Bardakoğlu said in an interview with the NTV news channel that as a Muslim and the head of Turkey’s Religious Affairs Directorate he supports everyone’s religious freedom. “We should act ethically and be principled on this issue. Our ancestors opened the Halki Seminary in İstanbul. I have always been in support of the religious freedom of all religious groups in our country,” he said.
Established on Oct. 1, 1844 on Heybeli Island -- or Halki in Greek -- in the Sea of Marmara, the Halki Seminary was the main school of theology of the Eastern Orthodox Church’s patriarchate in İstanbul until its closure by Turkish authorities in 1971. The İstanbul-based Greek Orthodox Patriarchate has long complained about the status of the seminary, with Patriarch Bartholomew saying its reopening is of vital importance for the survival of the Greek Orthodox clergy.
Touching upon another controversial issue surrounding religious freedom in Turkey, Bardakoğlu said that a former Roman Catholic church in Tarsus, which was confiscated by the state in 1943 and is now a museum, should be turned back into a house of worship.
Rather than remaining a museum, St. Paul’s Church should be reopened as a church, Bardakoğlu said. “Let churches remain churches and mosques, mosques. People should be able to openly express their religions or irreligiousness. Atheists should also be able to live freely in this society. This does not mean that we approve of atheism. We should also demand the same freedoms for Muslims.
Bardakoğlu was also asked his opinions on the government’s Alevi initiative, which aims to examine the role of Alevis in Turkish society and better enfranchise this group. “We have to erase the concept of ‘other’, since we have always been together. We support this initiative, which means taking steps [on this issue] to the very end. We should do this in every field,” he said.
