Halki seminary
Encyclopedia
The Halki seminary, formally the Theological School of Halki , was founded on 1 October 1844 on the island of Halki (now called Heybeliada), the second-largest of the Princes' Islands
in the Sea of Marmara
. It was the main school of theology of the Eastern Orthodox Church
's Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
until the Turkish
government stopped its use in 1971. The theological school is located at the top of the island's Hill of Hope, on the site of the Byzantine
-era Monastery of the Holy Trinity. The premises of the school continue to be maintained by the monastery and are used to host conferences. It is possible to visit the island where it is located via boat in approximately one hour from the shore of Istanbul. As of January 2011, an international campaign to reopen this theological school is entering its 40th year as noted by American Senator Benjamin L. Cardin of Maryland
in the United States Congress
during the 2nd Session of Proceedings and Debates of the 111th Congress.
is located on the site of the Monastery of the Holy Trinity, founded by Patriarch Photius I almost a thousand years before the foundation of the theological school. During Ottoman
rule the monastery fell in to disrepair. In 1844, Patriarch Germanos IV converted the monastery into a school of theology, which was inaugurated on 1 October 1844. All the buildings, except for the 17th-century chapel, were destroyed by an earthquake in June 1894, but were rebuilt by architect Periklis Fotiadis and inaugurated on 6 October 1896. These buildings were also renovated in the 1950s.
When established in 1844, the school had seven grades, four high school level and three higher level (theological grades). In 1899, the high school division was dissolved and the school functioned as an academy with five grades. In 1923, on the establishment of the Turkish Republic
, the seven-grade system was restored (4 high school + 3 higher level). In 1951, it was changed to 3 high school + 4 higher level.
The facilities include the Chapel of the Holy Trinity, sports and recreational institutions, dormitories, an infirmary, a hospice, offices, and the school's library with its historic collection of books, journals, and manuscripts. The library contains over 120,000 books.
There have been 990 graduates of the theological school and many have become priests, bishops, archbishops, scholars, and patriarchs. Many former students are buried in the grounds of the school. Orthodox Christians from around the world have attended and graduated from the theological school and the alumni are distributed around the world.
that:
However, Article 132 stated that:
Halki's Board of Trustees could not agree to supervision by the state. Consequently, the seminary section of the Halki school was closed down and although the high school remains open the Turkish government no longer permits students to attend it. The school is currently only used for conferences, including the International Environmental Symposium.
On 2 November 1998 Halki's Board of Trustees were ordered to disband by an agency of the Turkish government. International criticism caused the order to be rescinded on 25 November 1998.
visited Halki on his visit to Turkey in 1999 and urged Turkish President Süleyman Demirel
to allow the reopening of the school. In October 1998, both houses of the United States Congress
passed resolutions that supported the reopening of Halki. The European Union
has also raised the issue as part of its negotiations over Turkish accession to the EU
. However, the school remains closed, and there is strong opposition to reopening it from Turkey's nationalist and Islamist parties, particularly the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP)
and the Felicity Party (SP), but also the secular Republican People's Party (CHP)
, and indeed among the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)
as well.
In a speech before the Turkish Parliament on 6 April 2009, US President Barack Obama
re-affirmed the need for Turkey to allow the re-opening of the Halki seminary:
These sentiments were echoed by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a dinner in Washington honoring their guest the Ecumenical Patriarch.
Commentators have noted that while the Turkish government may outwardly seem willing to reopen the seminary, actual moves to do so are not underway because of internal political obstacles. Arrangements for reopening necessitate constitutional amendments, which may be used as a tool by opposition parties to fuel nationalist rhetoric.
In 2010, a journalist of the Turkish newspaper Today's Zaman
asked officials at the Ecumenical Patriarchate if there were any plans to take the issue to the European Court of Human Rights
. Patriarchate officials responded that they did not want to pursue that course of action, however Patriarch Bartholomew has indicated that they may well have to if there is no progress towards the re-opening of the theological school.
Princes' Islands
The Princes' Islands , are a chain of nine islands off the coast of Istanbul, Turkey, in the Sea of Marmara. The islands also constitute the Adalar district of Istanbul Province...
in the Sea of Marmara
Sea of Marmara
The Sea of Marmara , also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, and in the context of classical antiquity as the Propontis , is the inland sea that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea, thus separating Turkey's Asian and European parts. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Black...
. It was the main school of theology of the Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
's Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople , part of the wider Orthodox Church, is one of the fourteen autocephalous churches within the communion of Orthodox Christianity...
until the Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
government stopped its use in 1971. The theological school is located at the top of the island's Hill of Hope, on the site of the Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
-era Monastery of the Holy Trinity. The premises of the school continue to be maintained by the monastery and are used to host conferences. It is possible to visit the island where it is located via boat in approximately one hour from the shore of Istanbul. As of January 2011, an international campaign to reopen this theological school is entering its 40th year as noted by American Senator Benjamin L. Cardin of Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
in the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
during the 2nd Session of Proceedings and Debates of the 111th Congress.
History
The seminarySeminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
is located on the site of the Monastery of the Holy Trinity, founded by Patriarch Photius I almost a thousand years before the foundation of the theological school. During Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
rule the monastery fell in to disrepair. In 1844, Patriarch Germanos IV converted the monastery into a school of theology, which was inaugurated on 1 October 1844. All the buildings, except for the 17th-century chapel, were destroyed by an earthquake in June 1894, but were rebuilt by architect Periklis Fotiadis and inaugurated on 6 October 1896. These buildings were also renovated in the 1950s.
When established in 1844, the school had seven grades, four high school level and three higher level (theological grades). In 1899, the high school division was dissolved and the school functioned as an academy with five grades. In 1923, on the establishment of the Turkish Republic
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, the seven-grade system was restored (4 high school + 3 higher level). In 1951, it was changed to 3 high school + 4 higher level.
The facilities include the Chapel of the Holy Trinity, sports and recreational institutions, dormitories, an infirmary, a hospice, offices, and the school's library with its historic collection of books, journals, and manuscripts. The library contains over 120,000 books.
There have been 990 graduates of the theological school and many have become priests, bishops, archbishops, scholars, and patriarchs. Many former students are buried in the grounds of the school. Orthodox Christians from around the world have attended and graduated from the theological school and the alumni are distributed around the world.
Enforced closure
In 1971, parts of the Private University Law were ruled unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court of Turkey, which ruled that all private colleges must be affiliated with a state-run university; subsequently all private institutions of higher education either became part of state universities or closed down. It was stated in Article 130 of the Turkish Constitution of 1961Turkish Constitution of 1961
The Constitution of 1961 was the fundamental law of Turkey from 1961 to 1982. It was introduced following the 1960 coup d'état, replacing the earlier Constitution of 1924. It was approved in a referendum held on 9 July 1961, with 61.7% of the nation voting in favor...
that:
However, Article 132 stated that:
Halki's Board of Trustees could not agree to supervision by the state. Consequently, the seminary section of the Halki school was closed down and although the high school remains open the Turkish government no longer permits students to attend it. The school is currently only used for conferences, including the International Environmental Symposium.
On 2 November 1998 Halki's Board of Trustees were ordered to disband by an agency of the Turkish government. International criticism caused the order to be rescinded on 25 November 1998.
Demolition of a 17th-century chapel
In November 2007, the 17th-century chapel of Our Lord's Transfiguration at the Halki seminary, that had survived the June 1894 earthquake, was almost totally demolished by Forest Guards of the Turkish forestry authority. There was no advance warning given for the demolition work, organised by the Turkish government, and it was only stopped after appeals by the Ecumenical Patriarch.Campaign to reopen the seminary
The Halki seminary has received international attention in recent years. US President Bill ClintonBill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
visited Halki on his visit to Turkey in 1999 and urged Turkish President Süleyman Demirel
Süleyman Demirel
Sami Süleyman Gündoğdu Demirel, better known as Süleyman Demirel , is a Turkish politician who served as Prime Minister seven times and was the ninth President of Turkey.-Life:Demirel was born in İslamköy, a town in Isparta Province...
to allow the reopening of the school. In October 1998, both houses of the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
passed resolutions that supported the reopening of Halki. The European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
has also raised the issue as part of its negotiations over Turkish accession to the EU
Accession of Turkey to the European Union
Turkey's application to accede to the European Union was made on 14 April 1987. Turkey has been an associate member of the European Union and its predecessors since 1963...
. However, the school remains closed, and there is strong opposition to reopening it from Turkey's nationalist and Islamist parties, particularly the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP)
Nationalist Movement Party
The Nationalist Movement Party , is a far-right political party in Turkey.In the 2002 general elections, the party had lost its 129 seats as it had won only 8.34% of the national vote...
and the Felicity Party (SP), but also the secular Republican People's Party (CHP)
Republican People's Party (Turkey)
The Republican People's Party is a centre-left Kemalist political party in Turkey. It is the oldest political party of Turkey and is currently Main Opposition in the Grand National Assembly. The Republican People's Party describes itself as "a modern social-democratic party, which is faithful to...
, and indeed among the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)
Justice and Development Party (Turkey)
The Justice and Development Party , abbreviated JDP in English and AK PARTİ or AKP in Turkish, is a centre-right political party in Turkey. The party is the largest in Turkey, with 327 members of parliament...
as well.
In a speech before the Turkish Parliament on 6 April 2009, US President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
re-affirmed the need for Turkey to allow the re-opening of the Halki seminary:
These sentiments were echoed by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a dinner in Washington honoring their guest the Ecumenical Patriarch.
Commentators have noted that while the Turkish government may outwardly seem willing to reopen the seminary, actual moves to do so are not underway because of internal political obstacles. Arrangements for reopening necessitate constitutional amendments, which may be used as a tool by opposition parties to fuel nationalist rhetoric.
In 2010, a journalist of the Turkish newspaper Today's Zaman
Today's Zaman
Today's Zaman is one of two English-language dailies based in Turkey. Established on January 16, 2007, the newspaper's main competitor is the older Hürriyet Daily News....
asked officials at the Ecumenical Patriarchate if there were any plans to take the issue to the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
. Patriarchate officials responded that they did not want to pursue that course of action, however Patriarch Bartholomew has indicated that they may well have to if there is no progress towards the re-opening of the theological school.
Alumni
In the history of the theological school there have been 990 graduates in total. The alumni include:- Saint Chrysostomos of SmyrnaChrysostomos of SmyrnaChrysostomos Kalafatis , known as Saint Chrysostomos of Smyrna, Chrysostomos of Smyrna and Metropolitan Chrysostom, was the Greek Orthodox bishop of Smyrna between 1910 and 1914, and again from 1919 to his death in 1922...
- Saint Raphael of BrooklynRaphael of BrooklynSaint Raphael of Brooklyn , also known as Father Raphael, was born as Raphael Hawaweeny in Beirut, Lebanon, of Damascene Syrian parents...
- Antim IAntim IAntim I , born Atanas Mihaylov Chalakov , was a Bulgarian education figure and clergyman, and a participant in the Bulgarian liberation and church-independence movement. He was the first head of the Bulgarian Exarchate, a post he held from 1872 to 1877...
- Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople
- Ecumenical Patriarch Demetrios I of Constantinople
- Patriarch Athenagoras I of ConstantinoplePatriarch Athenagoras I of ConstantinopleEcumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I , born Aristocles Spyrou was the 268th Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 1948 to 1972.-Life:...
- Patriarch Constantine VI of ConstantinoplePatriarch Constantine VI of ConstantinopleConstantine VI was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from December 17, 1924 till January 30, 1925, for 43 days. He served as a locum tenens following the death of Patriarch Gregory VII in 1924....
- Patriarch Germanus V of ConstantinoplePatriarch Germanus V of ConstantinopleGermanus V was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 28 January 1913 till 1918. He was educated in Jerusalem and Athens before attending the Theological School of Halki....
- Patriarch Maximus V of ConstantinoplePatriarch Maximus V of ConstantinopleMaximus V Vaportzis was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 1946 till 1948.He was born in Sinop. He was first educated, under the Metropolitan of Amaseia Germanos Karavaggelis's protection, at the Theological School of Halki. In 1918 he was ordained a Deacon.With this appointment he also...
- Patriarch Parthenius III of AlexandriaPatriarch Parthenius III of AlexandriaParthenius III served as the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria between 1987 and 1996. Patriarch Parthenius III died of a heart attack in 1996, during his vacations in the Greek islands.-References:...
- Archbishop Chrysanthus of AthensArchbishop Chrysanthus of AthensArchbishop Chrysanthus of Athens , born Charilaos Filippidis , was the Archbishop of Athens and all Greece between 1938 and 1941He was born in 1881 in Gratini, Thrace, then part of the Ottoman Empire...
- Archbishop Spyridon of Athens
- Archbishop Spyridon of AmericaArchbishop Spyridon of AmericaArchbishop Spyridon of America is a retired Greek Orthodox bishop of the Ecumenical Patriarchate who was the archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America from July 1996 to August 1999...
- Archbishop Michael of AmericaArchbishop Michael of AmericaArchbishop Michael , born Thucydides Konstantinides , in Maroneia of Western Thrace, was the Primate of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America from December 18, 1949 until his death on July 13, 1958...
- Archbishop Iakovos of America
- Archbishop StylianosArchbishop StylianosStylianos Harkianakis is the Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Australia, and Primate of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia. He serves as inaugural and permanent Chairman of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Churches in Australia and Dean of Saint Andrew's Greek Orthodox...
- Cornelius of Petra
- Christoforos KnitisChristoforos KnitisChristoforos Knitis was a Greek Orthodox bishop in the Metropolis of Australia and New Zealand from 1924 to 1928.-Overview:...
- Makarios IIMakarios IIMakarios II was Archbishop of Cyprus from 1947 until 1950. He was born Michail Charalambous Papaioannou in the village of Prodromos in 1870. In 1895, he was ordained a deacon and left Cyprus for further education...
- Ioakeim MartianosIoakeim MartianosIoakeim Martianos , was a Greek Orthodox bishop and author.Martianos was born in Moscopole, modern southern Albania, and later graduated at the Halki seminary in Istambul...
- Metropolitan Nikiforos of Didymoteicho, Orestiada and SoufliMetropolitan Nikiforos of Didymoteicho, Orestiada and SoufliMetropolitan Nikiforos was the metropolitan bishop of Didymoteicho, Orestiada and Soufli from 1988 until his death...
- Metropolitan Panteleimon of BelgiumMetropolitan Panteleimon of BelgiumMetropolitan Panteleimon of Belgium , , is the Metropolitan of Belgium and Exarch of The Netherlands and Luxembourg, under the spiritual leadership of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. He is a graduate of the Theological Institute of Halki seminary, Istanbul...
- Theophylactos PapathanasopoulosTheophylactos PapathanasopoulosTheophylactos Papathanasopoulos was a Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Bishop in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia.-Overview:...
- Panteleimon KotokosPanteleimon KotokosPanteleimon Kotokos was the Greek Orthodox bishop of Gjirokastër and a member of the exiled Northern Epirus lobby after the end of World War II....
- Nikolaos XexakisNikolaos XexakisNikolaos Xexakis is a Professor and current Moderator of the Theology section of the Faculty of Theology in the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.-Biography:...
See also
- Byzantine philosophyByzantine philosophyByzantine philosophy refers to the distinctive philosophical ideas of the philosophers and scholars of the Byzantine Empire, especially between the 8th and 15th centuries...
- Essence–Energies distinction (Eastern Orthodox theology)
- Philotheos BryenniosPhilotheos BryenniosPhilotheos Bryennios was a Greek Orthodox metropolitan of Nicomedia, and the discoverer in 1873 of an important manuscript with copies of early Church documents.-Life:...