“St. John's Cathedral Basilica, which served the
U.S. soldiers in NATO for 50 years, has been reopened to serve
Christians living in Izmir following restoration works,” ANSA med reports. “The first service was held at the weekend in the cathedral, which is located in the Alsancak neighbourhood.”
“After serving the U.S. soldiers for years, the rental contract of the cathedral was not renewed and went under restoration. The opening ceremony of the cathedral hosted Izmir Mayor Aziz Kocaoglu, Deputy Mayor Ibrahim Balli, Konak mufti Zeki Aksoy and others,” ANSA med adds.
“The Izmir Latin Catholic Archbishop Ruggero Franceschini said that the cathedral would be open to citizens after the use of NATO soldiers, adding, "The cathedral is the most important Catholic structure in the Asian land."
The Secretary of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, Mariano Crociata, presided the mass for the Cathedral’s re-opening. In his homily, Mgr. Crociata recalled that the roots of the local Christian community “date back to the age of the apostles and the Fathers of the Church”.
The cost of the entire restoration project was covered by the Italian Bishops’ Conference and by Italian benefactors, as a sign of the Italian Church’s “support” and “closeness” to Archbishop Franceschini and the “small community of Christian martyrs living in diaspora in Turkey.”