Inter-religion dialogue not possible, says Turkey’s top cleric

EDİRNE – Anadolu Agency

AFP Photo

The head of Turkey’s Directorate General for Religious Affairs (Diyanet) has said inter-religious dialogue is "not possible" between Islam and Christianity, saying a relationship based on justice and rights should instead be built.

“There can be a humane and social relationship between the Muslims and members of any religion that is based on rights and justice, but there cannot be dialogue between oneness [Islam] and the trinity [Christianity],” said Görmez, speaking in the muftis’ consultation meeting in the northwestern province of Edirne on Jan. 13.

Görmez said the issue of "dialogue" between religions was mentioned in his meeting with Pope Francis when the later visited Turkey in November 2014.

“Jerusalem is a place that all three religions accept as holy. Therefore let’s talk about the criteria of morally living together under the ‘Jerusalem criteria.’ Let’s talk about the law of living together. Believe me, no meeting conducted under the title of ‘inter-religious dialogue’ since the 1960s has had any benefits for humanity,” he said.

Görmez added that "dialogue centers" had been established in various places that tried to create a hybrid religion, which cannot be accepted by any sincere religious believer.

Commenting on the attack on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, Görmez said they had watched humanity stand-up for 12 assassinated people in Paris, without making a sound for the 12 million people killed in the last 10 years in the region where Islam is dominant.