Posted on 09/23/2012 11:36:23 AM PDT by markomalley
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan wants to leave a permanent mark of his faith in Islam on Turkey: he has announced plans to build “his” great mosque on the Bosphorus which will stand out even more than the Suleiman’s palace. A structure that will change Istanbul’s skyline. The mosque will be built on Buyuk Camlica Tepesi (the great Camlika hill) on the Asian bank of the Bosphorus, 268 metres above sea level. It is one of the city’s highest points and will certainly make Erdoğan’s temple of worship stands out.
What is more, the mosque’s minarets (only the Blue Mosque equals them in number; The Suleiman mosque only has four) will stretch higher than those on the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, which at 334 feet (115 metres approx.), are already pretty high. “We will build a bigger dome than the one built by our ancestors,” one of the architects working on the project stated. He explained that the complex will have a “classical style”. The news has sparked a great deal of criticism and debate in what was once the most secular Islamic country in the world. A university professor said he was concerned the prayer room will resemble an Olympic stadium. Erdoğan’s plans have attracted criticism and many a mocking comment, with people referring to another mosque that is currently being constructed in Istanbul (another Erdoğan initiative) as a “selatin” mosque. “Selatin” is the adjective used to describe religious structures built at the request of the Ottoman sultan. One Turkish headline read: “Has Erdoğan just announced his sultanate?”
Folklore and internal controversies aside, it is the deep religious significance of the initiative that everyone is interested about; Muslims and religious minorities alike. When Ataturk came to power in the 20’s, he abolished the caliphate (which Al Qaeda wants to bring back) and shut down madrasas. Last March, the Turkish Parliament approved a law to extend Islamic education. Since then, 60 new schools have been built in Istanbul alone.
A stark change from the past can also be seen in the fashion department. The veil has gradually gained ground in Europe as well, where it had once been a rare sight; expensive brands even sell them. Across the city, old religious buildings which had fallen into decay in recent decades are now being restored and large sums of money spent on them. Restrictions are also being placed on alcohol, both on a local level and by high level authorities.
The strong popular support Erdoğan enjoys has helped him push Turkey’s traditional guardians of secularism, its military, to the sidelines. But, as the saying goes, there is some truth behind every joke. Those who are asking themselves whether the prime minister has decided to relive the Ottoman sultanate, must be aware of the strong Sunni roots of Erdoğan’s Islam; the ever closer ties with Hamas and the fracture in Turkey’s relations with its historic ally, Israel; the active opposition shown to Assad’s Alawi Syria (and Sunnis have always regarded Alawis with suspicion in terms of religion); and finally, the comparison with the age-long “heretics”: the Shiites, Iranians in particular. And a return to more intense relations with fundamentalist Sunnis, the Wahhabis of Saudi Arabia and Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood. Interestingly, all of these countries used to be part of the Ottoman Empire…
Architecturally speaking ..... "earthquake". Turkey (Anatolia) is not "in", but "is" one of the world's largest and most active convergence zones. Good luck, Mr. E.
Politically speaking ..... "pan-Turkism". That will bring the Russian bear out of his cave. Pan-Turkism and Pan-Islamism are deadly threats to Russia which, like it or not, will be the West's buckler against a rising tide of Asianism and Asian despotates.
We need to be building infrastructure into Siberia, to support the RFE and help the Russians keep the Siberian treasure-house of natural resources.
The Russian Bear is turning Islamic. In less than a generation, there will be more Russian Muslims of military age than non-Muslim.
Where did you hear that?
If you're right, of course, then Russia's already in a fight for its existence.
Yeah .... part of the damage inflicted by 70 years of Communism: social and individual demoralization, esp. among men, who soak themselves in vodka. High alcoholism and criminality, low family formation rates.
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