The Meeting of Civilizations
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Pope Benedict XVI arrives in Turkey, the most liberal Muslim country amidst deep divide, festering within Turkish society since the foundation of the modern state by its revered founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1923. Should Turkey face eastward, toward its Muslim neighbors steeped in obscurantism or westward, toward Europe?
Pope has already earned disapproval in Muslim countries for citing a critical comment by a medieval ruler about the real intention of Islam. Even then, he dared to address the solution for amity between two newest religions - one is 2000 year-old and another is 1400 year-old - heading for confrontations, to borrow septuagenarian scholar Samuel P. Huntington's observations in "The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order".
Turkey is the only Muslim country in which veiling a woman is prohibited by the state's laws. This rigidly secular state is at a critical juncture. The obscurantist forces are raising their ugly heads to pull it closer to Islam while the institutions safeguarding its secularism are reeling under constant threats. It is the only Muslim country in which the extremes jostle on Istanbul's streets, where miniskirts mix with tightly tied head scarves and lingerie boutiques stand unapologetically next to mosques. Little wonder, there are two Turkeys within Turkey right now.
Via: BBC
