Christianity is growing steadily in Turkey, but challenges remain amidst increasing hostility, with reports claiming that foreign Christians are being denied entry into the country.
Christianity has grown exponentially in the west-Asian country, according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide’s (CSW) Research and Advocacy Officer for the Middle East and North Africa, who told en that a total of about 100 Christians in the 1980s has grown into about 100 congregations today. However, religious minorities find themselves “increasingly vulnerable to hate speech, discrimination and intolerance”.
The Turkish church is “small and scattered, nearly invisible”, according to Forgotten Missionaries International’s (FMI) Bruce Allen, with only about 20 to 30 indigenous churches across Istanbul and Ankara, which have a combined population of 22 million.
This, along with the fact that Christians are not allowed to construct church buildings for worship, presents challenges, as many who come to faith through online activity are unable to find a local church and are discouraged, ridiculed and even threatened by Muslim relatives.
Allen reported that some FMI partners have been able to rent office space, residential flats and storefronts for their churches. However, pressure on landlords from radical Muslims often leads to them being unable to remain, due to a refusal to renew their lease or vastly increased prices.
The CSW officer, who wished to remain anonymous, spoke about the challenges the Turkish church faces: “There has been a surge in the expression of anti-Christian sentiments in pro-government media, and there are increasing reports of incidents of bullying and intimidation of Christian students in schools.
“Recent years have also seen a concerning uptick in the expulsion of foreign Christian workers and other individuals residing in Turkey, after they were informed they had received a code known as an N-82 in their file, [which is] a security designation barring them from re-entry without prior permission. CSW has also received reports of this practice having spread to Northern Cyprus amid an increase in anti-Christian sentiment.”
