Spring offers hope to Christians, Muslims at Istanbul church

ISTANBUL- Agence France-Presse

Istanbul's Our Lady of Vefa church, renowned for the fulfillment of wishes, has recently experienced a notable surge in attendance, offering hope to anyone who visits in search of relief from troubling times.

The queue outside Istanbul's Our Lady of Vefa church stretched more than 200 meters, made up of Christians and Muslims chatting animatedly as they waited to make a wish inside this Greek Orthodox sanctuary.

It was a scene that plays out on the first day of every month at this ancient house of worship hidden behind a high wall topped with a metal fence and known in Turkish as "the first-of-the-month church.”

"We came before with friends and every one of our wishes came true!" said Emine Şanlı, a Muslim woman who believes she was cured of a problem with her hands after drinking water from a spring under the church that is blessed by a priest.

"But it's the first time I've seen such a large crowd,” she said.

Some visitors attribute the recent influx of attendees at this historic church to ongoing challenges such as economic difficulties or personal struggles, as well as to the hope it offers individuals of all faiths who come to this site in Istanbul.

A Georgian tourist who also came last year walked alongside the queue handing out sweets to those in line, a Muslim tradition.

"When wishes are coming true... you have to come and give sweets to the people," said 35-year-old Tamar Khurtsidze with a smile.

For Aysun Zırhlı, there is nothing strange in a Muslim making a wish at a church.

"We can all have different religions, but we're all children of God," she said while choosing a sweet.

Inside the church, each person adheres to their own religious practices, whether crossing themselves like Christians or praying with open hands like Muslims.

Descending steps into an underground chapel, a man bent to fill a bottle with holy water from a row of taps set in marble.

There, a sign encourages visitors to wash their hands and face, but not their feet, a common Muslim practice.

Father Hieronymos Sotirelis said the church's appeal had "transcended religious boundaries.”

"The presence of pilgrims from different backgrounds serves to show that we can truly coexist despite, or even because of, our cultural, linguistic, religious and ideological differences," he told AFP.

Our Lady of Vefa is an eloquent testimony to the multicultural past of Istanbul.