American professor urges to give Hagia Sophia back to ChristianityApril 23, 2011 - 11:42 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Donald Heinz, professor of religious studies, California State University, Chico, issued a letter to the editor published by Hurriyet Daily News. In the letter titled “Give Hagia Sophia back to Christianity”, prof. Heinz writes: “In bookstores and billboards, I saw Istanbul wants to be a bridge between cultures, to a world beyond Turkey. I saw the claim that Istanbul is an almost exclusively Turkish-Muslim metropolis, not accidentally the least ethnically and religiously diverse of the great modern cities. While population exchange lies in the past, Turkish minorities still charge that an excessive monism dominates the national consciousness. A politics of enforced absence prevails over a politics of multicultural presence.” The history of Hagia Sophia is well known. From its dedication in 360 until 1453, this Byzantine landmark was the Orthodox cathedral of Constantinople. It became a mosque from 1453 until 1934, when it was secularized, and re-opened as a museum in 1935. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Get Started: An educational platform for young startuppers The Get Started program which operates in two phases is an important platform for young startuppers. Byblos Bank Armenia celebrates Students' Day with scholarship recipients YSU students who received scholarships from Byblos Bank Armenia gathered in a casual setting to meet with the Bank's CEO, Hayk Stepanyan. Azerbaijan extends Rune Vardanyan’s arrest by 5 months A court in Azerbaijan has extended the arrest of former Nagorno-Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan by five months. Armenia border residents dissatisfied with delimitation Residents Kirants are dissatisfied with the results of the delimitation of the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan. |