Bill Text: IN SR0004 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urging Turkey to eliminate discriminating Ecumenical practices.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-04 - First reading: referred to Committee on Rules and Legislative Procedure [SR0004 Detail]
Download: Indiana-2012-SR0004-Introduced.html
A SENATE RESOLUTION urging the government of Turkey to cease its discrimination against the Ecumenical Patriarchate, to grant the Ecumenical Patriarch appropriate international recognition, ecclesiastical succession, and the right to train clergy of all nationalities, and to respect the property rights and human rights of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
January 4, 2012, read first time and referred to Committee on Rules and Legislative
Procedure.
MADAM PRESIDENT:
I offer the following resolution and move its adoption:
A SENATE RESOLUTION urging the government of Turkey to
cease its discrimination against the Ecumenical Patriarchate, to grant
the Ecumenical Patriarch appropriate international recognition,
ecclesiastical succession, and the right to train clergy of all
nationalities, and to respect the property rights and human rights of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate.
Whereas, The Ecumenical Patriarchate, located in
Istanbul, Turkey, is the sacred See that presides in a spirit of
brotherhood over a communion of the self-governing
churches of the Orthodox Christian world;
Whereas, The See is led by Ecumenical Patriarch
Bartholomew, who is 270th in direct succession to St.
Andrew the Apostle and holds titular primacy as primus inter
pares, meaning "first among equals," in the community of
Orthodox churches worldwide;
Whereas, In 1994, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew,
along with leaders of the Appeal of Conscience Foundation,
cosponsored the Conference on Peace and Tolerance,
bringing together Christian, Jewish, and Muslim religious
leaders for an interfaith dialogue to help end the Balkan
conflict and the ethnic conflict in the Caucasus region;
Whereas, In 1997, the Congress of the United States
awarded Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew a
Congressional Gold Medal;
Whereas, Following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on our nation, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew gathered a group of international religious leaders to produce the first joint statement with Muslim leaders condemning the attacks as "anti-religious";
Whereas, In November 2005, the Ecumenical Patriarch,
along with Christian, Jewish, and Muslim leaders,
cosponsored the Conference on Peace and Tolerance II to
further promote peace and stability in southeastern Europe,
the Caucasus region, and Central Asia via religious leaders'
interfaith dialogue, understanding, and action;
Whereas, The Orthodox Christian Church, in existence
for nearly 2,000 years, numbers approximately 300 million
members worldwide, with more than 2 million members in
the United States;
Whereas, Since 1453, the continuing presence of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate in Turkey has been a living
testament to the religious coexistence of Christians and
Muslims;
Whereas, This religious coexistence is in jeopardy
because the government of Turkey refuses to recognize the
rights and religious freedoms of the Ecumenical
Patriarchate, which is considered a minority religion by the
Turkish government;
Whereas, The Turkish government has limited eligibility
to hold the office of Ecumenical Patriarch to only Turkish
nationals;
Whereas, From the millions of Orthodox Christians
living in Turkey at the turn of the 20th century, there are
fewer than 3,000 of the Ecumenical Patriarch's flock in
Turkey today, due to the continued policies of minority
discrimination during this period by the Turkish government;
Whereas, The Turkish government has reneged on its agreement to reopen the Theological School on the island of Halki, closed by the government in 1971, impeding training
for Orthodox Christian clergy;
Whereas, The Turkish government has confiscated nearly
94 percent of the properties of the Ecumenical Patriarchate
and has placed a 42 percent tax, retroactive to 1999, on the
Hospital of Baloukli and Home for the Elderly, a charity
hospital run by the Ecumenical Patriarchate;
Whereas, The European Union, a group of nations with
a common goal of promoting peace and the well-being of its
people, began accession negotiations with Turkey on October
3, 2005;
Whereas, The European Union defined membership
criteria for accession at the Copenhagen European Council
in 1993, obligating candidate countries to achieve certain
levels of reform, including stability of institutions
guaranteeing democracy, adherence to the rule of law, and
respect for and protection of minorities and human rights;
Whereas, The Turkish government's current treatment of
the Ecumenical Patriarchate is inconsistent with the
membership conditions and goals of the European Union;
Whereas, Orthodox Christians in Indiana and throughout
the United States stand to lose their spiritual leader due to
the continued actions of the Turkish government; and
Whereas, In November 2006, the Archons of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate of the order of St. Andrew the
Apostle, a group of laymen, each of whom has been honored
with a Patriarchal title, or "offikion," by the Ecumenical
Patriarch for their outstanding service to the Orthodox
Church, sent an American delegation to Turkey to meet with
Turkish government officials and the United States
Ambassador to the Republic of Turkey regarding the Turkish
government's treatment of the Ecumenical Patriarchate:
Therefore,
SECTION 1. That the Indiana Senate urges the Turkish government to uphold and safeguard religious and human rights without compromise, cease its discrimination against the Ecumenical Patriarchate, grant the Ecumenical Patriarch appropriate international recognition, ecclesiastic succession, and the right to train clergy of all nationalities, and respect the property rights and human rights of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
SECTION 2. That copies of this resolution be transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the President of the United States, the United States Ambassador to the Republic of Turkey, and the Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to the United States.
