After 12 years, Turkey closes the door on American church volunteer
After 12 years serving a church in Turkey voluntarily and peacefully, Jerry Mattix suddenly is on the country's blacklist.
Officially, the government has deemed Mattix a threat to national security. Yet the police have told him he is "welcome" to apply for a visa.
Such is the perplexing state of affairs in Turkey's southeast province of Diyarbakir, where Mattix and several other once-welcome Christian foreigners have become personae non gratae. Read more
Ancient Byzantine Church Turned Into Mosque in Turkey
It was in Turkey that the followers of Jesus were called "Christians" for the first time in history, but this nation is making efforts to erase its Christian past, as reflected in the conversion of an ancient Byzantine church into a mosque.
The Hagia Sophia Museum, a former Greek Orthodox church in the Black Sea city of Trabzon, was used this month for the first Friday prayers of Ramadan, reports International Business Times.
The mufti of Trabzon was joined by local Muslim residents for the Islamic prayers in the 13th century church building on July 5. The Christian murals have been covered with curtains, and the bell dome is being used as a minaret. Read more
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