Deeds Moved to the Treasury, Then Handed Back: Turkey Returns a 2,000-Year-Old Monastery to Its Syriac Owners

• Turkey returned the Mor Gabriel Monastery’s title deeds to a Syriac foundation in 2017
• The deeds were transferred to the state treasury in 2014 after a municipal reorganisation
• The return covers the church, cemetery and affiliated fields
• The Syriac patriarch asked for other ancient churches and cemeteries to be returned too

Turkey has returned the 2,000-year-old Mor Gabriel Monastery in Mardin province to its Syriac Christian community, Hürriyet Daily News reported on November 23, 2017, citing Anadolu Agency.

When Mardin became a metropolitan municipality in 2014, the monastery’s title deeds were transferred to the state treasury. After opposition, the properties were reassigned to the Directorate of Religious Affairs and then to the General Directorate of Foundations, before being returned to the Mor Gabriel Monastery Foundation. The return covers the monastery’s church, cemetery and affiliated fields.

“We very much appreciate the transfer of the 2,000-year-old monastery, church and affiliated fields,” said Kuryakos Ergun, head of the foundation. Deputy Prime Minister Hakan Çavuşoğlu was among the officials involved. Patriarch Gabriel Akyüz asked for ownership of other Syriac churches, monasteries and cemeteries dating from the fourth to sixth centuries to be transferred as well.

An administrative change in 2014 had been enough to move ancient church property into state hands.

The Mor Gabriel case shows that even a very old church can lose its title through a change in local government structures. In Jamaica, parish boundaries, municipal reorganisation and land registry updates rarely threaten church land, but they can create confusion over old titles. Churches with land held on very old deeds should make sure their titles are registered and current, and should respond quickly to any official notice affecting ownership.

Follow Jamaica Homes on Youtube @jamaicahomes and Instagram @jamaica_homes and on Facebook @jamaicahomesnews Send us a message or email us at onlinefeedback@jamaica-homes.com or editor@jamaica-homes.com