For the third consecutive year, the historic Panagia Soumela monastery in Turkey’s Black Sea region (Pontus) will not host a Divine Liturgy on August 15 on the occasion of the Dormition of Virgin Mary. Turkish authorities have denied permission for the Ecumenical Patriarchate to observe thi holy occasion for millions of Christians on its traditional date at the site.
Instead, regional officials granted approval for a service eight days later, on August 23. This date marks the Apodosis, or the leave-taking of the feast, traditionally known in Greek as the Enniamera. The Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople confirmed the altered schedule, indicating that the restrictive decision from Ankara was largely expected.
Why Turkey keeps banning the Panagia Sumela Liturgy
The scheduling ban stems from ongoing political pressure exerted by Turkish nationalist organizations. These domestic factions argue that August 15 coincides with the anniversary of the Ottoman Empire’s conquest of Trabzon in 1461. Through targeted campaigns and public statements, they claim that allowing a prominent Christian Orthodox religious ceremony on this specific date diminishes the historical victory of their Ottoman ancestors.
The Turkish government has accommodated these demands since 2024, ending a period of religious access that began over a decade ago.
Panagia Soumela holds profound spiritual and cultural significance for Orthodox Christians, particularly those of Pontic Greek descent. Perched on a sheer cliff face in the Macka district of the Trabzon (Trapezous – Trapezounta) province, the ancient monastic complex remained silent and largely abandoned for nearly nine decades. This period of disuse followed the compulsory population exchange between Greece and Turkey in 1923, which uprooted the region’s indigenous Greek Orthodox community.
In 2010, the Turkish government allowed the Ecumenical Patriarchate to resume the annual August 15 Liturgy. The event was widely covered as a major step forward for minority religious rights in the predominantely-Muslim country.
Thousands of pilgrims from Greece, Cyprus, Russia and the global Greek diaspora traveled to the Pontus region each summer. The mid-August service quickly became a focal point for Pontic Greeks seeking to reconnect with their ancestral homeland.
Moving the permitted service to August 23 maintains a basic level of worship at the monastery, but it has fundamentally disrupted the pilgrimage that usually culminates on August 15.
Representatives of the diaspora note a sharp decline in attendance over the past two years. During the delayed services held in 2024 and 2025, crowds were noticeably sparse compared to the thousands who gathered between 2010 and 2023.
A significant factor driving this decline is administrative unpredictability. Over the last three years, the Turkish government has delayed issuing the final permits for the August 23 service until the very last minute. This bureaucratic uncertainty leaves organizers and the faithful completely unsure if the liturgy will proceed, making international travel logistics highly difficult to finalize for the diaspora community.
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