Türkiye Cumhuriyeti tarihte en geniş topraklara yayıldığı halde en uzun süre ayakta kalan son devlet olan Osmanlı imparatorluğunun yerine kurulmuştur. Osmanlı İmparatorluğu dini bir devlet olmasına karşın Türkiye Cumhuriyeti laik bir devlettir. Osmanlı coğrafyasında birçok devlet kurulmasına ragmen, bu imparatorluğun sosyal, kültürel, dini ve askeri kurumlarını devralan tek devlet Türkiye Cumhuriyetidir. Bu kurumların dini bir yapıdan laik bir kimliğe doğru evrilmesi ise 1839'da Tanzimatla başlayan Türk modernleşmesi ile yakından ilgilidir. Bu duruma en uygun örnek Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı'dır. Uzun zamandır din ve devlet arasında sıkışmış bulunan Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı laik bir sistem çerçevesinde dini bir yapıdan seküler bir yapıya doğru sürüklenmiştir. kıyaslandığında Diyanetin kökeni Osmanlı'ya dayanan ve 85 yıldır ayakta kalan tek dini kurum olduğu söylenebilir. Bu makale, bu açılardan Diyanet'in tarihi gelişmesini önemli aşamaları dikkate alarak tetkik edecektir. Ayrıca bu makale Diyanet'in laik bir sistem içindeki mevcut konumunu ele alacak ve kuruma dönük olarak Sünnilerin ve Alevilerin yaklaşımını irdeleyecektir. Ayrıca bu makalede Diyanet'in Avrupa, Afrika ve Avrasya'daki dini ve sosyal faaliyetlerine değinilecektir. Ak parti döneminde Diyanet'in hem iç politikadaki hem de uluslararası politikadaki faaliyetleri gözönüne alındığında, Diyanet'in Türkiye'nin şeffaf bir gücüne dönüştüğü söylenebilir

The Turkish Republic was founded inplace of Ottoman Empire which was one of the largest and longest lasting empires in history. Although Ottoman Empire was a religious state, Turkish Republic defined itself as a laic state. However, the Turkish Republic is an exeptional state among many countries established in Ottoman geography in terms of taking over military, religious, cultural and social institutions of the Empire. The transformations of these institutions from religious to secular character brought about a long-problematic process in relation to Turkish modernization. (from Tanzimat in 1839 to date). The most perfect example of this phenomenon is the Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı (the Turkish Presidency of Religious Affairs, henceforth referred to as the Diyanet). For a long time, since it was trapped religion and state, the Diyanet had been wobbling from religious to secular identity in the framework of a laic system. In comparison to other religious administrations in Ottoman Empire, it can be said that the Diyanet is only officially surviving religious institution as in spite of the historical roots partly based on Ottoman era during the last eighty-seven years. This article examines the Diyanet in relation to these aspects. I will examine historical roots, evolution, and current situation of the Diyanet. I will also analyze the structure of the organization of the Diyanet, its position in Turkey’s laic system, and current different approaches to it by the Sunnis and the Alevis in Turkey. I will also refer to the religious and social activities of the Diyanet in Eurasia, Africa, and Europa. Considering the activities of the Diyanet both domectic politicy and international politicy in period of Ak Party, it can be said that Diyanet turned into softpower of Republic of Turkey Today, the Diyanet is one of the most important public institutions in Turkey. Diyanet has been building high-budget mosques and has been opening some cultural centers in various parts of the world and leads many social aids in Africa and in Asia. But there is not enough scientific studies on the historical process of the Diyanet. This article will provide a modest contribution to the literature on the history of the Diyanet. The Diyanet employs approximately one hundred fifty thousand personnel and has central, provincial, and abroad organs. The president, High Comission of Religious Affairs, Qur’an Verification Commission, General Directorote of Religious Affairs, Religious Education, Hajj (pilgrimage), Religious Publications and Foreign Affairs compose the central organs, while provincial organs consist of the province and counry mufti’s offices, educational centers, and Qur’an courses. On May 3, 1920 after the opening of The Turkish Grand National Assembly on April 23, 1920, a ministery entitled Şeriye ve Evkaf Vekaleti was established and carried out religious services. On March 3, 1924, the Diyanet took over the duties of this ministry. The Diyanet appeared in a constittinal text for the first time in 1961. After that time, a law was promulgated to regulate the Diyanet’s sphere of duties and authority and some intellectuals and politicians began to complain that the existence of the Diyanet contravened the Turkish Republic’s principle of laicism. For example, the Birlik Party argued that Turkey was a laic state, that there should be no clerics in Islam, and that it is necessary to separate religious and state matters, and that the creation of classes providing religious services contradicted not only laicism as the main guarantee of freedom of faith and conscience in Turkey, but also Atatürk’s reforms and general principles of the 1961 Constitution itself. This party appealed to the Constitutional Court to remove the article on the Diyanet from the Constitution. A decision of the Constitutional Court in 1971 ruled that the Diyanet was not a religious institution, but a general administrative institution, and therefore did not contravene laicism. İ. Gözaydın (2009, pp.245-246) identifies the Diyanet as an institution established within the framework of domestic law by the founders of the Turkish Republic to protect laicism. The state uses the Diyanet against religion and its possible influence on the sociopolitical situation of the country. İ. Kara, (2008, p.51) another excellent specialist, characterizes the Diyanet as an institution trapped between religion and the state. According to Kara, the political center of the state uses the Diyanet as an instrument to impose its religious understanding, which exists within a set of parameters, on society, and thus desires to destroy the efficacy of the social authority of the ulama and sheikhs. As a result, Diyanet has been influential in the formation of people’s religiosity since 1950. On the other hand, Ali Bardakoğlu, (2008, p.175), the older president of the Diyanet, has claimed that laicism does not require a total separation between religion and the state; rather, as the Ottoman example demonstrates, the state and religion can keep one another in balance whereby cooperation between religion and the state helps society to develop. Bardakoğlu notes that the decision of the Constitutional Court in 1971 (noted above) shares this understanding. A basic difference between the Diyanet and the sheikh-ul-Islam derives from the fact that the Ottoman Empire was a religious state headed by a caliph who had the authority to appoint the sheikh-ul-Islam, whilst the Turkish Republic, which appoints the president of the Diyanet, is a laic state. Today, removing the Diyanet from the secular state system is inconceivable. If a political party in Turkey does not recognize the existence of the Diyanet, this party will be banned, since Article 89 of the Political Party Law states: “Political parties cannot have any intentions that are in contravention of Article 136 of the Constitution, which is concerned with the position of the Presidency of Religious Affairs, which, in keeping with the principle of laicism, remains removed from all political views and thoughts, which aims for national solidarity and unification and which fulfills the duties laid out in the special law, in the general administration.” Because of this article, political parties, except for small left-wing parties, refrain from criticizing the Diyanet’s activities, be them domestic or foreign. Since the Diyanet has eventually become part of the prime minister’s apparatus, policy changes made by the government or changes to the government itself) directly affect the Diyanet’s activities (Korkut, 2010, pp.118-120). But The Democratic Peace Movement Party (Demokratik Barış Hareketi Partisi) has promised in the party program that they will abolish the Diyanet in state system when they come to power. Because of this article, the Public Prosecutor's Office sued the constitutional court for the closure of the party. But, Constitutional Court did not close this party in 1997 with a majority vote. (http://www.kararlaryeni.anayasa.gov.tr/Karar/Content/ad42736f51bb-42c6-af74- 75cb667dd218?excludeGerekce=False&wordsOnly=False, accessed, July 17, 2016) Throughout the history of the Republic, even though the relationship of the Diyanet with laicism has been much debated, this question now only comes to the fore in connection with the Alevi problem. Thus, even during the EU ascension process, which has led to a new organization in public institutions, policies of the government to harmonize with the European Union affects the institutional structure of the Diyanet. Also, the activities of the Diyanet in Europe and Eurasia in the 1990s have raised the statute of this institution to one that is indispensable from a domestic political aspect. The collapse of the Eastern Bloc in the early 1990s opened a new sphere of its activities in Eurasia. It is true that a huge number of mosques, madrasahs, and other religious institutions were restored or built and numerous young Islamic cadres were educated in Eurasia with the help of the Diyanet during the 1990s. In order to carry out this cooperation in an effective manner, the Eurasian Islamic Council has been organized, meeting for the first time in 1995, and having its ninth meeting in 2016. Moreover, the Diyanet has the utmost respect for cross-cultural and inter-religious relations, as well as the local religious values of the religious administrators in its hinterland, where it operates and provides services. Also, The Diyanet has been spreading religious services to African and Latin American countries in the last decade. Diyanet as an effective force in Turkey's internal and external politics has been turned into soft power of Republic of Turkey