Turkish authorities have granted permission for a divine liturgy to be held at the former Orthodox Christian Soumela Monastery on August 15 to mark the feast day of the Dormition of the Theotokos.
The news was confirmed by the Ecumenical Patriarchate, according to Ekathimerini.
The Turkish government originally denied permission for the Patriarchate to hold the feast day ceremony at the monastery located in the mountainous Trabzon region, known to Greeks as Trapezounta.
The Soumela Monastery was founded in the 4th century, built into a sheer cliff above the Black Sea forest in eastern Turkey.
Currently, the Turkish Culture Ministry operate the monastery as a museum. In 2015, the monastery underwent restoration and was reopened to tourists in 2019.
In 2020 and 2021, a liturgy ceremony was approved at the monastery for the Feast Day of the Virgin Mary.
Source: Ekathimerini.
