Day 3: Islam in Turkey

"The guidebooks and encyclopedias tell us that Turkey is 99% Muslim. This official statistic requires clarification, however. Initially the Central Asian Turks were shamanistic, i.e. active worshippers of the spirits of nature... [and] they absorbed Islam into their shamanistic practices when they came in contact with Arab Muslims. The result was a hybrid spiritism, 'Turkish Islam.'"

Although there is an Islamic revival in Turkey and the practices of traditional Islam are increasing, many people still do not follow through on its daily requirements. This can be attributed to the fact that as much as 80% of Turks follow an animistic/spiritism form of Islam according to Dr. Rick Love’s Muslims, Magic, and the Kingdom of God. The following compares traditional Islam to this animistic form.

The Five Pillars of Traditional Islam:

• Confession of faith in the Oneness of Allah and his prophet Muhammad
• Worship in the form of adoration and scheduled prayer (preferably in a public setting like a Mosque)
• Almsgiving for the poor and the needy
• Fasting during the month of Ramadan
• Pilgrimage to Mecca

Five Power Components of Animistic Islam:

• POWERS: belief in many spirit beings
• POWER PEOPLE: practitioners of magic and the occult
• POWER OBJECTS: the wearing of charms, amulets, fetishes or talismans with the belief that they contain supernatural power to protect or bless
• POWER PLACES: locations or centers of spiritual power where people can go to seek blessings and powers
• POWER TIMES: special religious feasts and festivals

If you examine the history of religious practices in the Anatolia region, it is easy to see why this animistic form of Islam exists. Based on merchant records, the land of Anatolia was covered from one end to the other with gods and goddesses while it was inhabited by people groups called the Hatti. “Everything that seemed beyond human control – wild animals, fire, planets, storms, and mountains – was turned into a god or goddess to be worshipped and appeased.” Progressively as the Hittites, Greeks, and Romans each ruled the land, they added their own gods and goddesses while absorbing the previous empire’s gods and goddesses. It was a commonly held view that the more gods and goddesses on your side, the better off you would be in life.

In much of the New Testament, it is clear that demonic activity was present. Jesus, Peter, Paul…they all faced it! Since Animistic Islam is the prevalent religion in Turkey, Christians face it today as well. Paul’s words are as true today as they were when he first wrote his letter to the church at Ephesus: “our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph. 6:12).

*All information and quotes are taken from Turkey: The Lost Land of the Bible by Dr. Andrew Jackson.