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7 churches converted into mosques in the world. Photo/epuzzle
JAKARTA – Some of the mosques that will be mentioned are from church buildings that were renovated or converted. This is usually done to churches that have not been used for a long time, coupled with the large number of Islamic communities in the area.
Most of the churches that have been converted into mosques are located in Europe. Due to the lack of land and the large amount of development costs, most Muslim communities prefer to buy abandoned churches.
Not only on the Blue Continent, several Middle Eastern countries are also doing this to minimize land reduction. However, this development had caused controversy in several areas, especially in the European region.
Here are seven churches that were converted into mosques:
1. Umayyad Mosque – Syria
Photo: wikimedia
Before becoming a mosque, this building was known as the Church of St. John. In Islam, John is known as the Prophet Yahya AS.
This change from a church to a mosque occurred during the reign of the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid bin Abdul Malik. Even before it became a Church, it was believed to have been a shrine to the Aramaic god Hadad when Damascus was still an Aramaean state.
2. Mosque of Cordoba – Spain
Photo: epuzzle
Reporting from Raseef22, the Great Mosque of Cordoba is one of the most important buildings of Islamic civilization in Spain which was built when Andalusia was under Islamic rule.
Its construction was started in AD 785 by Emir Abd el Rahman who was the first in the wave of conquest of Andalusia and was completed by the second ruler in the tenth century. Previously this building was known as St Vincent’s Visigoth Church.
3. Hagia Sophia Mosque – Turkey
Photo: CNBC
The Little Hagia Sophia in the city of Istanbul was originally a church for Saint Sergius, before the Islamic conquest of the city during the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD.
