767.68119 T&M 2/13: Telegram
The Special Mission at Lausanne to the Secretary of State
[Received December 24—12:30 p.m.]
148. The following is our telegram no. 21, December 23, 5 p.m. to Constantinople:
Your no. 38 of December 21, 1 p.m. We realize that it is difficult to obtain a correct understanding of proceedings here from Constantinople press reports. We are not aware that pressure has been brought on the Turkish delegation to retain the present Patriarch or the Patriarchate in its old political form. However, it is generally thought here that the right of a minority to religious liberty touches important precedents with respect to American interest in minority rights and full protection for American religious institutions in Turkey. Such religious liberty includes the right of the minority to its own ecclesiastical functionaries. The Turkish delegation clearly understood why we expressed the opinion of large groups of Americans on this subject and it now seems likely that the Turks will agree to continuing the Patriarchate as an exclusively religious institution and a change in the person holding the office.