Thousands of Christians in Turkey celebrated Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in various ceremonies and events in churches across the country. In Hatay, where the Turkish Christian community is particularly large, this year’s celebrations were marred by the memory of the thousands who died during the devastating earthquakes of 6 February, which hit this southern Turkish province particularly hard.
Many mosques and churches in Hatay are still in ruins, and the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antakya (Antioch), Yuhanna Yazıcı, had to officiate at the Christmas service in a tent set up next to the ruins of the Great Orthodox Church of Antakya, in a ceremony that paid tribute to the victims of the earthquakes and called for peace in the world. Although Turkey is a Muslim-majority country – according to official figures, more than 85% of the population follows the Hanafi school of Sunni Islam – an estimated 250,000 Christians live in the country, the largest group being Armenian Orthodox Christians.
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Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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