Misplaced Pages

#301698

59-538: With the abolition of the Caliphate in 1924, the official Ottoman office of Shaykh al-Islām, already in decline, was eliminated. Modern times have seen the role of chief mufti carried out by grand muftis appointed or elected in a variety of ways. Like other honorific titles starting with the word sheikh , the term shaykh al-islam was in the classical era reserved for ulama and mystics. It first appeared in Khurasan in

118-658: A dozen mosques and associations in Australia . The Avusturya Türk Islam Kültür ve Sosyal Yardımlaşma Birliği (abbreviated ATIB) is the largest Muslim organization in Austria and in 2018 had between 75 and 100 thousand members. The roots of the ATIB are found in Turkish immigration to Austria from the 1960s onwards. The goal of its foundation was to create a Turkish-nationalist movement of Islam and to prevent adherents from joining mosques run by

177-463: A man's marriage would become invalid from a religious perspective if the man felt sexual desire for his daughter. The Diyanet posted a reply stating that there was a difference of opinion among Islam's different Madhhab (schools of religious jurisprudence). “For some, a father kissing his daughter with lust or caressing her with desire has no effect on the man’s marriage,” but the Hanafi school believed that

236-672: A mosque and donate the premises to the Diyanet. The Diyanet will then send an imam trained in Turkey and pay his salary. The imam will stay a few years and then be rotated back to Turkey to pursue a career or be sent to another Diyanet mosque abroad. The imams are officials of the Turkish state. The Diyanet overlooks TRNC Directorate of Religious Affairs in the island of Cyprus , particularly in Northern Cyprus . The "Danish Turkish Islamic Foundation" ( Danish : Dansk Tyrkisk Islamisk Stiftelse )

295-587: A plurality (146) are controlled by the Turkish Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet). Diyanet implements the political ideology of the Turkish AKP party and employ imams trained in Turkey in mosques under its control. Critics argue that the Diyanet imams, some of whom do not speak Dutch, hinder the effective integration of Dutch-Turkish Muslims into the society of the Netherlands by promoting allegiance to

354-401: A second statement after the controversy, claiming it had been misrepresented. The statement reiterated its initial ruling but also included that the laws of the country should be followed. The Diyanet provides services and is active in countries with a significant Turkish diaspora . As of 2018, the Diyanet was present with 61 branches in 38 countries. The Diyanet provides services to about

413-729: Is destined to be the representative of the Prophet, safeguarding everything concerning Islam, which necessarily means the Caliph should be subject of respect, veneration and obedience; and whereas the Caliph Abdul Mejid no longer possesses such qualifications and has not even the power to live in his native land; now therefore it has been decided to convene an Islamic conference in which all Muslim nations shall be represented in order to consider who should be appointed Caliph... Two Indian brothers, Mohammad Ali Jauhar and Maulana Shaukat Ali , leaders of

472-513: Is not prohibited by the Diyanet on condition water is also used. This matter was misunderstood by some non-Muslims since the majority do not use water for cleaning following urination or defecation. Muslims are required to purify themselves with water following these and some other bodily excretions. In an April 2015 fatwa that made news outside of Turkey's borders, the Diyanet ruled its usage permissible within Islam though it emphasized that water should be

531-697: Is part of the Diyanet and is the largest Muslim organisation in Denmark. The Diyanet's major competing Islamic networks are the Millî Görüş as well as the Alevi association. The Diyanet controls about 270 mosques in France and pays the salaries of about 150 Turkish imams in the country. The Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs ( German : Türkisch-Islamische Union der Anstalt für Religion e.V. , Turkish : Diyanet İşleri Türk-İslam Birliği ), usually referred to as DİTİB,

590-446: Is the 44 volume TDV Encyclopedia of Islam ( Turkish : TDV İslam Ansiklopedisi ), which is available online. A 2021 academic publication summarized the Diyanet's growing activities as such: in 2012 it launched its own 24-hour satellite television channel, Diyanet Television , alongside presence on social media. The number of preschool Qur’an courses it offered went from 3,000 in 2000 to 16,200 in 2018, employing 24,463 instructors by

649-579: Is the most authoritative entity in Turkey in relation to Sunni Islam . The following Islamic scholars have been given the honorific title "Shaykh al-Islam": Abolition of the Caliphate Reforms Kemalism The Ottoman Caliphate , the world's last widely recognized caliphate , was abolished on 3 March 1924 (27 Rajab AH 1342) by decree of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey . The process

SECTION 10

#1732851644302

708-648: The Dutch East Indies (today Indonesia) in 1924, in 1926 in Cairo, and in 1931 in Jerusalem. In the late 19th century, Ottoman sultan Abdul Hamid II launched his pan-Islamist program in a bid to protect the Ottoman Empire from Western attack and dismemberment , and to crush the democratic opposition at home. He sent an emissary, Jamāl al-Dīn al-Afghānī , to British India in the late 19th century. The cause of

767-651: The Erdoğan rule. Along with their religious duties, the imams are also tasked with reporting on critics of the Turkish government. According to Dagens Nyheter, propaganda for president Erdoğan and the AKP party is presented in the mosques. Established in 2001, the UK branch of the Diyanet operated 17 mosques in 2018. It was also a main force behind the construction of the first eco-friendly European Mosque in Cambridge. The Diyanet runs over

826-773: The Gulen movement , the Kurdistan Workers Party , and the Revolutionary People's Liberation Party/Front . In 2017, some argued that "Diyanet’s implication in Turkish domestic and foreign politics opens a new chapter on Erdoğan’s increasing authoritarianism". In 2018 Mustafa Çağrıcı claimed “The Diyanet of today has a more Islamist, more Arab worldview”. The same year, Diyanet has suggested citizens practice e- fasting during Ramadan. E-fasting refers to cutting down on use of technologies such as smartphones, laptops and social media . The DRA has been accused of eroding

885-496: The Hanafi school and being "indifferent to the diversity of other Turkish Islamic creeds", i.e. the non-Hanafi who make up "a third to two fifths" of Turkey's population. Non-Hanafi self-identified Muslims in Turkey include "about 9 million Alevis , perhaps two million Shia , and over a million Nusayris ( Alawites )", plus the 15 million Sunni Kurds who follow the Shafi'i school and not

944-674: The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (1999–present, declaration of caliphate in 2014) declared that they had re-established the Caliphate, although these claims received little acknowledgment from other Muslims. Presidency of Religious Affairs The Presidency of Religious Affairs ( Turkish : Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı , commonly referred to as the Diyanet ) is a state institution established in 1924 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk . Initially created to manage religious duties previously overseen by

1003-405: The Millî Görüş . As a new religious law came into effect in 2015 in Austria, Islamic congregations and community organisations had to find domestic sources of revenue as foreign financing of religious institutions was banned. The then-president of the Diyanet, Mehmet Görmez (2011 - 2017) called for Muslims to argue against the new law. In 2019, a number of imams employed by the ATIB, who had to leave

1062-626: The Shaykh al-Islām during the Ottoman Empire , it later gained formal recognition under Article 136 of the Turkish constitution . The president of the Diyanet, appointed by the president of Turkey , serves as the Grand Mufti of Turkey. This role is supported by a 16-member council elected from among clerics and university theology faculty. As specified by law, the duties of the Diyanet are “to administer

1121-554: The hijab , saying the religion does not require it. Under the AKP government, the budget of the Diyanet quadrupled to over $ 2 billion by 2015, making its budget allocation 40 percent greater than the Ministry of the Interior's and equal to those of the Foreign, Energy, and Culture and Tourism ministries combined. It now employs between 120,000 and 150,000 employees. Reforms undertaken in

1180-614: The 4th century AH (10th century AD). In major cities of Khurasan it seems to have had more specific connotations, since only one person held the title at any given time and place. Holders of the title in Khurasan were among the most influential ulama, but there is no evidence that they delivered fatwas . Under the Ilkhans , the Delhi Sultanate and the Timurids the title was conferred, often by

1239-520: The Caliphate entered a period of dormancy. In Egypt, debate focused on a controversial book by Ali Abdel Raziq which argued for secular government and against a caliphate. Today, two frameworks for pan-Islamic coordination exist: the Muslim World League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation , both of which were founded in the 1960s. The most active group that exists to re-establish

SECTION 20

#1732851644302

1298-538: The Caliphate, is nothing more than a historic relic. It has no justification for existence. It is a piece of impertinence that you should dare write to any of my secretaries! On 29 October 1923, the National Assembly declared Turkey a republic , and proclaimed Ankara its new capital. After over 600 years, the Ottoman Empire had officially ceased to exist. In March 1924, Muhammad al-Jizawi , Rector of Cairo 's prestigious Al-Azhar University , in direct response to

1357-694: The Diyanet, where he met with its then president, Ali Bardakoğlu , and with various Turkish Muslim leaders, among them the Grand Muftis of Ankara and Istanbul. In 2012, Turkish President Abdullah Gül visited the institution and said "it is undoubtedly one of the most important duties of the Religious Affairs Directorate [i.e. the Diyanet] to teach our religion to our people in the most correct, clear and concise way and steer them away from superstition". The Diyanet has been criticized for following

1416-568: The Diyanet. Also in 2016, Diyanet instructed affiliated imams and religious instances to collect detailed information on the Gülen movement . It handed 50 intelligence reports from 38 countries over to the Turkish parliament. The Diyanet's imams are involved, under the auspices of the National Intelligence Organization , in the Turkish state's efforts to monitor its citizens abroad, particularly those suspected of involvement with

1475-560: The Hanafi school. The Diyanet's relations with the Alevi have been ambiguous. During the Government of Süleyman Demirel, the Diyanet's approach towards the Alevi became denialist in nature as Ibrahim Elmali was opposed to the mere existence of the Alevi stating "There is no such thing as Alevis". Additionally, during the early 2000s during a trial in the Turkish Court of Cassation , the Diyanet

1534-534: The Indian-based Khilafat Movement , distributed pamphlets calling upon the Turkish people to preserve the Ottoman Caliphate for the sake of Islam. On 24 November 1923, Syed Ameer Ali and Aga Khan III sent a letter to İsmet Pasha (İnönü) on behalf of the movement. Under Turkey's new nationalist government, however, this was construed as foreign intervention; any form of foreign intervention

1593-742: The National Assembly seemed willing to allow a place for the caliphate in the new regime and Mustafa Kemal did not dare to abolish the caliphate outright, as it still commanded a considerable degree of support from the common people. The caliphate was symbolically vested in the House of Osman . On 19 November 1922, the Crown Prince Abdulmejid was elected caliph by the Turkish National Assembly at Ankara . He established himself in Istanbul (at that time Constantinople ) on 24 November 1922. But

1652-625: The Ottoman monarch evoked religious passion and sympathy amongst Indian Muslims . A large number of Muslim religious leaders began working to spread awareness and develop Muslim participation on behalf of the caliphate; of these, Maulana Mehmud Hasan attempted to organize a national war of independence against the British Raj with support from the Ottoman Empire. Following the Ottoman defeat in World War I ,

1711-401: The Ottoman sultan under Allied direction attempted to suppress nationalist movements, and secured an official fatwa from the Shaykh al-Islām declaring these to be un-Islamic. But the nationalists steadily gained momentum and began to enjoy widespread support. Many sensed that the nation was ripe for revolution. In an effort to neutralize this threat, the sultan agreed to hold elections, with

1770-571: The Sunni Islamic world from the 14th to the 20th centuries, the Grand Mufti was given the title Sheikh ul-islam ( Ottoman Turkish : Şeyḫülislām ). The Ottomans had a strict hierarchy of ulama , with the Sheikh ul-Islam holding the highest rank. A Sheikh ul-Islam was chosen by a royal warrant amongst the qadis of important cities. The Sheikh ul-Islam had the power to confirm new sultans . However, once

1829-563: The Turkish state while neglecting to promote loyalty to the Dutch state. The Diyanet headquarter in Sweden is a foundation based in Huddinge . According to public service radio SR in 2017, the Diyanet runs nine mosques and pays the salaries of 14 imams in Sweden. After the failed coup in 2016 , many of them wrote strongly worded posts on social media condemning the Gülen movement and other opponents of

Shaykh al-Islām - Misplaced Pages Continue

1888-601: The administration of the İmam Hatip schools in 2012 have led to what one Turkish commentator called “the removal, in practice, of one of the most important laws of the revolution , the Tevhid-i Tedrisat (unity of education)". The Diyanet has been accused of serving for the ruling AKP party, and of lavish spending (an expensive car and Jacuzzi for its head Mehmet Görmez). Following the July 2016 coup attempt , President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan removed 492 religious officials from

1947-730: The affairs related to faith and worship of the religion of Islam”. The Diyanet drafts a weekly sermon delivered at the nation's 85,000 mosques and more than 2,000 mosques abroad that function under the directorate. It provides Quranic education for children and trains and employs all of Turkey's imams, who are considered civil servants. Starting from 2006, the Diyanet was fortified, by 2015 its budget had increased four-fold, and staff doubled to nearly 150,000. Its 2019 budget has been estimated at €1.7 billion ($ 1.87 billion), far exceeding that of most Turkish government ministries. It has 1,000 branches across Turkey and offers educational, cultural and charitable activities in 145 countries. Diyanet TV

2006-582: The caliphate is Hizb ut-Tahrir , founded in 1953 as a political organization in then Jordanian-controlled Jerusalem by Taqiuddin al-Nabhani , an Islamic scholar and appeals court judge from Haifa . This organization has spread to more than 50 countries, and grown to a membership estimated to be between "tens of thousands" to "about one million." Islamist organizations such as the Federated Islamic State of Anatolia (based in Germany, 1994–2001) and

2065-637: The caliphate to Ahmed Sharif as-Senussi , on the condition that he reside outside Turkey; Senussi declined the offer and confirmed his support for Abdulmejid. At least 13 different candidates were proposed for the caliphate in subsequent years, but none was able to gain a consensus for the candidacy across the Islamic world. Candidates included Abdulmejid II, his predecessor Mehmed VI , King Hussein of Hejaz , Sultan Yusef of Morocco , King Amanullah Khan of Afghanistan, Imam Yahya of Yemen , and King Fuad I of Egypt . Unsuccessful "caliphate conferences" were held in

2124-418: The central and western lands of Islam, the term became associated with giving of fatwas. Ibn Taymiyya was given the title by his supporters but his adversaries contested this use. For example, the Hanafi scholar 'Ala' al-Din al-Bukhari issued a fatwa stating that anyone who called Ibn Taymiyya "Shaykh al-islam" had committed disbelief ( kufr ). However, Shafiite scholar Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani defended

2183-522: The collapse and the issue of preaching in such an environment, formulated a resolution: Whereas the Caliphate in Islam implies general control of the spiritual and temporal affairs of Islam; Whereas the Turkish Government deprived the Caliph Abdul Mejid of his temporal powers, thereby disqualifying him from becoming Caliph in the sense that Islam required; seeing that in principle the Caliph

2242-547: The country due to the new regulations, launched a legal challenge the regulations which was rejected by the Constitutional Court of Austria . The Diyanet, under Fondation religieuse islamique turque de Belgique , controls 70 out of the 300 mosques in Belgium and forms the largest network of Muslim communities. In comparison to other Muslim organizations it has a simple method of operation. Muslims in Belgium buy or construct

2301-498: The daughter's mother would become haram (forbidden) to such a man. A "social media storm" ensued with "scores of users appealed to the Telecommunications Presidency’s Internet Hotline accusing Turkey’s top religious body of `encouraging child abuse`.” The Diyanet subsequently removed the answer from its website, posting that the fatwa page was “under repair.” It later issued an official statement to

2360-547: The end of 2019, with nearly 4 million attending the summer Qur’anic courses in 2018 while aiming for 24 million by 2023. It had published 1,734 books as of 2019 and distributing 9 million books free of charge as of 2018. Prior to 2010, the Diyanet had taken some non-traditional stances on gender and health issues. In 2005, 450 women were appointed vaizes (who are more senior than imams ) by the Diyanet, and it deemed in vitro fertilisation and birth control pills "proper according to Islam". In 2006, Pope Benedict XVI visited

2419-528: The first time in the Diyanet's history, an Alevi question was acknowledged. In 2010–2011, Diyanet began its transformation to "a supersized government bureaucracy for the promotion of Sunni Islam". Diyanet chairman Ali Bardakoğlu, who had been appointed by a secularist president, was fired in late 2010 and replaced by Mehmet Görmez. In 2010, while the AKP was involved in policy changes that ended bans on hijab , Bardakoğlu refused to recommend that Muslim women wear

Shaykh al-Islām - Misplaced Pages Continue

2478-710: The hope of placating and co-opting the nationalists. To his dismay, nationalist groups swept the polls , prompting the Allied Powers to dissolve the General Assembly of the Ottoman Empire in April 1920. At the end of the Turkish War of Independence , the Turkish National Movement 's Grand National Assembly voted to separate the caliphate from the sultanate and abolished the latter on 1 November 1922. Initially,

2537-418: The position had been stripped of any authority, and Abdulmejid's purely ceremonial reign would be short-lived. When Abdulmejid was declared caliph, Kemal refused to allow the traditional Ottoman ceremony to take place, bluntly declaring: The Caliph has no power or position except as a nominal figurehead. In response to Abdulmejid's petition for an increase in his allowance, Kemal wrote: Your office,

2596-458: The press, insisting that its response was distorted through “tricks, wiliness and wordplay” aiming to discredit the institution, and that it would take legal action against news reports of the response. Following the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake , in response to a question on adopting children orphaned by the earthquake, the Diyanet caused controversy by pointing out that in Islam adopted children can be married to their parents and while adoption

2655-415: The primary source of cleansing. Fatwa of the Diyanet that have come under criticism from some members of the Turkish public include an early 2016 ruling that engaged couples should not hold hands or spend time alone during their engagement period. In January 2016 a controversy arose over a fatwa which briefly appeared on the fatwa section of the Diyanet website, answering a reader's question on whether

2714-563: The ruler, to high-ranking ulama who performed various functions but were not generally muftis. In the Kashmiri Sultanate , it was implemented during the reign of Sultan Sikandar . He established the office of the Shaikhu'l-Islam under the influence of Sayyid Muhammad Hamadan , who had come to Kashmir in 1393 AD. In Syria and Egypt , it was given to influential jurists and had an honorific rather than an official role. By 700 AH/1300 AD in

2773-504: The same status as regular high-school graduates and therefore they were granted permission to study at universities. In 1975 there were more than 300 İmam Hatip schools, with almost 300,000 students. Türkiye Diyanet Foundation ( Turkish : Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı ) was established in 1975 to support the works of the Directorate of Religious Affairs, spread Islam, and raise clerics who would take on religious services. One of its major works

2832-703: The same time as the Ottoman Caliphate . After the National Assembly of Turkey was established in 1920, the office of Sheikh ul-Islam was placed in the Shar’iyya wa Awqaf Ministry. In 1924, the office of Sheikh ul-Islam was abolished along with the Caliphate . The office was replaced by the Presidency of Religious Affairs . As the successor entity to the office of the Sheikh ul-Islam, the Presidency of Religious Affairs

2891-466: The secular constitution of Turkey with the appointment of hardline religious clerics and the promotion of Islam into civil society . The Diyanet began issuing fatwas on request sometime after 2011, and their number has been "rising rapidly". Among the activities it found forbidden ( haram ) in Islam over a one-year period ending in late 2015 were: "feeding dogs at home, celebrating the western New Year, lotteries, and tattoos". Use of toilet paper

2950-404: The sultan was affirmed, the sultan retained a higher authority than the Sheik ul-Islam. The Sheikh ul-Islam issued fatwas , which were written interpretations of the Quran that had authority over the community. The Sheikh ul-Islam represented the Sacred Law of Shariah and in the 16th century its importance rose which led to increased power. The office of Sheikh ul-islam was abolished in 1924, at

3009-487: The title of Shaykh al Islam for Ibn Taymiyyah, saying in his own words, " His status as imam, sheikh, Taqiyuddin Ibn Taimiyah, is brighter than the sun. And his title with Shaykhul Islam, we still often hear from holy orals until now, and will continue to survive tomorrow..", which was recorded by his student al Sakhawi . The Hanbalite madhhab scholar and follower of Ibn Taymiyyah, Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya (himself also given Shaykh al Islam title by his contemporary) defended

SECTION 50

#1732851644302

3068-434: The usage of the title for him. Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Qayyim are both known for contradicting the views of the majority of scholars of all four schools of thought (Hanafi, Shafi'i, Maliki , and Hanbali) of their time in Damascus and of later periods. There is disagreement on whether the title was honorific or represented a local mufti in Seljuq and early Ottoman Anatolia. In the Ottoman Empire , which controlled much of

3127-425: The worldwide community of Sunni Muslims . The potential abolition of the caliphate had been actively opposed by the Indian-based Khilafat Movement , and generated heated debate throughout the Muslim world . The 1924 abolition came about less than 18 months after the abolition of the Ottoman sultanate , prior to which the Ottoman sultan was ex officio caliph. Mustafa Kemal Pasha (Atatürk) reportedly offered

3186-417: Was founded in 1984. As of 2016, the DİTİB funds 900 mosques in Germany. The headquarters of DİTİB is the Cologne Central Mosque in Cologne - Ehrenfeld . Tokyo Camii and Diyanet Turkish Cultural Center was established as the “Tokyo Camii Foundation” under the Presidency of Religious Affairs of Turkey in 1997. 12 imams have served in the mosque as of 2022. Of the 475 mosques in the Netherlands in 2018,

3245-412: Was labelled an insult to Turkish sovereignty and worse, a threat to state security. Mustafa Kemal Pasha promptly seized his chance. On his initiative, the National Assembly abolished the caliphate on 3 March 1924. Abdulmejid was sent into exile along with the remaining members of the Ottoman House. With the failure of the Muslim world to find consensus on establishing a new Caliphate, the institution of

3304-568: Was launched in 2012, now broadcasting 24 hours a day. It has expanded Quranic education to early ages and boarding schools – "enabling the full immersion of young children in a religious lifestyle"  – and now issues fatwa ( Turkish : fetva ) on demand. During the government of the Democrat Party , İmam Hatip schools which offered religious classes and were run by the Diyanet, were re-opened. The number of schools offering Quran classes rose from 61 in 1946 to 118 in 1948. From 1975 onwards, graduates of İmam Hatip schools were given

3363-429: Was one of Atatürk's reforms following the replacement of the Ottoman Empire with the Republic of Turkey . Abdulmejid II was deposed as the last Ottoman caliph. The caliph was nominally the supreme religious and political leader of all Muslims across the world. In the years prior to the abolition, during the ongoing Turkish War of Independence , the uncertain future of the caliphate provoked strong reactions among

3422-426: Was praiseworthy, adopted children were not kin. The question had not mentioned marriage to adopted children. Activist groups criticized this as "paving the way for child abuse" while the Turkish Bars Association and secularist newspapers further pointed out that it violated the articles of the Turkish civil code that allows inheritance and bans marriage between adopted children and their step-parents. The Diyanet issued

3481-434: Was strongly opposed to the recognition of Alevi associations or to research on Alevi heritage as it would lead to "separatism". The Ministry of Culture and also the Council of State criticized this approach as the Alevi represented a part of the Turkish culture. The Diyanet responded denying any existence of an Alevi religion. The Alevi were much more on the political agenda during the tenure of Mehmet Görmez , in which for

#301698