Turkish Religious Minorities Face Difficulties Retaining Property for Worship

29 October 2009

Under Turkish law, only mosques, churches, and synagogues are defined as "places of worship." This has put several of Turkey's religious minorities in conflict with the government. In Turkey, a religious group must be officially recognized by the government in order to be granted legal status to acquire and maintain property. According to Forum 18, several cases were brought against the government over property disagreements, including one from Pope Benedict XVI who called for the handover of St. Paul's Church in Tarsus for Christian worship.

One group currently facing this obstacle is the Alevi Muslims, who make up about 20 to 30 percent of Turkey's population. Their places of worship, or "cem houses"—are not recognized as official places of worship and are thus prohibited. As part of Turkey's bid to join the European Union, these groups had hoped that Turkey would alter its laws to reflect the EU's Harmonization Law, which would allow for religious places to be built. Under the law, however, the member-states' government has discretionary control in these decisions. 

Please pray for the religious minorities experiencing hardship during these court cases. Pray that the government will expand its definitions of places of worship in order to accommodate its citizens. Pray that minority religious groups and the Turkish government can work together to create a peaceful environment for the practice of their chosen religions.

Read more: http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1368

Last updated 29 October 2009