After Hagia Sophia, Turkey's historic Chora church also switched to mosque https://t.co/TH1thtsWWf pic.twitter.com/OE8PumesUU

— Reuters (@Reuters) August 21, 2020

Chora church a ‘three-dimensional work of art’ https://t.co/dkkUXogqoK pic.twitter.com/sv0ay5l8h5

— Kathimerini English Edition (@ekathimerini) August 31, 2020

Usually, countries like to maintain its heritage, or turning it to museums.
Not #Turkey, where old churches either converted to mosques, or demolished!#Erdogan likes to wipe any inconvenient past! https://t.co/nEqS1nngal

— Nervana Mahmoud (@Nervana_1) September 2, 2020

This hits me hard. This lovely church-mosque-cultural center in Bursa/Turkey was part of a research project I conducted in 2012, when I was investigating the role of religious heritage in peace-building between Turkey and Greece (a mini thread 👇)https://t.co/X7epIePs0j

— Tugba Tanyeri-Erdemir (@TurkishFacade) September 2, 2020

After the compulsory population exchange between Greece and Turkey in 1923, many of these 19th century churches in Turkey were left without their communities. Same applied to Greece as well, many mosques were left without communities.

— Tugba Tanyeri-Erdemir (@TurkishFacade) September 2, 2020

In 2006, the major, who is from the village of Ozluce and descendant of an exchangee family, decided to restore the church/mosque and reopen it as a cultural center. He was inspired by the Greek visitors of exchangee origin, who came looking for memories of their family roots.

— Tugba Tanyeri-Erdemir (@TurkishFacade) September 2, 2020

The restoration of this church, and several others in the area, fostered a vibrant period of tourism, where former Greek-Orthodox inhabitants of the region came in tours, joined the locals in folkloric festivals, visited their churches, sang and eat with the current residents.

— Tugba Tanyeri-Erdemir (@TurkishFacade) September 2, 2020

So, this simple act of restoration made a significant positive impact on building relationships between two communities who shared a common history of separation from a place. It gave both communities a sense of common belonging and empathy. It made a peaceful future possible.

— Tugba Tanyeri-Erdemir (@TurkishFacade) September 2, 2020

This hits me hard particularly hard today, at a time when we need peace across the Mediterranean more than ever. This collapsed building, and what it represents to me, hurts me deeply.

— Tugba Tanyeri-Erdemir (@TurkishFacade) September 2, 2020