Turkey's Presidencey of Religious Affairs not trusted by majority: Poll

An opinion poll recently conducted in Turkey show that a notable majority of the participants do not trust the discourse and views of the Presidency of Religious Affairs, independent daily Cumhuriyet said.

2,878 people aged 18-69 participated in the poll that was conducted between 24 October and 2 November by a professor of theology at the Social Sciences University of Ankara.

54.1% of the participants stated that they attended Quran courses organized by the Presidency of Religious Affairs, while 26.1 said they had religious education in classes organized by various religious communities.

According to the poll, 65.5 of the participants do not trust the discourse and views of the leaders of religious communities. Those who are not confident of the discourse and views of the Presidency of Religious Affairs - the highest official authority in religious affairs - constitute 59.9% of the participants.

64.8% said they have doubts that contemporary Islamic scholars represent Islam, while 47.6% said the Islamic rules (Sharia) might not be compatible with modern times.

37.5% expressed doubt that Quran incites gender equality, and 31.7 over compatibility of Islamic dress codes with modern living.

27% of the participants have unanswered questions regarding religion's compatibility with science.

A significant part of the participants also expressed doubts about religious beliefs, with 22% having doubts about the existence of a "divine justice," 19.9% about "holy texts and revelations having been delivered by God," 18% about the "universality of Quran," and 11.8% about the "existence of God."