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SURP GIRAGOS ARMENIAN CHURCH IN DIYARBAKIR PREPARES FOR LITURGY
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Oct 12 2011
Once one of the largest churches in the Middle East, Surp Giragos
Church in Turkey's southeastern province of Diyarbakır will be reopened
on Oct. 23 for a religious ceremony.
Renovation started at the end of 2009 after the Diyarbakır Surp
Giragos Armenian Church Foundation undertook the restoration project
of the church.
Ergun Ayık, the head of the foundation, said the Surp Giragos Church
is in a complex that encompasses more than 3,200 square meters
and includes a chapel, a meeting room, a school, a dining hall and
rectories.
"Restoration of the church, which makes up about 85 percent of the
complex, is secured. But the restoration of the rest of the complex
depends on more funds," Ayık said of the project, which has cost $2.5
million and has been provided mostly by the foundation.
Ayık also added that while the Diyarbakır Municipality had
provided about one-third of the total renovation budget, other
state institutions had not contributed even though the foundation had
requested more funding. "The rest of the renovation of the complex can
be completed in three or four months if funding is secured," he said.
The church was seized by the German army during World War I, and in
1918 it was converted into a textile warehouse of Sumerbank. After
the Armenian population of the area made an application in 1952 asking
for its return, the church was given back to the community. However,
because of the lack of a congregation, it had been neglected since
1980.
"It was in ruins," Ayık said. "Its opening will make moral, economic
and social contributions."
Ayık said that on the evening of Oct. 22 there will be a service at
the church to consecrate it, and on the next day, which is a Sunday,
there will be a religious service bearing significance for the few
Armenians left in the region and the country. Armenians inside and
outside the country are also expected to attend the ceremony. "First,
this is a very important church from an architectural point of view.
Second, it symbolizes the past. This is one of only seven Armenian
churches in the city," he said and added that there had been
about 40,000-45,000 Armenians living in Diyarbakır prior to the
mass deportation of Armenians during the 1915 events. There is one
Armenian family living in the city today. The religious ceremony will
follow another first in the region. Since the Surp Giragos Church in
Diyarbakır belongs to the church foundation, there are no restrictions
on when a service can be held.
"It is open to everybody who wants to be here," Ayık said. The service
will be headed by Archbishop Aram Ateşyan, the deputy patriarch of
the Armenian Patriarchate based in İstanbul.
For the service on Oct. 23, they expect Armenians in and outside
the country in addition to clergy from Armenia to attend. A number
of high-ranking officials, including state ministers and the city's
governor and mayor, have also been invited.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-259664-surp-giragos-armenian-church-in-diyarbakir-prepares-for-liturgy.html
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Oct 12 2011
Once one of the largest churches in the Middle East, Surp Giragos
Church in Turkey's southeastern province of Diyarbakır will be reopened
on Oct. 23 for a religious ceremony.
Renovation started at the end of 2009 after the Diyarbakır Surp
Giragos Armenian Church Foundation undertook the restoration project
of the church.
Ergun Ayık, the head of the foundation, said the Surp Giragos Church
is in a complex that encompasses more than 3,200 square meters
and includes a chapel, a meeting room, a school, a dining hall and
rectories.
"Restoration of the church, which makes up about 85 percent of the
complex, is secured. But the restoration of the rest of the complex
depends on more funds," Ayık said of the project, which has cost $2.5
million and has been provided mostly by the foundation.
Ayık also added that while the Diyarbakır Municipality had
provided about one-third of the total renovation budget, other
state institutions had not contributed even though the foundation had
requested more funding. "The rest of the renovation of the complex can
be completed in three or four months if funding is secured," he said.
The church was seized by the German army during World War I, and in
1918 it was converted into a textile warehouse of Sumerbank. After
the Armenian population of the area made an application in 1952 asking
for its return, the church was given back to the community. However,
because of the lack of a congregation, it had been neglected since
1980.
"It was in ruins," Ayık said. "Its opening will make moral, economic
and social contributions."
Ayık said that on the evening of Oct. 22 there will be a service at
the church to consecrate it, and on the next day, which is a Sunday,
there will be a religious service bearing significance for the few
Armenians left in the region and the country. Armenians inside and
outside the country are also expected to attend the ceremony. "First,
this is a very important church from an architectural point of view.
Second, it symbolizes the past. This is one of only seven Armenian
churches in the city," he said and added that there had been
about 40,000-45,000 Armenians living in Diyarbakır prior to the
mass deportation of Armenians during the 1915 events. There is one
Armenian family living in the city today. The religious ceremony will
follow another first in the region. Since the Surp Giragos Church in
Diyarbakır belongs to the church foundation, there are no restrictions
on when a service can be held.
"It is open to everybody who wants to be here," Ayık said. The service
will be headed by Archbishop Aram Ateşyan, the deputy patriarch of
the Armenian Patriarchate based in İstanbul.
For the service on Oct. 23, they expect Armenians in and outside
the country in addition to clergy from Armenia to attend. A number
of high-ranking officials, including state ministers and the city's
governor and mayor, have also been invited.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-259664-surp-giragos-armenian-church-in-diyarbakir-prepares-for-liturgy.html