page_title: Halki seminary
section_title: Risks to the Seminary
hierarchical_section_title: Halki seminary / Risks to the Seminary
caption_attribution_description: Ayatriada Manastırı (Halki seminary) in Heybeliada, Turkey
context_page_description: The Halki seminary, formally the Theological School of Halki, was founded on 1 October 1844 on the island of Halki, the second-largest of the Princes' Islands in the Sea of Marmara. It was the main school of theology of the Eastern Orthodox Church's Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople until the Turkish parliament enacted a law banning private higher education institutions in 1971. The theological school is located at the top of the island's Hill of Hope, on the site of the Byzantine-era Monastery of the Holy Trinity. The premises of the school continue to be maintained by the monastery and are used to host conferences. It is possible to visit the island where it is located via boat in approximately one hour from the shore of Istanbul. An international campaign to reopen this theological school is ongoing.
context_section_description: In November 2007, the 17th-century Chapel of Our Lord's Transfiguration at the Halki seminary, which had survived the June 1894 earthquake, was almost totally demolished by Forest Guards of the Turkish forestry authority. There was no advance warning given for the demolition work, organised by the Turkish government, and it was only stopped after appeals by the Ecumenical Patriarch.
caption: The Theological School of Halki at the top of the Hill of Hope.
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