The People, the Clergyman and the Politician!

by İsmail Yıldırım

Since the institutionalization of the religion in the countries based on religious law, the social and political fact was formed by these classes: the noble, the clergy and the people. The clergy was the supporter of the king, emperor, dynasty, sultan and the politician. They used to rule the people with the support they get from the mighty, and they still do.

Before the French Revolution in 1789, there were three main classes in France and in Europe: The noble, the clergy and the people. The French Revolution was performed under the leadership of the intellectuals who enlightened the people who were exploited and impoverished and who suffered under heavy tax burdens, against the noble and the clergy. The people had a bloody war with the clergy who protected the king and his entourage and became a shield for them and won the battle. As a result, fanaticism was replaced with reason, and the Age of Enlightenment started in France and then in all Christian Europe, and the king and the clergy were abdicated.

What about the Ottoman Empire?

As mentioned above, the clergy had a place ever since the establishment of the religion. The religion always supported the sultan and the palace in Ottoman Empire, too. Most of the sultans asked fetwa from the Shaykh al-islam, in line with their interests and imposed penalties on the people under the disguise of religion.

What about today?

Have you ever heard that the Directorate of Religious Affairs, which substitutes Shaykh al-islam today, issued a fetwa other than preaching the people who the God tests with poverty and hunger, to be patient against the increasing misery and unemployment, not to rise against the management but be grateful for what they have, despite the misery they experience because of the costliness caused by the hyper-inflation we have faced in recent years?

Where do sects and religious communities come from?

When the institutionalized religion became a tool of power and even a partner of it, sovereignty fights started within religion and, as a result, sects and religious communities emerged. The history writes about the wars and dreadful murders because of power grab in religions. For example, only the first of the four Caliphs, who were in power after the death of prophet Muhammad, died because of old age while the other three were violently murdered. It is an important example for pointing out the internal conflict and the struggle for power in Islam. 

According to Encyclopedia of Islam, there are hundreds of sects and communities in Islam, not just a few as supposed.

What are requirements of being a sect member?

The sects are ruled by shaykhs. The prerequisite of being a member of a sect is to give up your mind, freedom, thinking and even asking questions. You have to obey what the shaykh says. You will read what he gives you and do what he says. All these means surrender to the shaykh, which is the primary duty of a murid. In sects, such a unconditional surrender is the only way for getting closer to Allah, as the shaykhs claim.   

What is the major difference between a theocratic state and secular state?

Pluralist democracy is not a feature of a theocratic state. The Ottoman Empire was a theocratic state. In a theocratic state, democracy is seen as defying Allah’s orders and even as sacrilege. It is an autocratic governance under the rulership of a single man who makes all the decisions and who does not give any account.    

Religion and Sects in the Middle Age

In the Middle Age, religion and sects meant the governance and sovereignty. Within the historical process, it will be taught that religions were sent to the people and the societies as a guide, while this doctrine is not valid in developed societies. In the societies formed by the people who are scientifically educated, people prefer science instead of dogma, which is the basis of religions, because according to scientific discipline, both the existence of God and the religions are human inventions.

While the discussions between the religion and the science continues, Nikola Tesla said, “The discussion of religion and science was over when the lightning rod was installed in the church.” The House of God is protected by the science and technology and it is also possible for the mosques, isn’t it?

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and Education 

For Atatürk, the purpose of education was to eliminate ignorance, because the literacy rate of the people, who just came out of the War of Independence, was 3% for women and 10% for men.

In order to eliminate ignorance completely, education had to be brought to the villages to give the citizens some basic knowledge and that they could perform their civic duties and understand what was going all around. A population of 80% was living in rural districts in those years, and they were engaged in agriculture.

In those years, one of the purposes of the national education program was to teach writing and reading and geography, history and moral knowledge enough to know their country, nation, religion and the world, and to teach four mathematical operations. Village Institutes were founded with this purpose; however, they were closed in 1950 during the prime ministry of A.Menderes, with specific intentions.   

For Atatürk, the supreme guide in life for everything on earth; for materiality and for morale; for life and for success is the science. Looking for a guide other than science is neglect, ignorance and deviance.