By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
In another sign of what formerly was a secular state that is now becoming more Islamist, the Religious Affairs Leader of Turkey, Mehmet Görmez, announced his department was constructing eighty mosques at various universities countrywide.
The Article 136 of the Turkish Constitution does provide for an official department, The Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı, as it is known by formal name, “to execute the works concerning the beliefs, worship, and ethics of Islam, enlighten the public about their religion, and administer the sacred worshiping places.” After the dismantling of the caliphate in 1924, the department was formed.
Under Turkey’s former President Abdulla Gül who served from 2007 to August of 2014, the nation began separating from its secular practices. The latest announcement could be a sign that the government wishes to further instill Islam into the social fabric of future generations; beyond what was a long standing leaning toward separation of government and religion.
The President Gül, began his career as a staunch political Islamist while attending University.
A political party he later became a member, the Islamist Welfare Party, was banned in the 1990’s for its anti-secular practices, yet he joined a more moderate branch known as the Virtue Party.
When Gül visited the Diyanet in 2012 he is quoted as remarking:
“It is undoubtedly one of the most important duties of the Religious Affairs Directorate to teach our religion to our people in the most correct, clear and concise way and steer them away from superstition.”
It had been thirty three years since a President of Turkey made such a visit.
The Diyanet could be advancing beyond its statutory charter by blurring separation of church and state lines by constructing mosques in what is often a secular institution, the universities. Its president was quite open in declaring its intentions that would in the more secular West be considered concerning in public universities:
“There are around 20 million young people in Turkey. We would like to reach out young people. We care about the campus mosques in the city. In these mosques, youngsters will have religious workers assigned to work with them. We would like to see them grow in the spiritual sense and benefit from mosques.
We want to leave behind the times that mosques are only used during prayers and then left out completely. There are several mosques in Turkey that can set an example.”
By Darren Smith
Sources:
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Turkey’s concept of a ‘secular’ state is itself a bit different though.
Just sayin Free NYC Just Sayin 🙂
You can do whatever you want.You can pray or not it’s up to you.I live in Turkey and I liked that freedom I can pray in school now, for those who don’t pray or non-muslims or atheists you can do whatever you’re doing.
That is cool Murat, You pray and we pray for a better world and we will get there some day
Beldar here but not in the U.S..: I am on the way to China and am in a waiting area with a computer link to my home back in the States so that this can be sent on the Turleyblog. I have read a book by a lady, last name Gabriel, called Why They Hate. Please find a copy and read this book. The author had to leave Lebanon and the family moved to the States. She explains Islam quite well. Her basic theme is that you can not be tolerant of intolerance.
The problem is that past behavior predicts future. Extremism has retaken the entire region. Aside from the human rights abuses, especially of women, under Sharia Law everywhere that it is practiced in criminal law, there are the beheadings of hostages, persecution of non-Muslims, supporting terrorists, etc.
We’re watching Turkey go back down the same road, and it would be unrealistic to hope for a different result.
We’ll have to see who will win in Turkey, the moderate Muslims or extremists.
Squeeky Fromm, Girl Reporter said …
I don’t see anything wrong with Turkey trying to keep their predominant religion front and center at the universities.
Yeah. Just like the USA trying to that with theirs.
Oh, wait…. 🙂
Selma 50 plus years ago and Ferguson this week, tells me that America has its hands full. We don’t have money to police Afghanistan. We can keep the Saudi guys with box cutters off of airliners leaving Newark Airport without invading Iraq and a hard place. Boner can investigate Ferguson and not Ben Gazi. He can quit smoking too its gonna kill him. Obama can retire in two years and the bright voters can elect the Gypsie named Mitt. Then we can continue down the road to Hell in a Handbasket and be at the bottom of the heap where we belong. All thanks to CNN and the likes of Brown’s mom and step dad. Burn Baby Burn!
What we need to do in America is quit thinking like the British. All that Britainia Rules the Waves apCray. We should just not care if another society far across the globe makes their women wear veils and practices Prophet Mohammed Pedophila five times a day. Screw it. Fly over if you must but please flush.
Pappi, fear is not that they will conquer the western world but that you will have to deal with another breeding ground for blasphemy laws and islamists beheading people that they do not agree with.
Why?
Reblogged this on Citizens, not serfs.
So is the fear that they are going to start a new Caliphate in the Universities of Higher Learning and take over the Western World
Turkey should be kicked out of NATO. No way should they be in the EU! It is becoming a Pirate Territory. Fly over and flush. Closets thing you want to be is the Turks and Caicos.