Everything has changed since the government of Turkey led by Erdggan survived a bloody coup attempt against his government. He has decisively dealt with all the accused persons involved with the coup but has done much more including converting the historic Hagia Sophia church into a mosque.
The Hagia Sophia was first an orthodox cathedral before catholic crusaders forcefully took it and converted it to catholic cathedral. The orthodox took it again and converted it to their cathedral. Then it was taken by the ottoman empire and made into a mosque.
The church is of great significance to orthodox church in Russia and parts of the middle east that once had it as their church. It is Turkey that the great Apostle Paul was also said to have preached Christianity. But the Hagia Sophia Church was given a museum status after years of conflict because of its significance to both Muslims and Christians.
It was a Church for many centuries and a mosque for over 1000 years so it is considered a violation of the treaty that made it a museum for may years now. Analysts and observers believe that even though it is now a mosque, the Hagia Sophia mosque will also allow some portion of it to be used by Christians for worship too.
The christian pontiff Pope Francis in the early days of his pontiff once visited the Hagia Sophia Mosque and prayed aside an Imam. Many people misunderstood his actions not knowing that the mosque was a church for many years before it was forcefully converted into a mosque and then into a museum for the sake of peace.
Thousands of visitors came to visit the mosque yearly and they include both Christians and Muslims. The decision of Turkey’s Erdogan which has made it into a mosque is controversial and it has generated reactions from all and sundry.
For Erdogan, it is to honor Allah that preserved his administration from being overthrown by the coup plotters that carried out a failed bloody coup in Turkey some years ago.
He has been flushing out opposition voices and foreign influence from Turkey since then, placing many suspects in detention. Despite its mosque status, it is expected to leave a small space for Christians to also have their church worship.
