Becoming Protestant: Greek Orthodox Responses to Conversion in 19th-Century Ottoman Anatolia

Abstract

During the nineteenth century, through American missionaries’ efforts, some, albeit a small portion, of the Greek Orthodox subjects of the Ottoman sultan adopted Protestantism. This article explores various incidents of libel and violence, and the punishments of exile or banishment which the Greek Protestants faced. This study is mainly based on the official documentation at the Prime Ministry Ottoman Archives, and to a lesser extent, on the annual reports of the missionary organization, the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. The article investigates the disputes between the Orthodox and the Protestant Greeks Rum in various parts of Anatolia, namely Izmir, Bursa, Burdur, Adana, and Ordu.

Keywords

• Religious conversion, Greek Protestants, American Board, Protestant millet, 19th-century Ottoman Anatolia

Abstract

Bu makalede 19. yy.’da Osmanlı İmparatorluğu’nda faaliyet gösteren Amerikan misyonerlerinin çalışmalarıyla mezhep değiştirerek Protestan olan Rum Ortodoksların maruz kaldıkları sürgün, iftira ve şiddet olayları incelenmiştir. Esas olarak Başbakanlık Osmanlı Arşiv belgeleri kullanılmakla beraber, American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions adlı misyoner örgütünün raporları ve bazı misyonerlerin yayınlanmış anıları da kaynak olarak kullanılmıştır. Makale, Anadolu’nun çeşitli yerlerindeki Rum Ortodoks-Protestan çekişmelerini konu alır. Bu çalışmada incelenen Osmanlı arşiv belgeleri İzmir, Bursa ve civarı, Burdur, Adana ve Ordu’da yaşanan bazı olayları kapsamaktadır. Osmanlı topraklarında faaliyetler yapan Amerikan misyonerleri Rum Ortodokslardan çok Gregoryen Ermenilerin Protestanlığa dahil olmalarını sağlamışlardır. Protestan Ermeniler bu makalenin kapsamı dışındadır, ancak Osmanlı Protestanlarının ayrı bir millet olarak resmi mercilerce tanınması sürecinden bahsederken İstanbul’da bir Ermeni Protestan kilisesinin kurulması süreci de anlatılmıştır.

Keywords

• Din değiştirme, Rum Protestanlar, Amerikan Board, Protestan milleti, 19. yy.’da Osmanlı Anadolusu

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