"The Akhtamar Church on an island off the southern shore of lake Van in eastern Anatolia is expected to be opened on April 15 after completion of an ongoing renovation. Turkey has already spent YTL 3 million (nearly $2 million) to restore the church, Koç said in an interview with Turkish daily Today's Zaman. Asked whether the renovation was an attempt to counter Armenian genocide claims, Koç clearly dismissed it.
"We repair the houses of worship of not only monotheistic but also polytheistic religions," said the minister. "We consider them our inherited legacy. … We consider them as our wealth."
Notice how common it is for Muslims to refer to any Christian religion as polytheistic.
JTW Interview - 'Armenian Diaspora Invited to Church Opening'
2 comments:
For what it's worth, I think it's a bit of a stretch to say Koc was applying "polytheistic" to Christians or church-goers. It seems more like he was trying to play down the possibility of the restoration of a church, an Armenian church, as being a _unique_ way in which to ease tensions by stating that it's not just Armenian churches that get restored (they also restore houses of worship from polytheistic religions - temples, etc.).
Of course, the restoration is probably aimed at doing _just that_, and getting a little more tourist revenue
: )
You know, after reading it again, I think you're right. It seems like I was imposing my own prejudice view on what I was reading.
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