means to abolish the foundation
charter of the Hagia Sophia mosque, with malicious or
malignant intention or deceit, changes the original,
challenges its provisions and guides and helps those who do
it, unlawfully uses it, terminates its status as a mosque and
arranges forged documents, and requests trustee rights, or
records it in his own invalid account book or transfers it to
his own account, I express before you, that he has
committed the greatest sin. The eternal curse of Allah, the
Prophet, the angels, all the rulers, and even all Muslims
shall be on those who change this testament, let their
torments not be alleviated, and their faces not looked at on
the Day of Judgement. Anyone who still continues with this
change after hearing these, the sin shall belong to the one
who changed it. Allah’s punishment is upon them. Allah is
all-hearing, all-knowing.”
Yes, the decision taken today has allowed us to get rid of the
heavy curse that Fatih has put forth over his foundation.
Then again, instead of ending Hagia Sophia’s sorrow, the
same mentality can still propose turning Sultan Ahmet,
Istanbul’s most famous mosque, into a museum. In the past,
this mentality had thought of utilizing the Sultan Ahmet
Mosque as a picture gallery. Yildiz palace as a casino, and
the Hagia Sophia as a jazz club, of which some have
already been done. As in every period, today’s perspective
is a manifestation of an outdated understanding under the
guise of modernity. It is the product of the same logic to
demand the Vatican be converted into a museum and insist
that the Hagia Sophia remain as a museum. The next step
would be the desire of turning the Kaaba, the oldest temple
of worship of humanity, and the ancient temple of Masjid
al-Aqsa into a museum. I say may Allah protect our
country and humanity forever from this mentality. I say
may Allah not test this nation again with those who are
hostile to their values.
My dear nation, there are some artifacts that are symbols
of nations and states. One of these symbols is the Hagia
Sophia. In an article he wrote in 1922, Yahya Kemal said,
“This state has two spiritual foundations: that the adhan
Fatih recited from the Hagia Sophia’s minaret still
resonates and that the Qur’an Selim recited before the
Prophet’s cloak still resonates…”
Again, in the words of Yahya Kemal, the meaning of the
Hagia Sophia for our nations is as follows, “Once upon a
time, judging by your geometry, I thought you were only a
monument. Now, while looking at this multitude under
your dome, I feel like I have entered the enchanting climes
of the ancestors I have been dreaming and missing for
years.”
Unfortunately, this temple, which the poet described as “the
enchanting climes of the ancestors” was deprived of the
voice of adhan and the recitation of the Holy Quran for a
long time. Although the worshipping part of the Hagia
Sophia allocated for the Sultan was first opened for
worship in 1980 and again in 1991 due to the main
structure it had remained destitute. Almost all of our
intellectual and artistic people have lamented the
destitution of the Hagia Sophia in their writings and
speeches. The late Necip Fazil Kisakurek reveals his belief in
this matter by saying, “those who doubt whether Turks will
remain in this country also doubt whether the Hagia
Sophia will be open.”
Today, we are answering the call of the master, “The Hagia
Sophia should be opened, it should be opened along with the
blocked fortune of Turks.” The poem of Nazim Hikmet on
the conquest of Istanbul and the conversion of the Hagia
Sophia into a mosque is also very stunning. “This is the
most honorable day that Islam has been looking forward
to, Greek Constantinople has become Turkish Istanbul, the
leader of an army against the world, the Sultan of the
Turks, like the opening of the sky, on the gray horse from
Edirnekapi, he conquered Istanbul in eight weeks and three
days — what a happy, blessed servant of Allah. The sultan
who conquered the city, Allah accepted his greatest prayer
and enabled him to perform afternoon prayer in Hagia
Sophia.”
Another historian and poet Nihal Atsiz was asked, “If you
were born again, what would you like to be?” He says, “I
would like to be an imam in Hagia Sophia.”
When our world historian Halil Inalcik said, “The West
never forgot the conquest of Istanbul and Hagia Sophia,” he
was actually trying to explain to us that this was a suprapolitical issue. As one of the top names of our literature,
Peyami Safa said, “Making Hagia Sophia a museum has
not eliminated the ambitions of Christianity on Istanbul but
on the contrary encouraged, provoked and excited them.”
An article titled Hagia Sophia, which resulted in its author,
Osman Yuksel Serdengecti, facing the death penalty, ended
with the following: “Hagia Sophia! O, magnificent temple.
Do not worry, the grandchildren of Fatih will overthrow all
the idols and convert you into a mosque. They will perform
ablution with their tears and prostrate. Tahlils and takbirs
will replenish your empty domes and there will be a second
conquest. The bards will write the epic of this, and the
adhan will declare that the tekbirs rising from the silent
and orphaned minarets will be echoed in the skies, your
minaret balconies will light up in honor of Allah and his
Prophet Mohammed. The whole world will think that Fatih
has resurrected. This will be Hagia Sophia, this will be a
second conquest, the new resurrection. This is definite.
These days are close. Maybe tomorrow, maybe sooner than
tomorrow…”
Praise be it, we’ve got those tomorrows. One of the most
prominent poems about the grief of Hagia Sophia belongs
to Arif Nihat Asya, “Oh great temple, why are you covered
with sorrow like this? Tell us about the age of Fatih even a
little bit. We were lined up five times a day under your
calming dome with your adhans, you had an invitation
yesterday. O my temple, let them be ashamed those who
close and not open you.”
This is the kind of embarrassment from which Turkey saved
itself today. Today, Hagia Sophia is having another
resurrection, many of which it has witnessed since its
construction. The resurrection of Hagia Sophia heralds the
liberation of the al-Aqsa Mosque. The resurrection of Hagia
Sophia is the footsteps of the will of Muslims across the
world to come out of the interregnum. The resurrection of
Hagia Sophia is the reignition of the fire of hope of not just
Muslims but together with them of all the oppressed,
wronged, downtrodden and exploited. The resurrection of
the Hagia Sophia demonstrates that the Turkish nation,
Muslims, and all of humanity still have something new to
tell the world. The resurrection of the Hagia Sophia
represents our memory full of heydays in our history: from
Badr to Manzikert, from Nicopolis to Gallipoli. The
resurrection of the Hagia Sophia is the proof of our
commitment to protect the trusts of our martyrs and the
wounded — if necessary, by paying the price even if it costs
our lives. The resurrection of the Hagia Sophia is a heartfelt
greeting to the symbolic cities of our civilization from
Bukhara to Andalusia. The resurrection of the Hagia
Sophia is required by our respect and commitment to all of
our ancestors from Alparslan to Mehmed and Abdulhamid.
The resurrection of the Hagia Sophia not only honors
Sultan Mehmed’s spirit of conquest but also revives anew
the spirituality of Akshamsaddin and the aesthetics and
taste of Sinan the Architect in the depths of our hearts. The
resurrection of the Hagia Sophia is a symbol of the re-rise
of our civilization’s sun on the basis of justice conscience,
morality, tawheed and brotherhood and sisterhood which
humanity awaits longingly. The resurrection of the Hagia
Sophia is to break the chains and locks on the doors of this
place of worship as well as the shackles on all hearts and
feet.
Seventy years after the adhan’s return to its original
version, the reinstatement of Sultan Mehmed’s trust, the
Hagia Sophia, as a mosque is an overdue recovery. It is the
strongest answer ever given to the brutal attacks against
our symbols and values across the Islamic world. Turkey,
with all steps taken in recent years has demonstrated that it
is the subject rather than the object of time and space. With
its historic struggle, our nation builds a bridge between the
past and the future, embracing all of humanity for the sake
of the bright future of the civilization that we represent.
Inshallah, we will continue to walk on this sacred path
without pause nor hesitation, without giving up, through
perseverance, sacrifice, and determination, until we reach
our ultimate destination.
Once again, I hope that the court ruling and the
presidential decree which facilitated the Hagia Sophia’s
reinstatement as a mosque, will be auspicious. I would like
to stress once again that we will open the Hagia Sophia to
worship as a mosque, whilst preserving its qualities as part
of humanity’s shared cultural heritage. I extend my love
and respect to you all. I am thankful to my lord. Take care.