Malankara Orthodox Receive Syriac Orthodox Community in California

The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church has received a Syriac Orthodox mission into its jurisdiction in the Los Angeles area, placing the community under the care of Metropolitan Yuhanon Mar Milithios of Thrissur. More here and here.

Turkey to Return Religious Properties

In a decision announced Saturday the Turkish government has committed to returning the numerous churches, synagogues, cemeteries, and formerly church-run hospital, orphanage, and school buildings confiscated from Turkey's native religious and ethnic minorities since the foundation of the modern Turkish state following World War I. Properties already sold to private owners by the Turkish government are to be substituted for financial compensation from the state. The move comes as part of Turkey's ongoing efforts to qualify for membership in the European Union, which has long been concerned by the country's treatment of its non-Turkish citizens. More here.

Suryoyo Appeal for Right of Return to Turkey

A Syriac Orthodox organization, the European Syriac Union, has appealed to the European Commission to pressure the Turkish government to remove obstacles preventing the return of Suryoyo living abroad to their homelands in southeastern Turkey and to introduce constitutional protections securing the legal status and ethnic identity of the Suryoyo still living in Turkey.

Roughly 250,000 Suryoyo live in Western and Central Europe, whereas only 15,000 remain in Turkey, of those the majority living in diaspora within the country in Constantinople. More here.

Turkish University Prepares to Offer Syriac Courses

Artuklu University in the southeastern Anatolian city of Mardin has begun preparations to offer an intensive course in the Syriac language and, in the long run, to open a department specializing in the Syriac language and Suryoyo culture. More here.

Turkey's Syriac Orthodox Christians Fight for Right to Change Surnames

Turkey's Suryoyo minority is challenging the legality of the country's refusal to allow the Suryoyo to adopt their Syriac-language last names as their official surnames. The challenge comes despite a ruling earlier this year of Turkey's Constitutional Court that forbade a Suryoyo man to change his surname. Turkey's requirement that non-Turks bear Turkish-language surnames dates from a 1934 surname law forbidding the use of "foreign" surnames by Turkish citizens. More here.

Suryoyo Candidate for Turkish Parliament Leading in Polls

According to unofficial results Syriac Orthodox Erol Dora has won one of the five seats held by the province of Mardin in the Turkish Parliament. If the results are confirmed Dora will become the first Christian member of the Turkish Parliament in over 50 years. More (in Turkish) here.

Turkish Minister Visits Syriac Orthodox Metropolitan of Constantinople

Turkey's minister for talks with the European Union has visited the seat of the Syriac Orthodox Church in Turkey, St. Mary's Church in Constantinople, and met with Metropolitan Mor Philoxenos (Cetin), head of the patriarchal Vicariate of Constantinople, to discuss the place of Turkey's native Suryoyo minority in Turkish life. More here.

Suryoyo Return to Celebrate Pascha in SE Turkey

A number of Syriac Orthodox Christians from the Suryoyo Diaspora returned to southeastern Turkey this year to celebrate Pascha in their ancestral homeland. The Paschal celebrations, which were held at St. Gabriel's Monastery in Tur Abdin, were encouraged by the mayor of the nearby city of Mardin. More here.

Suryoyo Man Poised to Become First Ethnic Syrian Turkish MP

An independent Suryoyo parliamentary candidate, Erol Dora, may become the first ethnic Syrian to serve in the Turkish Parliament. If elected to Parliament, Erol says that he will be "the voice of the Syriac community as well as all the other ethnicities living in [southeastern Turkey]." More here.

Syriac Orthodox Summer Camp in NJ

The Syriac Orthodox Archdiocese of Teaneck and the Eastern United States has announced that it is sponsoring the United States' first Suryoyo (ethnic Syrian) summer camp this year. More here.

Orthodox Christians to Remain Unrepresented in Turkish Parliament

Despite discussion by an assortment of political parties in Turkey of presenting Armenian candidates for upcoming parliamentary elections none have been nominated by any of the parties currently represented in the Turkish Parliament. Although a minority in Turkey, Armenians are the largest non-Muslim ethnic minority in the country. More here.

Update (12/4/2011): Four non-Muslim candidates will be field in the upcoming elections, two of whom are ethnic Syrians and two of whom are Jews. Of the four only one, a Syrian from southeastern Turkey, seems to have a strong chance of being elected. More here.

Syriac Orthodox Seek Minister in New Lebanese Government

As Lebanon forms its new coalition government the country's Syriac Orthodox minority is hoping for representation in the new council of ministers despite only being allocated one seat in the Lebanese Parliament. More here.