Mor Gabriel Monastery

37.32198441.538448Koordinaten: 37 ° 19 ' 19 " N, 41 ° 32' 18" O

The Syrian Orthodox monastery Mor Gabriel ( Syro -Aramaic ܕ ܝ ܪ ܐ ܕ ܡ ܪ ܝ ܓ ܒ ܪ ܐ ܝ ܠ, also Mar Gabriel monastery or convent Qart (a ) min, Turkish Deyrulumur Manastırı ) is one of the oldest Christian monasteries in the world. It is in the Tur Abdin in southeast Turkey and is still one of the most important monasteries of the Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch and the seat of the metropolitans of Tur Abdin.

Geographical Location

The monastery is located about 20 km southeast of the town of Midyat in the barren mountain landscape of the Tur Abdin (translated " mountain of the servants ," meaning the servants of God ). It is in the area of the Turkish province of Mardin Midyat district.

Name

In the 7th century, the monastery got its usual today named after Bishop Mor Gabriel ( Mor: saint), who resided 634-668 there. The Aramaic name in Latin transcription is Dayro d- mor or Gabriel Dayro d- ' d- mor Umro Gabriel ( German Monastery of Saint Gabriel or the monastery of the Abbey of Saint Gabriel ).

The monastery is also called the Monastery of Qartmin. Qartmin ( Turkish Yayvantepe ) is the name of the neighboring Muslim village today.

History

The monastery was founded in 397 by Shmuel ( Samuel ) and his student Samun (Simon ). Its importance grew rapidly and lived in the 6th century here already up to 1000, both local and Coptic monks. Between 615 and 1049 here was the Episcopal seat of the Tur Abdin. One of the bishops, Mor Gabriel (in office 634-668 ), the monastery is named. In the 7th century it was named after him.

The monastery was an important center for the Syrian Christians of Tur Abdin. It maintained a significant library of today, however, almost nothing remains (some manuscripts are among others in the British Library ), shall The convent school played an important role in theological education in the region and the whole Syrian Church. It formed from many high-ranking clerics and scholars, including four patriarchs, a Catholicos and 84 bishops. Well known was Mor Philoxenus of Mabug († 523 ), an opponent of Chalkedonismus. A quote from him describing the former importance of the monastery: Who seven times with honor and fear visited the monastery, which was founded by the angel, acquire the same merit as if he would visit Jerusalem.

The Built in the early 6th century dome of the monastery consists of radially layered brick and rests on walls of ashlar work and mortar core. The dome inner diameter is 11.50 m.

The monastery was until 1915 a separate diocese. This year, all residents of the monastery were murdered at the instigation of the Ottoman government by Kurds during the genocide of the Christian minorities.

It was not until 1919 could be obtained from Syrian Christians again. In the 1950s, began renovation and extension works and the monastery internal seminary of the monastery of Mor Gabriel, it was set up, which was closed in 1980 by the Turkish government. In the following decades, the water and electricity supply was established and built a road to the monastery and created a garden for the self-sufficiency of residents. To protect the vast monastery gardens and are important for the self-sufficiency of the monastery land from invading herds a wall was built around the monastery a few years ago.

The monastery at the present time

Today, the Syrian Orthodox Christians are a minority in Tur Abdin. The monastery is a social and religious center of the Archdiocese of Tur Abdin and place of pilgrimage. With the consecration of Abbot Mor Timotheos Samuel Aktas archbishop was 1995 Bishop de facto seat of the Tur Abdin (instead of Midyat ). In 2007, besides the bishop lived three monks, about 15 nuns, 40 students and three families of teachers and the monastery farming workers within the monastery walls.

In 1997, a ban against the monasteries of Mor Gabriel and Zafaran was adopted to accommodate foreign guests and to provide language teaching in Aramaic as well as religious instruction from the governor of the province of Mardin. International protests have now causes the accommodation ban is lifted. Mother tongue teaching in Aramaic but is still prohibited.

2007, the reigning abbot of the monastery of St. Jacob in Salah Daniel Savci was kidnapped for two days.

In 2008, the monastery of Mor Gabriel of three Kurdish villages was sued because of " illegal settlement ". Currently, the monastery is the part of state authorities threatened in Turkey through expropriation and dissolution of the monastery operation within the resulting court proceedings. The plaintiffs are supported by local politicians of the ruling AKP. The European Union has sent observers to the process.

In May 2009, the monastery has won a trial in the civil court Midyat against a surrounding community in terms of administrative boundaries. The Court of Cassation in Ankara has the positive for the monastery first instance verdict canceled due to the lack of jurisdiction on August 13, 2010, and referred the jurisdiction of the Administrative Court in Midyat, where the case is to be rolled again.

On June 24, 2009 on 27 acres of land was decided in favor of the Forestry Commission in another process. Against this decision was filed by the counsel of the monastery appeal. In another process, however, claims the tax office Midyat were a negative decision. Another trial was adjourned until the decision of the Supreme Court of Appeals of Turkey in the forest thing and decided in mid-January 2011. Part of this land was awarded to the Turkish state by court order.

The German Federal Government and all parliamentary groups monitor this closely and are committed to a receipt of the monastery. It is considered a ' litmus test ' for dealing with religious minorities in Turkey. On 13 June 2012, the Bundestag debated and decide on two applications submitted.

→ see also religious freedom in Turkey

Abbots of Mor Gabriel

  • Sabo Güneş, to 1962
  • Julius Yeshu Çiçek, 1962-1973
  • Timotheos Samuel Aktas, since 1973
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