[jec1ny]

"Question ~ how many parishioners can you guarantee for Sunday Mass? This is a huge building, very old, and to a degree "delicate". At the moment it serves as a museum ~ mostly of itself, but a museum nonetheless. Istanbul is paying for the upkeep. Who will pay if it is turned into a church?" The church is in need of restoration and upkeep. I would expect and this is certainly going to cost money. But I suspect that money is not going to be hard to come by. If the church were returned tomorrow, I can just about guarantee that this Sunday every Orthodox parish in the world would hold a special collection for the restoration and upkeep of one of the holiest shrines in Christendom. And though I have doubts that such help would be accepted its likely that the catholic Church would "chip in" as well.

[Graves]

""Question ~ how many parishioners can you guarantee for Sunday Mass?"
A good and relevant question it seems to me. Compared to how things were in 1900, Istanbul boasts very few Christians anymore.
When the Roman Emperor gave the "Ecumenical" tag to the Patriarch, he meant that this bishop was imperial, the bishop of the imperial city. That ended in 1453.
The imperial Patriarch is the least these days of all of the Eastern bishops. He's the top dog by custom and by established canon, but only in an honorific sense.
To "rehab" Hagia Sophia as a Christian cathedral is, at this time, an incredible waste of money.
Instead, let's demand that Turkey return all of Cyprus to the Greeks. Better yet, let's demand that all Turks get off the island. And then let's demand the right of Christians to evangelize in Turkey. If we could do that, we could create a situation whereby Hagia Sophia would again at least be useful.