Post by Vittorio Da Rold

President Erdogan reportedly favors reopening the Halki Orthodox Christian Seminary in Turkey, an issue at the center of Trump's attention On Sunday, June 21, according to Reuters, Turkish President Tayyip Recep Erdogan, head of the pro-Islamic AKP party, ordered his leadership to resume talks on reopening a Christian Orthodox seminary near Istanbul. This issue has been raised by US President Donald Trump, who is scheduled to visit Ankara next month for a NATO summit, an alliance of which Turkey is an integral member as a member of the Mediterranean region. The Halki Seminary, founded in 1844 and closed by the Turkish state in 1971, played a central role in the Eastern Orthodox Church as the main theological school of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. It has educated generations of Orthodox clergy, including the current Patriarch Bartholomew, who resides in Istanbul. According to the Greek newspaper Kathimerini, the principal newspaper in Greece, the reopening of the seminary is important for the Patriarchate's ability to train future high-ranking prelates. Patriarch Bartholomew, supported by Greece, the European Union, and the United States, has long fought for its reopening. His strenuous battle now appears to have achieved a resounding result. The Halki Seminary, founded in 1844 and closed by the Turkish state in 1971, played a central role in the Eastern Orthodox Church as the main theological school of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. It has trained generations of Orthodox clergy, including the current Patriarch Bartholomew, who resides in Istanbul.