Learning About the Other and Teaching for Tolerance in Muslim Majority Societies

Paper prepared for the workshop
“Learning about the Other and Teaching for Tolerance in Muslim Majority Societies”

organised by

Center for Values Education, Istanbul

The Oslo Coalition on Freedom of Religion or Belief, Oslo

10-12 November 2005

Istanbul, Turkey

Recep Kaymakcan (Associate Professor, Sakarya University):

CURRICULUM AND TEXTBOOKS REVISIONS
REGARDING THE IMAGE OF RELIGIOUS OTHERS IN TURKISH RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Introduction

In order to create peacfull society and to foster tolerance, the understanding of others has a fundemantal importance. In this context, the role of the positive and emphatical approaches to the evaluation of other religions or beliefs are undeniable. From this perspective, one should take methodology andthe content of minority religions into account to contribute tomutual understanding. This paper aims to present how Christianity was taught in previous primary and secondary RE in terms of the textbooks, and recently within introduction to new primary and secondary curriculum what is changed to teaching about generally non-Islamic religions in Turkey. Before this a historical background and legal provision of religius education in Turkey will briefly be examined.

Brief Historical Background and Legal Provision of Religious Education

It is not exaggeration to say thatthe most spectacular development in religious education in contemporary Islam has occurred in Turkey. As a successor of the Ottoman Empire the nation-state of Turkey came into existence in 1923. The Turkish revolution, however, was more than a political event; it was also a social, cultural, and an economic revolution. As a part of this revolution, different types of secular and religious education were unifield and brought under the control of the Ministry of Education in 1924 with the Act of Unification of Education. This act was preserved in subsequent legal reforms and constitutional cahnges. With respect to religious education, many fluctuations can be observed in modern Turkey. For a quarter of a century in the republican era, the Turkish educational system worked on a strictly secular basis. All levels of religious education were officially banned for around two decades. After the Second World War, improving socio-economic relations with Western democracies and the initiation of a multi-party system also influenced the educational structure. Especially within Turkey’s transition from a one-party to a multi-party system (from 1946-1950), religion again emerged as a political and cultural issue. The revival of interest in religion was part of an ideological reaction against the strict secularism of the Republic by a diverse group of individuals who felt that the moral basis of the society was being corroded and that there would be open criticism of the restrictions imposed by the government. Within a short time of introducing a multi-party system the political parties were quick to realise the potential force of Islam in their efforts to mobilise mass support. Political parties, particularly right wing parties began to take a more liberal attitude towards religion. This liberal attitude in dealing with religion and religious practice continued to characterise the behaviour of Turkish governments throughout the following decades (Kushner 1986). In this context religious education emerged as an important issue. After a long debate on the political level, religious education in state schools was introduced not only in primary school (by 1949), but also in middle schools (by 1956) and high schools (by 1967) on a voluntary basis. Optional religious education in schools continued up to 1982 (Ayhan 1999).

After 1980 military takeover, religious education became a compulsory part of the school curriculum and it was then included in the 1982 Turkish Constitution as the 24th article. The official name of religious education changed and its full name is now “Religious Culture and Ethics Knowledge’. These courses have started to be taught from 4th grade primary school two hours per week and onlyone class in secondary school. This legal position has been continued up to the present. It should be noted that there is only one exception from compulsory religious education. A pupil who is the adherent of non-Islamic religion such as Christians or Jews has a right to withdrawn from taking the course ofreligious education. There is no alternative provision such as ethical course for someone who exercise the right of withdrawn from religious education (Kaymakcan 1997).

Christianity in Former Turkish Religious Education

Provision of the 1982 Turkish religious education curriculum explains reasons for introducing non-Islamic religions in the following terms:

...During the preparation of the religious education curriculum the possibility of the existence of a small number of pupils who belong to Christianity, Judaism and other religions was taken into consideration. In line with this view, to support the national and general culture, commensurate with the length assigned to each religion, knowledge has been provided about Islam, Judaism, Christianity and other religions respectively. This knowledge will undoubtedly extend the world of pupils’ faith and culture and it will enable them to behave more tolerantly and sensitively (sympathetically) towards followers of other religions (M.E.B.1992).

In this part of paper the presentation of Christianity in terms of previous secondary[1] and primary religious education textbooks in Turkey will be examined. Particular attention is given to three issues: Jesus, the role of St. Paul in the development of Christianity, and the Scriptures in the textbooks. These topics are frequently deal with and emphasized by the textbooks.

Jesus

It appears that the first year of secondary textbooks firstly narrate the different stages of the life of Jesus in terms of Christian sources or at least, in a generally acceptable manner as far as Christians are concerned. However, primary stage textbooks mainly follow an Islamic confessional method to portray the life of Jesus without referring to Christian sources. The main themes addressed in the textbooks can be summarized as follows: The unique birth of Jesus, his childhood, his baptism and mission given by God, his healing of the sick, Jesus’ relation to the Jewish community and his crucifixion. The textbooks always use respectful language concerning Jesus, and they recognize him as a great prophet. Among the above points, the issue of the Jews’ response to Jesus’ mission receives a particular attention, and the Jews’ negative attitude to Jesus is strongly criticized by the textbooks. For example:

Christianity is a religion that was taught and spread by Jesus. Although Jesus was brought up among Jews they (Jews) have applied a hostile policy and attitude towards Jesus and his followers for long centuries (Gülle et al. 1994,16).

The Jews opposed Jesus and his companions, and they tried to kill him. However, God protected his prophet Jesus and lifted him to heaven (Gündeşli et al. 1994, 6).

Secondly, in the process of the presentation of Jesus, some controversial points of controversy between Islam and Christianity are emphasized, and Islamic view is represented as correct. These controversial points mostly concern Jesus’ birth and crucifixion.

In order to understand the possible reasons for focusing on these two issues, while almost ignoring Jesus’ teaching and other parts of his life, it is necessary to look at the Qur’anic teachings concerning Jesus and the features of Turkish religious education. As far as Jesus is concerned, the Qur’an focuses on the events of his birth and crucifixion, and describes them Islamically, to correct alleged ‘corruptions’ in the earlier scriptures. The other underlying reason stems from the character of religious education in Turkey. Religious education contains some confessional character in Turkey. The main assumption of confessional religious education is implicitly or explicitly to claim that a believed religion is the only true religion. The consequence of this method in Turkey is the inclusion of subjects of controversy between Christians and Muslims in teaching Christianity, and with respect to Jesus, since the status of Jesus in Christianity is contested by Islam, the Islamic perspective is presented (Kaymakcan 1999).

The birth of Jesus

The Turkish textbooks argue that, in relation to the nature of Jesus’ birth without a father, Jews and Christians adopted two extreme attitudes to explain this miracle. On the one hand, according to the textbooks, the Jews did not want to accept this miracle and even some Jews accused his mother, Mary, of committing fornication. The textbook writers strongly deny this accusation and try to offer some explanations from an Islamic point of view. Some textbooks also respond to the Jews’ allegations against Jesus’ mother by reference to the Qur’anic verses, and obviously condemn the Jews’ attitude.

He (Jesus) preached to men in his cradle and in the prime of manhood, and shall lead a righteous life. ‘Lord’, she said, ‘how can I bear a child when no man has touched me?’ He replied: ‘Such is the will of God. He creates whom He will (3:47-47).

On the other hand, Christians are portrayed as developing another extreme interpretation: the birth of Jesus without a father caused them to believe him to be the son of God. In regard to this, a textbook says:

The special feature of Jesus compared with other prophets is his birth without a father. This natural superiority of his birth caused the corruption of the Christian faith later. Christians attributed divinity to him (Gülle et al. 1994, 16)

The textbooks broadly suggest that Islam follows a middle way on this issue. Islam approves his prophethood and virgin birth and respects him. However, it strongly opposes claims that he was the son of God.

The Crucifixion of Jesus

The importance of this event in Christianity was generally admitted by the textbooks. They narrate that, according to Christians, the huge majority of Jews did not accept Jesus’ mission and they were provoked to hostility, because of his outspoken criticism of the religious authorities of his day. For instance, Pakdil et al. points out this issue in the following terms:

Those Jews who were hostile to Jesus fabricated some calumny about Jesus. They argued that Jesus called himself ‘son of God’. So he had to be executed. However, Jesus used the phrase ‘son of God’ in a figurative sense (Pakdil et al. 1995, 47).

Eventually the Jews complained about him to the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, and persuaded the governor to execute Jesus. He died on the cross, and was resurrected three days later. Jesus then lived with his disciples for forty days, and he advised them to struggle in the name of the Trinity. Finally, he was lifted up to his father (God).

The religious education textbooks state that Islam rejects the death of Jesus on the cross, and a person resembling to him was executed instead of him. They refer to supportive verses from the Qur’an to explain this:

“They declared” ‘We have put to death the Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, the apostle of God.’ They did not kill him, nor did they crucify him, but he was made to resemble another for them” (Q. 4:157-58)

The Role of St.Paul in Christianity

After Jesus, Paul is the most frequently mentioned person in Turkish textbooks. They particularly emphasize his key position in the formation of Christianity and his significance for Christians. However, it seems likely that this extensive coverage of Paul does not broadly aim to describe his important place as Christians understand it . Rather, it aims to show how Paul had a key role to play in the corruption of Jesus’ original message in various ways. Some Turkish textbooks may be said implicitly to show him as a scapegoat to take responsibility for the corruption of Christianity. The following examples illustrate the image of Paul in Turkish religious education.

At the time of Jesus, Christianity had a small number of followers, and it was then spread by his disciples. At that point, the role of Paul (the use of his name in Turkish is Pavlus) should not be forgotten, since he was an active enemy of Christians at the beginning, and then converted to Christianity, and gave a direction to the disciples of Jesus. Contemporary Christianity generally depends upon his interpretations (Ayas & Tumer 1991, 43).

After Jesus, his disciples went to different places to spread his teachings. Paul, who is author of many parts of the New Testament, argued that he had received a message from Jesus after his separation from this world. It seems that some unusual differences in Christian doctrine compared with other divine religions stem from the production of Paul (Çelebi et al. 1994, 40).

In addition, Pakdil et al. (1995) provides further information concerning the life of Paul. Their textbook displays that Paul was a son of a Jew, had an interest in philosophy, and knew Greek. It also draws attention to Paul’s dramatic experience of conversion through a journey between Jerusalem and Damascus in 37 CE, and how through this journey, as claimed by Paul, he directly received the knowledge of the Gospel from Jesus (p. 48).

Ayas and Tumer reveal that the views of Paul widely affected the agenda of the Christian Councils. For instance, “the controversy of the source of the Holy Spirit which prepared the division of the Church between Catholic Church and Orthodox Church stemmed from Paul”

(Ayas & Tümer 1991 .44).

Scriptures

Compared with other selected textbooks the most impartial and accurate presentation about the Christian Scriptures is given by Ayas & Tumer’s textbook. It tries to provide factual knowledge about the Bible.

The majority of textbooks focus on the four Gospels, the issue of their originality, and when and how these Gospels were canonised by Christians in history. Some textbooks indicate some confusion and exhibit inaccurate information about this. For instance, Şener & Karmiş begin with the following description to explain the Christian Scripture:

“The name of the book which was revealed by Allah to Jesus is Gospel (Injil). This holy book was corrupted by religious scholars as happened to the Torah. Four centuries after the birth of Jesus, due to the existence of a number of Gospels which contradicted one another, Christians were unable to decide which one should be followed. So, the Council of Nicaea was convened in 325 and the number of Gospels reduced to four” (Şener & Karmis 1991, 4).

The huge majority of Turkish textbooks operate with the asumption that the Gospel was revealed to Jesus by God, as the Qur’an was revealed to Muhammed, and then, after Jesus, it was forgotten and corrupted by people. One textbook even explicitly argues that “the Gospel (Injil) which was brought by Jesus could not be protected, and after Jesus the Gospel was forgotten or corrupted by people” (Cetin et al 1994, 32). It is likely that the singular use of the Gospel in the Qur’an is an important factor in shaping the Muslim understanding of the Christian Scripture like the Qur’an. In other words, without taking Christian understanding of scripture into consideration, they try to present the Christian Scripture on the basis of Islamic understanding of scripture. Further, owing to the Qur’anic emphasis on the Gospel (Injil), all attention is given to the Gospel, ignoring other parts of the Christian Scriptures.

The arguments presented by the textbooks to show the corruption of the Gospels can be illustrated as follows:

1. Some members of the Church argue that the Christian Scripture contains some errors and non-scientific and non-logical points. They even discuss whether or not Jesus actually lived. These are the signs of the corruption (Ayas & Tumer 1991, 44).

2. There are some contradictory statements among the four Gospels.

3. The Gospels describe some events which took place after the time of Jesus Gündüz et al. 1994, 17). (As explained the above Turkish textbooks assume that there was a Gospel at the time of Jesus).

Changes on Presentation of Christianity in New Religious Education

In the very early beginning of new millenium, significant changes have been occured in the policy of religious education in schools and pedagogical understanding in Turkey. Compared to previous RE policy new developments of RE in schools can be considered as a turning point. For long history, traditional ilmihal-centred approach has made a great impact on religious education in schools. This traditional approach is confessional, informative, educationally weak, and theological; it attempts to be consistent with the Turkish state’s secular policy. The Primary religious education curriculum, which was used since 1982 was changed in 2000 by the Turkish Ministry of Education. Moreover, new secondary RE curriculum was also introduced quite recently, in 2005.

This new curriculum can be considered a significant shift from traditional religious understanding to modern and pluralistic religious education. The new religious education curriculum argues that the former religious education curriculum did not meet new development in educational sciences and religious (Islamic) understanding of the Turkish society. The new curriculum aims to answer new changes and challenges in religious understanding and pedagogical aspects. In line with this new religious education curriculum, new textbooks are issued for religious education in September 2002 by the Ministry of National Education and private sectors. The new religious education curriculum for primary level supports the teaching of non-Islamic religions, and the purpose of teaching them is explained in the new curriculum like thus: