The message that the world-famous Byzantine dome building, which served as both church, mosque and museum, will once again become a mosque came earlier this week. The court decision is deplored by the Russian Orthodox Church and Greece has called it a provocation against the civilized world.
- My thoughts go to Istanbul, says the pope during his weekly angelic prayer at St. Peter's Square.
The verdict was not unexpected, as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan promised his followers to turn the museum into a Muslim shrine. He states that the building will again be used as a mosque at the end of July.
Hagia Sofia was built 532-537 in what was then Constantinople and was for a long time the world's largest church building.