بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Opening Address of Al - Waie Magazine - Issue No. 384
Erdogan Declares and Confesses that He understands Islam According to the Way of the West
Not According to the Way of Our Master Muhammad (saw)
(Translated)
Trump’s created financial crisis with Turkey: by raising the subject of the American Pastor Brunson, who has been detained there since 2016, adding pressure to release him and what followed of imposition of sanctions on Turkey's interior and justice ministers under the pretext of Ankara's continued refusal to release the priest. And Ankara’s retaliatory measures, followed by Trump's order to double the tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum from Turkey, and Erdogan’s reciprocating response, and the corresponding contradictory statements... All this led to the decline of the Turkish lira and the loss of the equivalent of 20 percent of its value against the dollar, during the second week of August alone, and about 40 percent of its value since the beginning of the year.
What draws attention to this artificial crisis is that agents have no value when they clash with the interests of the masters. Erdogan, despite everything he has provided to the United States of services, especially in Syria; where he had the upper hand in striking the Muslims’ revolution against the tyrannical regime of Assad, as he did in Aleppo when he withdrew his associated fighters from it and engaged them in his battles with the Kurds; at the same time when it was attacked by the criminal regime with the Russians and Iran and its militias and all the people of evil... Although he coordinates with Russia and Iran, which commit the most heinous crimes against the Muslim people of Syria, to create the situation that enables Assad to declare the victory and his most criminal security system in the world through Astana all the way to Geneva, where America awaits them to impose the solution it desires. Nevertheless, it has taken punitive action against him, causing international embarrassment for him and revealing the weakness of his economy, revealing that such countries are like cardboard boxes (of no value) to the West, and from the easiest to threaten their entity, and even destabilize and change them. This is why Erdogan and his foreign minister are surprised that America is dealing with them so lightly.
What is also striking in this artificial crisis is that the suffering of the people is not the concern of the great powers, or of the puppet states, on top of that they are the ones who create it. In addition to what Erdogan’s intervention caused in Syrian affairs for America's benefit of the defeat of the Muslims there, and the numerous sufferings, he is causing similar suffering to his people in their livelihoods, and threat to the economy of his country as a result of the artificial conflict. As for America, It is known that it disregards in its international relations all other countries, including its agents, and it does not concern itself with international law or the United Nations if it conflicts with its interests. Caring for the people and the interests of states is not in its calculations, but it causes them if its interests require this.
What must be pointed out strongly is that Erdogan has a crooked, not straight, understanding of the Deen. As a ruler of his country, he does not have the least adherence to the rules of Islam, and he does not hide it, rather he declares it consistent with his convictions, he says about himself that as an individual, he is a Muslim, and his ruling is secular, i.e. devoid of the Deen. In an interview with Turki al-Dakhil on 18/2/2017, he said: "First, people cannot be secular, the state is secular, this is an important point... secularism means tolerance of all beliefs by the state, the state holds same position towards all religions and beliefs... Is this contrary to Islam? No it is not contrary to Islam... I say we do not consider secularism anti-religion or the absence of religion, and I said that the individual cannot be secular, secularism is not a religion, the state is that which can be secular, secularism is the only guarantee to the freedoms of all religions and beliefs, i.e. it provides the appropriate ground for the practice of all religions to their religious rites freely even the atheists”.
Erdogan, by this statement, declares that Islam is an individual religion based on individual worship, like all other religions, and has no systems of government, or law for life. This is contrary to Islam fundamentally; it makes the one with this view in a great danger in front of his Lord. This incorrect understanding of Islam is very much in line with his actions as an individual and as a ruler. We see that this person reads the Quran with tajweed in a beautiful voice, prays and fasts and shows Islamic sentiments towards Muslims in his country and Muslims in the rest of the Muslim countries, but only individually, this does not seen in the matter of ruling. This is how he treated the Muslims of the Rohingya, the way he dealt with their cause was limited to feelings of sympathy by words and financial aid, but not in international relations. His relations with countries may be affected by these stances, but none of them accuse him of exporting Islam to them, even America, the West and the Jews, who are the most hostile to Islam and Muslims, they do not deal with him in the sense that he is the owner of an Islamic project, on the contrary, they cooperate with him and he cooperates with them in their war on Islam (in Afghanistan, in Iraq and in Syria)... In Syria, specifically, it became very clear, through Erdogan's declaration of supporting the Muslims in Syria and embracing them as individual migrants, whom he provided them with aid, accommodation and facilities they need in their difficult circumstances, but he acts as a secular state leader whose rulings are not derived from Islamic law, which he believes in and declares, rather in Syria he exploited the military situation for the benefit of his country Turkey as a secular state.
Erdogan declares this and he does not hide it, and does not come out of it, neither in his statements nor in his actions. This is how he understands Islam, and is not embarrassed by it and does not see it as a wrong. He wrote an article to the New York Times titled "How Turkey Sees the Crisis with the U.S.?" In which he discussed the history of the partnership between Turkey and the United States, the reason for the Turkish-American crisis, and the way in which the crisis must be addressed so that it does not get worse. “For the past six decades, Turkey and the United States have been strategic partners and NATO allies. Our two countries stood shoulder to shoulder against common challenges during the Cold War and in its aftermath,” he wrote
He continued: “Over the years, Turkey rushed to America’s help whenever necessary. Our military servicemen and servicewomen shed blood together in Korea…In the wake of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, when Washington counted on its friends and allies to strike back against evil, we sent our troops to Afghanistan to help accomplish the NATO mission there.” This is clear from Erdogan and an assertion that he does not depart from his conviction in his understanding of religion. He is acting like a secular head of state who does not adhere to Islam, but adheres to a secular constitution that he swore to implement. He has no problem with this. Here he is declaring what is considered as his official position: that Turkey stood with America in its crises with the Soviet Union, and with it in NATO, and with it in Afghanistan, each one of these is a great sin in Islam, and according to Erdogan these positions are not related to Islam, he sees no problem in standing shoulder to shoulder with America in its cold war with the Soviet Union, which is forbidden in Islam. He is with America in its war against Korea and this is forbidden by Islam. He participated with America in its occupation of Afghanistan and participated in its war against Islam under the name America gave "war on terror." He is with America in Syria, and this a greater sin in Islam... Most important of all is that Erdogan sees that his positions are not related to religion, because the identity of the Turkish state is "secular" rather than Islamic. But his individual identity is a Muslim.
Hence, every Muslim must know that this is Erdogan. He is the head of a secular state and has a secular party. He governs by a secular constitution. He deals with usury at home and abroad. His country's foreign relations are all based on non-Islam, and his dealings at home are also secular.We see this reality clearly.
Yes, these are Erdogan's convictions, even if he wants to resurrect the Ottomans, it will be from this basis, not from the basis of an Islamic Khilafah (caliphate) as it was in the past, nor from the basis that he wants to establish a Khilafah Rashida (caliphate) as Islam has commanded, which by it Allah brings glory to Islam and the Muslim and humiliates by it the kufr and its people... These Islamic Shariah concepts are all absent from his dictionary of governance.
Based on this, he deals with riba (usury) in his international relations and sees no harm in that. And maintains political, diplomatic, intelligence and commercial relations with the Jews and does not see a violation of Shariah in that; because the state is secular and not Islamic. And he enters into the Christian kafir anti-Islam NATO with America and the Western countries, and participate in the military actions and follow it to achieve its goals, which include preventing Islam from reaching power, including participation in the occupation of Afghanistan, which Turkey led there more than once... He declares this and does not hide it and does not consider himself to be breaking the Shariah law and committing sin.
Based on this, he implements in his country an economic system that has nothing to do with Islam and based on the kufur capitalist system, which illustrates the picture more and more. The people of Turkey with an Islamic majority live their lives according to their beliefs and concepts about life, including Muslims. But on the basis of the separation of religion from the state, if a Muslim drinks wine, or commits adultery, or steels or kills or apostates... he will not be penalized according to Islamic Shariah Hudood or penal code... We even find in some tourist attractions of Turkey, what is known as sex tourism... And Erdogan does not see that Shariah necessitates on him as a leader to prohibit it. As for the ruling, everything In Turkey is the same as it was before Erdogan assumed power, and in the way of Ataturk in power... but there is only one difference, is that Ataturk was adopting anti-religion secularism,
And mainly to Islam, as we know he prevented the adhaan in Arabic, and closed many mosques, and prevented the headscarf (khimar), and translated the Qur’an to Turkish... However, Erdogan adopted a non-anti-religion secularism. Since the majority of the population is Muslim, this transformation has had a good impact on the Muslims and has been very receptive to the Muslims of Turkey, especially after they managed during his reign to practice their religious worships which they were deprived of before, and he opened many of the closed mosques. There has also been an acceptance among Muslims around the world, and they view this transformation as the required Shariah transformation, and they rely on him to bring the desired Shariah change. What made Muslims increase in his support is the hostility he received from the secular class to all his movements, and apprehension and fear of every behavior he takes, thinking that he is working to eliminate Ataturk’s legacy. And because the common Muslims’ positions are reactionary, they have increased adherence and support for him, and this manifested in his success in the elections, and in his support against the military, and standing by his side against the coup.
Muslims everywhere see Erdogan as the Islamic hero who will unite the Ummah and change its very bad situation to the desired Islamic situation. They defend him and say things that he did not say, and ascribe action to him, and invent goals and claim that they are his goals: that Erdogan wants to gradually establish Islam, while Erdogan does not believe in gradualism and does not work for it. He follows his convictions only and believes that there is no Islamic state in life, rather there should be a secular one, he said so without hiding it because this is his conviction. If you tell them that they will say that his goal is to establish an Islamic state and this is not announced now... They look at him with a loving eye that does not see the truth of the matters.
What Erdogan has done in Syria, for example, is a betrayal of Islam and a crime against Muslims. He was the main contributor to the defeat of the revolution. He stands with Russia and Iran and coordinates all their steps. How do they view Erdogan as their hope and inspiration? While at the same time they see Russia and Iran as the fiercest enemies of the Ummah?!
After all this we have the right to question, and the one who is reading this (article) should read this calmly and think according to Shariah in the way that pleases Allah (swt) and not to follow his desires, and the aspirations of Satan, the Muslim’s desires are according to Shariah, yes we have the right to ask:
Is it permissible for someone who is supposed to be the ruler of the Muslims to deal with usury? Is it permissible that his loyalty is declared to other than Allah, to be for America?! Is it permissible for him to be a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)?! Is it permissible for him to seek to join the European Union? Is it permissible for him to establish relations with (Israel)?! Is his coordination with Iran and Russia on Syria and working for the defeat of the revolution, and for the victory of Bashar Assad permissible?! Is it permissible for him as a ruler to rule by a kufr secular constitution or to make adultery legal, and alcohol sold and bought, and brothels are licensed in Turkey.
Look at him in a video in which he says in his own words that he does not consider the crime of practicing homosexuality (by gays or lesbians) a crime punishable by law, but as part of the personal freedom protected by Turkish law. Listen to him in his last interview how he said that the identity of the state is secular i.e. the laws are man-made, that is, the legislation is for other than Allah (swt)... Each of these cases that we mentioned about Erdogan is considered destruction to the Deen, angering to the Lord of the Worlds.
In this article we present the reality of Erdogan as it is, without additions or reductions, we present it as he declares it and does not hide it, and as he is convinced of.
Unfortunately, this misconception that Erdogan is an Islamic leader, is present only in the minds of those who want Islam to dominate and triumph, but do not properly understand Islam, either among the Ummah in general or among the scholars who took their knowledge from Shariah institutes that divided Islam in parts and they took some parts and left some.
Erdogan should be viewed from this angle. The incorrect understanding of Islam is what leads to such positions among the Muslims, who live in a state of contradiction. They love their Deen to be dominant, it is the most precious thing they have, and they are exposed to many conspiracies from the kufar to keep them away from it. Muslims have sacrificed and sacrifice plenty to adhere to the Deen and implement it. But they do not understand what Allah (swt) wants from them to establish the Deen; so it was easy for the enemies of Islam to fool the Muslims in this area, and to come out with a new face for them in each period and drag the Ummah behind it and distract them from their goal of establishing the Deen. The last two attempts in this context were by creating a distorted copy of the Khilafah (caliphate) represented by ISIS, the purpose behind it was to build a general state of rejection against it. After this attempt reached the planned end, we see them pressuring the Islamic movements that are carrying out the political action to abandon their political work in Islam, or Islam in their political work, and to become like other secular political movements that separate religion from the state, and they give Erdogan as an example and a model for them to follow his way of understanding Islam, which is the West's way of understanding Islam.
O Muslims, this is Erdogan. Do not be fooled by him, if he is fulfilling the right of Allah in himself by praying and fasting and reciting the Quran... He is neglecting Allah’s right as a ruler who does not rule by Islam, and who understands the Deen in the way of the West, by adopting secularism which is based on separating religion from life.
Allah (swt) says:
﴿أَفَمَن يَمۡشِي مُكِبًّا عَلَىٰ وَجۡهِهِۦٓ أَهۡدَىٰٓ أَمَّن يَمۡشِي سَوِيًّا عَلَىٰ صِرَٰطٖ مُّسۡتَقِيمٖ﴾
“Then is one who walks fallen on his face better guided or one who walks erect on a straight path?” [Al-Mulk: 22]
Source: Al-Waie Magazine - Issue No. 384 - Muharram 1440AH / September 2018 CE