An Authentic Turkish Experience in the Religious Affairs: Institutional Identity of the Presidency and Current Assessments

Abstract

The Presidency of Religious Affairs is rooted back to the Ottoman Era with the Sheikh al-Islam institution. Proposed first by Ziya Gökalp, the Presidency had been institutionalized with the foundation of the Republic as in many other Republican institutions. Serving the function of conduct of religious affairs, the Presidency has undertaken an important mission in the settlement of Republican values. From this perspective, it is possible to consider the Presidency as a secular institution. Today, the Presidency of Religious Affairs is discussed from several aspects from content and corporate perspectives. The place of Presidency in the secular state as a religious affairs institution, requests for institutional representation of Alevi belief and its share of the general budget are the most debated topics