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HISTORIC ARMENIAN CHURCH TO REOPEN IN TURKEY'S EAST
Anadolu Agency, Turkey
Feb 5 2014
04 February 2014 16:39 (Last updated 04 February 2014 16:41)
1,700-year-old St. Bartholomew Monastery church was reopened to
worship last year after relocation of army base.
VAN, Turkey
A church in the 1,700-year-old St. Bartholomew Monastery in Turkey's
eastern city Van will be restored and opened to tourists.
The provincial culture and tourism directorate said that the
restoration project for the church was sent to the Ministry of Culture.
The church had been closed for years as it located within the compound
of an army base.
It reopened for religious services in 2013, when the base was
relocated.
"We are planning to restore the church and open it to tourists by the
end of this year," said Muzaffer Aktug, Culture and Tourism Director
of the Van province.
"Aside from the restoration of St. Bartholomew's, we also have many
other projects that include environmental planning and restoration
projects for several Urartu-era castles," he said.
St. Bartholomew's Church was built on the site of the martyrdom of
the Apostle Bartholomew, who is reputed to have brought Christianity
to Armenia in the first century.
The area around Van is noted for its numerous Armenian churches and
Iron Age Urartu ruins.
From: Baghdasarian
Anadolu Agency, Turkey
Feb 5 2014
04 February 2014 16:39 (Last updated 04 February 2014 16:41)
1,700-year-old St. Bartholomew Monastery church was reopened to
worship last year after relocation of army base.
VAN, Turkey
A church in the 1,700-year-old St. Bartholomew Monastery in Turkey's
eastern city Van will be restored and opened to tourists.
The provincial culture and tourism directorate said that the
restoration project for the church was sent to the Ministry of Culture.
The church had been closed for years as it located within the compound
of an army base.
It reopened for religious services in 2013, when the base was
relocated.
"We are planning to restore the church and open it to tourists by the
end of this year," said Muzaffer Aktug, Culture and Tourism Director
of the Van province.
"Aside from the restoration of St. Bartholomew's, we also have many
other projects that include environmental planning and restoration
projects for several Urartu-era castles," he said.
St. Bartholomew's Church was built on the site of the martyrdom of
the Apostle Bartholomew, who is reputed to have brought Christianity
to Armenia in the first century.
The area around Van is noted for its numerous Armenian churches and
Iron Age Urartu ruins.
From: Baghdasarian