Turkey’s Armenians in crossfire between ‘fanatics’ on both sides
14.05.2007
Today’s Zaman
İstanbulThe article below says "The patriarch also expressed his opinion that it was time for Turkey to improve dialogue with Armenia and the diaspora. “Journalists, youth organizations, academics and civil society organizations should make frequent visits to both countries and improve humane relations between the two countries. Difficult issues could be dealt with later. First mutual confidence and understanding should be established.”"
Archbishop Mesrob Mutafyan, patriarch to Turkey’s Armenian community, feels Turkish Armenians are caught in the crossfire as fanatics on either side attack one another.
Speaking to Zaman daily journalist Nuriye Akman, Patriarch Mesrob II expressed his frustration with religiously motivated attacks in Turkey, including last year’s killing of an Italian pastor and the more recent slaying of three Bible publishers in Malatya.
“I can say that we sometimes experience the feeling of ‘being stuck in between’ Turkish and Armenian fanatics. This sometimes appears to me as being stuck in a crossfire and sometimes two kinds of love. Two fires, for the nationalists on both sides are firing at each other unabated, which is harder on us as the Armenians of Turkey. Two kinds of love, because we have adopted and we love the language, traditions and culture of both sides. For this reason, as I always say, establishing peace between these two peoples would make Turkey’s Armenians the most happy.”
The patriarch also told Akman that having lived in a Muslim country for centuries offered the benefits of an environment of tolerance between different religions. “Church bells ringing and the Muslim prayer call mix with each other, particularly in İstanbul, and create a mystical atmosphere. At the end of the day both the church bell and the ezan praise God’s name and call believers to prayer. We should stand against any formation that might threaten this environment of tolerance.”
Mesrob II also said he found it hard to believe what was currently going on in Turkey. “In the neighborhood where I grew up we all lived together as Turks, Armenians, Greeks and Jews and played together as kids. Everybody used to know the dates of holidays for all religions and exchanged greetings during these times. Now that I look at these recent painful incidents we have been through I hardly know my country that I had known as well as my own life.”
The patriarch also expressed his opinion that it was time for Turkey to improve dialogue with Armenia and the diaspora. “Journalists, youth organizations, academics and civil society organizations should make frequent visits to both countries and improve humane relations between the two countries. Difficult issues could be dealt with later. First mutual confidence and understanding should be established.”
Patriarch Mesrob II also offered his belief that if Turkey’s Armenian community was represented in the Turkish Parliament it would contribute greatly to improving tolerance and understanding. “If our political parties were more supportive of Armenian students who might be interested in politics, they would have made a concrete step to improve the more abstract concepts of citizenship and tolerance.”
Common grounds between Islam and Christianity
The patriarch said there were many common points between Islamic and Christian mysticism. “Mysticism is actually tantamount to transcending the dogma. Is it possible not to agree with [Turkish Sufi thinker] Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi on most issues?” He said Mevlana’s message was most important, referring to Mevlana’s widely known poem, “Come, come again, whoever you are, come!” The patriarch interpreted Mevlana’s call as an invitation to the door of God. He also said he respected Islam’s Prophet Mohammed as the founder of a great civilization. “I feel great respect,” he explained.
Sarkozy in France
The patriarch expressed hopes that Nicolas Sarkozy, who recently won the presidential elections in France, would change his staunchly anti-Turkish discourse once he took office. In response to a question asking what would happen if a bill, taken up by the French Parliament earlier, criminalizing the denial of Armenian claims of a genocide committed by the Ottoman Turks in 1915, the patriarch said if the bill reappeared on the agenda it would harm French-Turkish relations.
Instead, he opined that a board of Turkish and Armenian historians as well as French historians should be set up to investigate the allegations and the relations of the two nations throughout centuries. “True, painful events happened under the Union and Progress government [which came to power in 1908], however it would be wrong to leave an entire history behind the shadow of those incidents, given the friendly relations the Turkish and Armenian people have had since the fifth century.”
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
Today’s Zaman
İstanbul
The article below says "The patriarch also expressed his opinion that it was time for Turkey to improve dialogue with Armenia and the diaspora. “Journalists, youth organizations, academics and civil society organizations should make frequent visits to both countries and improve humane relations between the two countries. Difficult issues could be dealt with later. First mutual confidence and understanding should be established.”"
I have the feeling that Turkey likes to order around and not dialogue. It will take a big change in Turkey for it to shed off its imperial past. If turning the Holy Cross church to a museum without a cross at its staple and not allowing the patriarchate to celebrate a mass is the kind of dialogue, Armenians can do without. The day of dialogue will come if Turkey allows Turkish Armenians to openly commemorate April 24 in Turkey.
Archbishop Mesrob Mutafyan, patriarch to Turkey’s Armenian community, feels Turkish Armenians are caught in the crossfire as fanatics on either side attack one another. Speaking to Zaman daily journalist Nuriye Akman, Patriarch Mesrob II expressed his frustration with religiously motivated attacks in Turkey, including last year’s killing of an Italian pastor and the more recent slaying of three Bible publishers in Malatya.
“I can say that we sometimes experience the feeling of ‘being stuck in between’ Turkish and Armenian fanatics. This sometimes appears to me as being stuck in a crossfire and sometimes two kinds of love. Two fires, for the nationalists on both sides are firing at each other unabated, which is harder on us as the Armenians of Turkey. Two kinds of love, because we have adopted and we love the language, traditions and culture of both sides. For this reason, as I always say, establishing peace between these two peoples would make Turkey’s Armenians the most happy.”
The patriarch also told Akman that having lived in a Muslim country for centuries offered the benefits of an environment of tolerance between different religions. “Church bells ringing and the Muslim prayer call mix with each other, particularly in İstanbul, and create a mystical atmosphere. At the end of the day both the church bell and the ezan praise God’s name and call believers to prayer. We should stand against any formation that might threaten this environment of tolerance.”
Mesrob II also said he found it hard to believe what was currently going on in Turkey. “In the neighborhood where I grew up we all lived together as Turks, Armenians, Greeks and Jews and played together as kids. Everybody used to know the dates of holidays for all religions and exchanged greetings during these times. Now that I look at these recent painful incidents we have been through I hardly know my country that I had known as well as my own life.”
The patriarch also expressed his opinion that it was time for Turkey to improve dialogue with Armenia and the diaspora. “Journalists, youth organizations, academics and civil society organizations should make frequent visits to both countries and improve humane relations between the two countries. Difficult issues could be dealt with later. First mutual confidence and understanding should be established.”
Patriarch Mesrob II also offered his belief that if Turkey’s Armenian community was represented in the Turkish Parliament it would contribute greatly to improving tolerance and understanding. “If our political parties were more supportive of Armenian students who might be interested in politics, they would have made a concrete step to improve the more abstract concepts of citizenship and tolerance.”
Common grounds between Islam and Christianity
The patriarch said there were many common points between Islamic and Christian mysticism. “Mysticism is actually tantamount to transcending the dogma. Is it possible not to agree with [Turkish Sufi thinker] Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi on most issues?” He said Mevlana’s message was most important, referring to Mevlana’s widely known poem, “Come, come again, whoever you are, come!” The patriarch interpreted Mevlana’s call as an invitation to the door of God. He also said he respected Islam’s Prophet Mohammed as the founder of a great civilization. “I feel great respect,” he explained.
Sarkozy in France
The patriarch expressed hopes that Nicolas Sarkozy, who recently won the presidential elections in France, would change his staunchly anti-Turkish discourse once he took office. In response to a question asking what would happen if a bill, taken up by the French Parliament earlier, criminalizing the denial of Armenian claims of a genocide committed by the Ottoman Turks in 1915, the patriarch said if the bill reappeared on the agenda it would harm French-Turkish relations.
Instead, he opined that a board of Turkish and Armenian historians as well as French historians should be set up to investigate the allegations and the relations of the two nations throughout centuries. “True, painful events happened under the Union and Progress government [which came to power in 1908], however it would be wrong to leave an entire history behind the shadow of those incidents, given the friendly relations the Turkish and Armenian people have had since the fifth century.”
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
posted by Vahe Balabanian at 9:27 AM
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