Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan today laid the foundation stone for the first new church of the country since it became a modern republic in 1923. The Orthodox Mor Ephrem Church in the Istanbul suburb of Yesilkoy will serve the 17,000-strong Syriac Christian community. <br />'' <br />'' During the ceremony, Erdogan said, it is the Turkish republic's duty to meet the need for space to worship for the Syriac community. He hoped the Church would be completed within two years.<br />'' <br />'' Syriac Christians are part of the eastern Christian tradition and pray in Aramaic, which Jesus is believed to have spoken.<br />'' <br />'' In recent years, Turkey has restored and reopened churches but the Islamic-rooted government has been criticised for trying to Islamicise the officially secular country.<br />''