Sharp reactions continue over insolent event allowed by Turkish state at Panaghia Sumela Monastery

Reactions continued from around the world in the wake of a so-called “rave party” and advertising campaign organized and filmed this month at the landmark Panaghia Sumela monastery, which is located in the historic Pontus region of northeast Asia Minor.
The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, His All Holiness Bartholomew I, spoke by phone with Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Esroi to express his sadness and condemnation of the event, a day after conveying an official letter of protest to Turkey’s relevant ministry.

His All Holiness has reminded that the Panaghia Sumela Monastery is considered as a sacred site by the Ecumenical Patriarchate and all of Pontian Hellenism, as well as a World Religious and Cultural Heritage monument.

He also emphasized the fact that the insolent event is in no way compatible with the monastery’s religious and historical character.

The ancient site today operates a museum under the jurisdiction of Turkey’s culture and tourism ministry, which bears the responsibility for its maintenance and preservation.

The incident was also condemned by the Holy Synod of the Autocephalous Church of Greece, during the body’s meeting on Tuesday.

As reported by the Orthodoxia news agency, Greek and Cypriot MEPs have already brought the issue of the desecration of the Sumela Monastery to the floor of the European Parliament, with a relevant question tabled, following an initiative by European People’s Party vice-president Vangelis Meimarakis.

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