Jewish Scene
Turkey's Jews worship quietly
The Media Line
Published: 14.05.13, 09:08
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25 Talkbacks for this article
1. Why I need to go to Turkey for a Holiday?
Sam Sweiry ,   Eastbourne - UK   (05.14.13)
Turkey was my favourite destination for a Summer Holiday - I love the Turkish People - I love Turkish Food - but then as grow older and wiser - I realise there is better places in the world to go for my Summer Holiday
2. Turkey was good to Jews once, but
Eric R. ,   USA   (05.14.13)
no more. The Islamofascists have taken over and have outbred the secularists. It is time to leave Turkey and the Jihadis wreck the country.
3. Poor people suffering due to a criminal neighbour state
Albrecht   (05.14.13)
4. Jews in Turkey
Harold W.   (05.14.13)
what have Jews to do in Turkey? Historically Constantinople belongs to Greek Christians, as well as the whole of Turkey's west coast (Asia minor). I don't get why Jews think they have a right to live in every single country and receive beneficial treatment, you now have Israel so why don't live there and let other people live in peace? Same with Hungary, you don't like it there, fine, move to Israel instead of sending the WJC to stir things up and create trouble. It's really confusing.
5. TURKEY'S JEWS
H ROSEN ,   PA U S A   (05.14.13)
IT DOES NOT HELP TO HAVE AN ANTI SEMITIC PREMIER ERDOGAN. WHY THEY ARE STILL THERE IS A MYSTERY...ETHIOPIAN JEWS WERE TRANSFERRED TO ISRAEL AND THE U S SHOULD ALSO LET THEM IN AS A PERSECUTED MINORITY..CERTAINLY IN FEAR FOR THEIR LIVES..IT SEEMS ISLAM HAS MORPHED INTO A HATE FILLED RELIGION
6. Shame.....
Koose E Mack ,   NY NY   (05.14.13)
Pre Erdogan Turkey was good for everybody...not perfect, but much better to Jews than most Muslim Countries. Erdogan and his Islamo Fascist lackeys have ruined Turkey. Sad days for Secular Turks and modern thinkers.
7. 25.000 Jews in Turkey?
James ,   Tel Aviv   (05.14.13)
Stop making up stuff... As a Turkish jew, I know that there are less than 15.000 jews living in Turkey.
8. Harold-aka Harry Crack
Koose E Mack ,   NY NY   (05.14.13)
Harold...always nice to hear you spew your anti Israel/Jewish Hatred. How do you know your father isn't Jewish? I understand your mother was always missing during Fleet Week!
9. many reasons
anton ,   istanbul   (05.14.13)
aliyaahs,in turkeys case political disagreements, and psycology of being minority is always triggering
10. I too suspect the 25,000 figure.
Raymond in DC ,   Washington, USA   (05.14.13)
Even during the "good" days of the 1970s in Iran, many Jews suspected those good times wouldn't last, and sent their children overseas to study - just in case. From some 90,000 then, Jews today in Iran number fewer than 20,000. It would hardly surprise that many Turks are starting to make similar moves overseas, especially as they've had roughly 10 years so far of Erdogan's move to strengthen Turkey's Islamic ethos over secularism. EricR is also correct that Turkey's "Islamofascists" (I'd say religious conservatives, though some certainly more closely resemble fascists) have outbred the secularists. The more developed Muslim states are exhibiting shrinking fertility (Iran most dramatically), but what happens within these states also matters. Even as Turkey's overall fertility has dropped, its ethnic Kurds are exhibiting a much higher fertility than ethnic Turks, and secular Turks have the lowest rates. As to the kind of security required at the synagogue, sadly it's no longer unusual within Eurasia. In Prague and Rome I too had to show my passport before entering the synagogue on Shabbat. In Frankfurt, the Jewish center sits behind tall iron gates and the street it fronts is closed, with police cars at both ends. (Or so it was in 2006.)
11. JEWS
BK ,   US   (05.14.13)
Her Biji Kurdistan, Her biji Israil. I want to know how many hidden Jews there are among the Kurds in Turkey as well. Look to Diyarbakir, Van, Mardin, etc.
12. Why 68 million?
Serhat ,   Istanbul / Turkey   (05.14.13)
The current population of Turkey is over 76 million. How did uou get that figure of 68 million?
13. James #7
David Israel ,   New York, USA   (05.15.13)
As an ex Izmirli myself I believe you are correct. They say there are about 5 thousand (maybe a little less) in Izmir and somewhere from 15 to 20 thousand in Istanbul. However many of these are there for their business while they have residences in other countries. The numbers are only a guestimate.
14. Jews in Turkey
zvi ,   Bat Yam   (05.15.13)
Jews in Turkey basically remined outsiders like all the other minorities in the Turkish society based mostly on values system and mindset The Jews were living in the Turkey well before the Turks came from Central Asia (Their original Homeland) to conquer Bizantium
15. Jews who insist on living in dangerous places
Flavio ,   Sao Paulo, Brazil   (05.15.13)
Don't get me wrong, I'm a Diaspora Jew mysels, 2nd generation Brazilian. What I cannot understand is why, more than 80 years after Hitler's rise to power, some Jews insist on living in dangerous places, poisoned with antisemitism, places where they have to hide who they are, where they have to pray in whispers, where they have to beg for the facor of not being victims of a pogrom. I understand the difficulties of old or sick people, or even the problems arising in a mixed marriage household, all these circumstances can really make it difficult for somebody to move to other country; nevertheless, I insist: after th Shoah, we cannot afford the luxury of ignoring the signs on the wall. Iran, Turkey, Venezuela, fellow Jews living in these countries should think very seriously about moving, with all due respect. I know that if I had to live like these Turkish folks have to live, and if I feltsurrounded by millions of hostile Muslim neighbours, I would not hesitate for a second before selling my property and looking for the nearest Israeli consulate. I do not have anything about my fellow Brazilians, I'm very used to the culture and the environment here, but I'm first and foremost a Jew and I would not sacrifice myself or my family just because of laziness and/or business.
16. Muslims always tolerated Jews
Muslim   (05.15.13)
I am glad article talked about how when christians expelled jews, muslims welcomed them. Our conflict has been always zionism, not the great jewish faith upon which Islam is based. Judaism Yes, Zionism No
17. #16 Muslim
David Israel ,   New York, USA   (05.15.13)
You are correct Muslims only tolerate Jews and Christians which means they don't like them they don't respect but tolerate them.
18. #17
Muslim   (05.16.13)
Wrong. Judiasm and christianity are recognized religions in Islam. Buddahism and Hinduism are not. Our faith is based on Judea-Christian beliefs, one God, concept of heaven and hell, creation theory, etc... If you look at our diet (no pork), fasting in Ramadan(Yom Kippur), dress code, it all comes from Jewish customs. Prophet Mohammad did not reinvent the wheel, he basically reiterated what Moses and Jesus preached.
19. #15 ,...
split ,   US   (05.16.13)
A second generation Brazilian but first and foremost a Jew - No attachment to country and the nation that gave you the roof over your head and security and see nothing wrong about ,...
20. to #18 Budahism is monotehistic religion
ghostq   (05.16.13)
Budahists believe in god. show how much enlighted your faith can be. their profet is the prince Budah, it is the oldest god's faith in the world.
21. Muslim - still I did not hear the word respect
David Israel ,   New York, USA   (05.16.13)
In your reply you are still stating that Muslims tolerate Jews and Christians. You tolerate ahead ache or a sour and strong medication, but you love and respect your family friends and neighbors. The problem with the Muslim world is that they don't love respect Jews. The best only tolerate as if Jews were some sort of a pain and the rest flat out hate. When Muslims learn to love and respect their Jewish neighbors then all will find peace. Selam.
22. #19, it seems you haven't got the meaning of my talkback
Flavio ,   Sao Paulo, Brazil   (05.17.13)
I fully appreciate the haven Brazil provided my grandparents, who back in the 1930s managed to come despite dictator Vargas' openly anti-semitic immigration policy. Throughout more than 80 years, my family have been working very hard and everything we earned was by our own merits, nothing was given to us. I appreciate the democracy and the freedom we enjoy here; nevertheless, none of these things and of these circumstances can erase the very core of who I am and what my values and my history are. I know where I came from and this is very important to me. Supposing you really live in the USA, you should be well aware of many ethnic communities that have been living for generations there and nevertheless prize very much their culture, their inheritance, their history: Irish, Jews, Armenians, Germans, Italians, Russians. To see anything wrong about that, well, it is in the eye of the beholder. Last but not least: who are you to judge somebody else, for that matter? Perhaps a self hating jew, who knows? There's a lot of those hanging around in America, I've been told.
23. @David Israel
Kemalist   (05.17.13)
You know, it is very strange reading your comment on tolerance because I have been reading some of your comments for a while now on such sites and I have come to the conclusion that you are very stereotypical about muslims and in particular about Turks! Which is quite strange considering you are a Turkish-Jew or are you really? Believe it or not David there are people out there who regardless of their racial, cultural, or religious background believe in the oneness of humanity (as idealistic as it may sound). You need to stop stereotyping people due to a few rotten apples because we know racist and prejudice people exist all over the globe including in your own society. Even in Israel you have prejudicism among different Jews. For example, in Israel some Jews are ostracised for being Secular, Orthodox, Sephardic, Ashkenazi, Mizrahi, Ethiopian and so on by some Jews themselves. You don't call this intolerance? You don't think this is intolerance? huh Davidim?
24. Kemalist
David Israel ,   New York, USA   (05.17.13)
I did not say that thee are no few rotten apples among Jews or Israelis. I am the first to admit that there are. If you read carefully my posts I am trying to get the word respect Jews or any non Muslims from the mouth of a Muslim. As you can see even when he replied to me he did not use respect but reiterated tolerance. As for myself yes I am an old Izmirli and very proud of it. I love and respect my Izmirli / Muslim /Turkish friends and I am not shy to say that I love and respect them. In fact never in the world I found friends as close and sincere as them. Those Turkish / Muslim friends of mine do not tolerate me they too love and respect me mutually. But I am still waitin here to here from the person with the nick Muslim to say that he respects Jews / Israelis / Christians / Buddhists / Hindus / Rastafarian / Alevis and Bektashis / Atheists etc. But I amnot holding my breath for it. By the way isn't this it that your PM Erdogan also tolerates the Turkish Jews? This is always his words. I never heard him use respect either. Iyi gunler Kemalist dostum. I too am a very strong Kemalist.
25. @David Israel
Kemalist   (05.17.13)
Alevism/Bektashisim are offshoots of Islam. It is a different understanding and interpretation of the Quranic scriptures.Those who discriminate against such branches of Islam or other religions are not really Muslim in my opinion. Ones religion is not what they profess but rather what they practice but that's a story for another day. As for Erdogan and Co they disrespect many in Turkey so their disrespect is not exclusive to Turkish-Jews. The AKP's sole purpose in my opinion is to lead Turkey towards the fate of Syria and Libiya and in doing so they wear the mask of piety which fools some zavallı people. This is the hugest disrespect of all! to rob a diverse nation of their existence, foundation, and unity. But they are forgetting that we are not Syrian nor Libiyan who were unfortunate not to have such a man like Ataturk in their midst. The seeds Ataturk planted in Anatolia many years ago will flourish one day. Er ya da geç as they say in Turkey. Even the most weakest Turk gains strength from somewhere and will display that strength at all costs when the Cumhuriyet is söz konusu Davidim :) Kemalism is our temel (foundation) whether some people like it or not.
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