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Welfare Associations help victims of natural disasters. |
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| formed by voluntary individual initiatives and their members, due to the great economic boom and progress in the social and cultural spheres of life. The number of associations set up till today is 177,883. A total of 77,004 associations are operational at present and they are engaged in a variety of activities ranging from sports, social welfare, culture, and health to women and artisan societies. While 24,511 associations are engaged in social work, 2,621 are engaged in cultural affairs, 14,291 of these are charity societies, and 11,746 are engaged in sports activities. |
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Religious Life |
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| Almost 99% of the population of Turkey is Muslim, while the remainder is composed of the Jewish faith and the Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant, Assyrian and other communities of Christianity. Everyone enjoys the freedom of religion and the right to practice his/her faith. No one can be forced to worship and participate in religious rites and ceremonies or to reveal his/her religious beliefs and convictions. In addition, one can neither be persecuted because of religious conviction, nor can he/she be prevented from worshipping. |
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Turks have tolerant religious concepts based on the Holy Quran which inspires that religion and convictions imply a personal choice known only by God and the individual. That means that there is nothing compulsory in religion. This tenet has led to a profound culture of tolerance and hospitality deeply rooted throughout the centuries in Turkish people. At present there are 233 churches and 31 synagogues open to worship in the country. It is possible to see, especially in İstanbul, the houses of worship of the three major religions side by side and in a manner rarely seen in any other country, owing to the multi-religious texture of the Turkish society. |
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Sultanahmet Mosque - İSTANBUL |
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