Bridge Between East and West: Turkey and Bosnia and Herzegovina

We attach importance to the texts of scholars who know the epistemic foundations of Western dominance and create a state of consciousness by bringing the possibility of an Islamic revival/Renaissance to the agenda in finding solutions to the problems experienced by the Islamic world.

We draw attention to the fact that the distinguished minds of the Islamic world produce solutions to the social problems they live in, based on Islamic principles, and we point out the possible problems of carrying their proposals to Turkey exactly, and we criticize the findings that we doubt the consistency of.

The method we followed in this process is as follows: Erol Güngör, whose books we have primarily read, The Issues of Islam Today and Issues of Islamic Sufism, gives the criterion in our preface readings to the Books That Changed the World translated by Robert B. Downs: “The books are mostly full of excitement, appealing to millions of people. They were carrying messages. Their impact was sometimes good and sometimes bad. Obviously, books can be a force in both good and bad ways. In any case, our aim here is to show that books are dynamic and powerful tools, vehicles, or weapons, rather than measuring their moral worth.”

By following the method here, we go beyond simply mentioning the contents of the works and giving information about their contents, and try to analyze both the author of the text and the other works of the author and the historical context in which the works emerged.
In this sense, together with friends from GSB Mahmut Atalay Youth Center, we started with critical readings of Nurettin Topçu within the scope of book readings, now Aliya Izetbegovic continues.
It is necessary not to fall into the contradictions caused by reading the most important scholars of the Islamic world over certain parameters, and this is possible by making multidimensional and holistic critical readings.

Aliya Izetbegovic: Wise Manager

Philosopher and jurist Aliya deserved to be a wise king with the establishment of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the strategies he followed in his struggles with Croats and Serbs. In fact, by following a policy that shows the whole world that Bosnia and Herzegovina is a test of humanity and morality, it has shown that the problem concerns everyone and is universal. In addition, it is a fact that it has been instrumental in the formation of a spirit of solidarity in the Islamic world, which is in very different ideas and interactions.

The fact that Bosnia and Herzegovina is the last gate of the Islamic world to the West and the first gate of the West to the East also has an effect on the formation of a regional and global awareness. The fact that Sarajevo took many years to live a pluralistic life that is not in Europe also has an effect on this. What is meant by this is the coexistence of Serbian Orthodox, Catholic Croats, Muslim Bosniaks and Jews as a monumental symbol of the Islamic-Ottoman civilization experience.

Renewing the Future: Rebuilding Bridges Between East and West

We discussed his work Renewing the Future. The part of this work that directly affects me is that it sees Turkey and Bosnia-Herzegovina as a Bridge Between East and West. Aliya's statement that the city of Sarajevo is a monumental symbol of Ottoman-Islamic civilization, which sees the city of Sarajevo as an experience that has no example in Europe and that three religious and ethnic groups lived in peace and well-being for centuries is important in terms of her evaluation of the cultural continuity of the Ottoman-Turkish Republic and the bridge between the East and the West. 

Emphasizing that Bosnia and Herzegovina's physical existence depends on integration with Europe, Aliya says the important thing is to find ways to protect their identities and moral values ​​in this process. The same is the case in Turkey; I care about his saying that the bridge between the East and the West is the second country, because Turkey, which inherited the Ottoman culture, and its entry into the European Union as a democratic, secular and social state of law can help re-establish the bridge between the East and the West.

There are religious denominations within the EU, each claiming universality (Catholicism) and authentic faith (Orthodoxy). There are structures that do not see their universality and authenticity beliefs as consistent (such as Protestantism). Although all of these are in the same model of application of the divine message (Christian Shariah), each does not give up its claim to universality in the context of its own practice and presents itself as if it were a separate religion.

At this point, we can contribute to the formation of a peaceful world with a presentation in the form of "pluralist universality paradigms" by considering the religious structure and universality designs of EU countries within the framework of the unity of the Divine Prophets. Because the concept of “plural or recurrent universalism” shows that the truth of each is not in a quality that cannot be communicated to the other. In other words, there is a common code in the real and universal sense. It is a universal issue that embraces the plurality of differences, and these differences have accepted each other as they are. Therefore, repetitive With the understanding of pluralist universalism, it is acknowledged that other people are also producers of morality as much as we are and make important contributions. A universal ethics centered on Ed-Din and the right to difference based on sharia are not seen as contradictions.

In this context, the participation of Turkey, which has inherited the knowledge that has allowed the Abrahamic Sharias to live together peacefully for centuries in cities such as Sarajevo and Jerusalem, by making "evaluation" of both their own sects and other sharia according to its own law, will make a significant contribution to the European Union. Talking about the possibility of "reading" the universality of each doctrine in a pluralistic environment and/or discussing the limits of a common interpretation can make significant progress with Turkey's contribution.
This point is very important in terms of individual rights and freedoms, how to present the God design of different beliefs and to prevent possible inter-civilizational conflict. Hz. Turkey, which has the Seljuk and Ottoman cultural background, can make this negotiation in terms of content and scope of the Mohammedan Sharia, the final link of the revelation process that started with Adam, and have the knowledge to prevent possible inter-civilizational wars and intra-civilizational conflicts (Salafi-Shiite).

The Fate of the European Union

Let's extend from the context of Bosnia and Herzegovina to England. The party that won the UK elections on 12 December 2019 accelerated the process of leaving the European Union with Brexit. French President Macron's words that the European Union should now establish its own army, and Germany's energy statements directly target America.

Conclusion: If Germany and France want to continue their existence as the United States of Europe (USA) against the USA and Britain, or rather Britain, it has been a bridge between the East and the West for centuries, adopting and trying to implement the most appropriate policies for the energy transportation of the Silk Road, which has become the axis of civilization again. It should pursue more rational policies against Turkey, which acts as

Aiming to return politically to the former colonial countries as well, to strengthen its hand against Germany, the leading country of the EU, to be in the same category against the USA in the Middle East and Africa, to be in the same category against the USA, to be economically unsound against China, but to have a stronger voice against France, Syria and Iraq, in the Mediterranean. Instead of struggling with Turkey in Turkey, the bridge between the East and the West would be built more solidly if a compromise were sought.

300 years of modernization experience, I. II. The accession of the Republic of Turkey, which was established as a democratic, secular, social state of law with the constitutional monarchy and the accumulation of the parliamentary system, strengthens the hand of Europe not only against the USA and Britain, but also against Russia and China.