Summary
Ecumenical Patriarch (in office 1936-1946) who received Niqula Khoury and Emile al-Ghouri in the Phanar in Istanbul on 7th September 1937 (‘The House of the Priest’: A Palestinian Life (1885-1954), PDF p.133, editors’ note).
Details
- Benjamin blamed the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem for not giving enough attention to the Palestinian cause and expressed regrets at being unable to make a formal proclamation because the Turkish authorities had forbidden him political involvement; he promised to ask the Greek representative in Istanbul to help and to submit a report to the League of Nations concerning the holy places and ask the Greek government to stand by the delegation (PDF p.133-134).
- Khoury quotes him: “when the Pope speaks he has those who would back him up, when the Archbishop of Canterbury does he has his supporters, but as for me, the prisoner of this place, robbed of all freedom and autonomy, who shall stand by me or back me up if I speak?” (PDF p.134).
- He ordered one of his clergymen to accompany the delegation on a tour of Istanbul’s historical and archaeological places (PDF p.135).
Related pages
‘The House of the Priest’: A Palestinian Life (1885-1954), Niqula Khoury, Status Quo (Holy Places)