Atheism

It took less than a year for a Turkish court to block the website of the country's first official atheism association.

On Jan. 10, three American college students were murdered at Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Unmistakably, they were all Muslims: Deah Shaddy Barakat (23), Yusor Mohammad (21) and Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha (19). And again unmistakably, their murderer, a 46-year-old man named Craig Stephen Hicks was a self-declared ?anti-theist? who wanted to see ?religion go away.?

One of Turkey’s most popular Islamic preachers is Nihat Hatipoğlu, a professor of theology who runs a top-rated TV show. Some of the questions his pious audience asked him during an episode last year included:

One of Turkey’s answers to American “televangelists,” Islamic theologian Nihat Hatipoğlu, initiated a debate last week with his reckless remarks about atheists. Speaking on his popular TV show, he first said: “I do not believe that any atheist is negating God. Those who say so are lying. Because all of them say ‘Allah’ when they are in trouble.”

Hayrettin Karaman, professor emeritus of Islamic law and columnist for daily Yeni Şafak, is an important figure in Turkey. He is known to be deeply respected by Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan and his ideas are known to be widely appreciated by the members of the incumbent Justice and Development Party (AKP).