March 17, 2005

WASHINGTON, DC – His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in America and Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, testified yesterday on the state of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Turkey before the US Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (The Helsinki Commission) during a briefing held at the Rayburn House Office Building. The Helsinki Commission is comprised of nine US Senators, nine members of the US House of Representatives, and one member each, from the Departments of State, Defense and Commerce.

U.S. Congressman (R-NJ) Christopher Smith, co-chair of the Helsinki Commission, began the session with a statement and background information. Archbishop Demetrios in his testimony entitled "The Unfair Treatment of the Ecumenical Patriarchate by the Turkish Government," stressed to the members of the Commission that the Ecumenical Patriarchate continues to suffer from unfair treatment at the hands of the Turkish state. He offered three examples of such treatment, including the closure of the Theological School of Halki, the continuous confiscation of Church property by the Turkish government and the refusal of the Turkish government to recognize the legitimate "Ecumenical" title of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, a title history established since the sixth century and internationally recognized by political and religious communities. (Full Text Below)

Additional testimony to the Helsinki Commission was offered by Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Catholic Archbishop of Washington; Rabbi Arthur Schneier, President, Appeal of Conscience Foundation; Rev. Dr. Bob Edgar, General Secretary of the National Council of Churches and Anthony Limberakis, MD, National Commander of the Order of St. Andrew.

The Helsinki Commission is an independent agency of the United States Government charged with monitoring and encouraging compliance with the Helsinki Final Act and other commitments of the 55 countries (including Turkey) participating in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Following the Briefing, Senators Paul Sarbanes (D-MD) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) sponsored a luncheon on Capitol Hill.

At 3:00 pm Archbishop Demetrios offered a similar presentation and insights on the state of the Ecumenical Patriarchate today during a meeting of the Congressional Working Group on Religious Freedom held in the Capitol Building. The meeting was chaired by Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and was attended by several senators and congressmen.

US Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission) Briefing, March 16, 2005

"The Unfair Treatment of The Ecumenical Patriarchate by The Turkish Government"

A Testimony by His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in America and Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarchate

Honorable U.S. Senators, Representatives, and members of the Helsinki Commission, ladies and gentlemen, we thank you for giving us the opportunity to speak about the very difficult situation in which our venerable Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople finds itself vis-à-vis the Turkish government.

I am speaking to you as the Archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Church in America with a constituency close to two million people, a constituency which ecclesiastically belongs to the Ecumenical Patriarchate. As the Archbishop of this Church, I feel that what happens to the Ecumenical Patriarchate has a direct impact on us here both as Orthodox Christians and as American citizens.

The foundation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate may be traced to the very Apostolic times, to the first century A.D., when Christianity reached what is now Turkey. In the fourth century A.D., Emperor Constantine transferred the capital of the Roman Empire to the East, to Byzantium, and named the new city Constantinople. It was in this context that the Ecumenical Patriarchate began to take its institutional form that we know today, as the religious and ecclesiastical administrative center of the Orthodox Church worldwide. The Ecumenical Patriarchate and its surrounding areas served as the locations for the seven Ecumenical Councils of the Undivided Christian Church, which were convened over the course of the first millennium.

The Ecumenical Patriarchate continued to exist even after the dissolution of the Byzantine Empire in 1453. It existed and at times even thrived under the rule of the Ottoman Empire and since the founding of the Turkish Republic in the twentieth century. Today, there is great importance for the continued ministry of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in coordinating the affairs of other Orthodox Christian jurisdictions worldwide, in fostering dialogue with other Christian denominations, and in promoting peace, tolerance and reconciliation among the religions of our world.

Despite this realized importance of its ministry, the Ecumenical Patriarchate today continues to suffer from an unfair treatment at the hands of the Turkish state. A tragic instance of this treatment were the riots of 1955, carried out in Smyrna and Istanbul against the Greek Orthodox minority community. These sad phenomena, which were tolerated, if not provoked, by the Turkish government, unjustly, and violently reduced a flourishing community of over 100,000 Greek Orthodox citizens in the city of Istanbul alone to the present day remnant of 2,000-3,000. The effects of this reduction led to an expropriation against the Greek Orthodox community by the Turkish government that continues to this day. Characteristic of this expropriation was the closure of the Theological School of Halki (on the island of Heybeli) in 1971, on the pretext of its being a privately run university level academic institution. In spite of numerous petitions and appeals to the Turkish government for its reopening, including personal appeals made by Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, this government still refuses to allow this important school to reopen.The Theological School of Halki is the only institution of the Ecumenical Patriarchate for the training of its clergy. One cannot underestimate its importance for the essential survival of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

Another major problem facing the Ecumenical Patriarchate today is the continuous confiscation of Church property by the Turkish government, which refuses to recognize titles to Greek Orthodox minority properties purchased or acquired by donation after 1936. Recently, the Supreme Court of Turkey ruled against the Ecumenical Patriarchate, allowing the government to confiscate a very large and historic orphanage belonging to the Greek Orthodox community on the island of Pringipo. Approximately 1400 properties belonging to the Ecumenical Patriarchate have been confiscated, of which 152 were recently taken from the Baloukli hospital in Istanbul. This hospital of the Ecumenical Patriarchate serves the needs of the general Turkish citizenry, with quite advanced centers for drug and alcohol treatment. Today, the Baloukli hospital is threatened with bankruptcy by the recent imposition of an unbearable retroactive tax on the grounds that it is not considered a non-profit organization.

Yet another problem is the refusal of the Turkish government to recognize the legitimate "Ecumenical" title of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. This title refers to the conciliatory role of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in its global ministry. It is a title that is historically established since the sixth century and internationally recognized by political and religious communities, yet the Turkish government refuses to allow the Ecumenical Patriarchate to use this title in all contexts.

There is not only this unhistoric prohibition of the title "Ecumenical Patriarchate," but the Government refuses to allow the Patriarchate to have a legal status as such.

In closing, I would like to express my deep pain and serious concern at the very existence of these phenomena in Turkey today, especially at a time when the international community is especially sensitive to the importance of religious freedom, human rights, and the protection of the rights of religious minorities. These problems are all the more distressing when one considers that the Ecumenical Patriarchate has been a major proponent over the recent years in favor of Turkey's accession to the European Union. It is my hope that the Commission will give urgent attention to these problems so that the Greek Orthodox community of Turkey, together with all other minority communities in Turkey, such as the Jewish and Armenian communities, may be protected in its lawful right to contemplate a secure existence and a prosperous future. Thank you.

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America