Turkish Press
Nov 28 2008
Furor Over The Pope
Published: 11/28/2008
BY YILMAZ OZTUNA
TURKIYE- Pope Benedict XVI, just as Armenian Foreign Minister Edward
Nalbandian was on a visit to Turkey, let loose a bombshell. The
pontiff said that Armenians had been subjected to genocide by Turks in
1915.
A furor ensued. The Vatican’s delicate diplomatic balance has been
lost. There are harsh accusations. The Turkish-Armenian rapprochement
became anxious.
Most Armenians are Gregorian Orthodox, and a large minority is
Catholic, while a small minority is Protestant. The Vatican’s policy
is to woo Orthodox believers, whatever country they are from, to
increase Catholic hegemony. Centuries ago, when the pope was on the
verge of swallowing the Orthodoxy (a Catholic ceremony was even held
by a cardinal in Hagia Sofia) in the name of the Holy Roman Emperor,
Mehmet the Conqueror’s giving protection to the Orthodox patriarch and
Orthodox believers was a huge blow to the pope and Catholics. It
changed the history of Europe.
Turkey’s denial of the title of the Fener patriarch, which is
recognized by 200 states, and our move to close schools which were
left untouched even by Mehmet the Conqueror and Ataturk, the founder
of the Republic of Turkey, are hampering our influence and harming
Turkey.
The pope, who knows history better than us, couldn’t hide his anxiety,
looking through the lens of his nostalgia over his days in a Nazi
youth group. He panicked over the possibility of rapprochement with
Turkey of the Orthodox and Echmiadzin (Armenian) patriarchs.
In fact, Benedict didn’t help the cause of world peace. He wanted to
keep the hostility alive by agitating both sides. He forgot the
Spanish Inquisition has a past full of genocides. He accused us, the
Turks. It cast a shadow over our relations with the Vatican, where
Turkey has an ambassador. We had assumed the pope was wiser than the
irresponsible Western politicians who go after various interests.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
