ABOUT THE IDENTITY OF EUROPE : WHY IT IS A PROBLEM ? (2)
by Hans-Peter Geissen

Turquie Europeenne, France
Oct 31 2006

"The role of Islam in the emergence of the Christian Humanism and the
enlightenment was largely omitted and forgotten : Islamic theology
could not take place in Christian Europe as no Muslims had been
allowed to survive…"

Hans-Peter Geissen lives in Koblenz (Germany), at the confluence of the
Rhine and Moselle rivers. Interested in all what concerns faunistics
(data about animal species) of the Midrhine region, he is the author
of many scientific publications on these issues. He bent on the Turkish
issue with a very specific approach so as "to prevent a self-definition
of Europe on the grounds of historical or religious mythologies."

Enlightenment Christian Humanism and Enlightenment, in one way
or another, redirected the view on humans and society from a
theological determination -however theoretic- to a variety of
reasoning and imagination. An increasing spectrum of philosophies,
arts, sciences and practices emerged, in which theology was but one
of many disciplines. Again, there can be only a rough overview with
a special focus.

The role of Islam in the emergence of this was largely omitted and
forgotten, Islamic theology could not take place in Christian Europe
as no Muslims had been allowed to survive. A Jewish one survived in
some niches mainly in Eastern Europe (especially Poland-Lithuania).

Both took place in the Ottoman realm. However, the Islamic
"Counter-Enlightenment" had largely ended the development of sciences,
while a quite efficient state centralism inhibited the development
of alternatives.

Nonetheless, as far as religious tolerance and pluralism was concerned,
European thinkers had to point to the Ottoman sphere, wether Rousseau
or Voltaire, Lessing or Goethe, or the English Deists. There the
example was given that it was possible. Secularism in the meaning of
respecting different beliefs and an autonomous sphere of theologies
did not emerge directly from Islam, but was hardly thinkable without.

The other side of the coin was autonomy of state and law from
religion. Quite necessarily, it had to act anticlerical. Insofar,
there was no room for Islamic rule, too. With respect to the state,
it tended to support absolutism. As to society, the language was
detected as a unifying factor defining political bodies, leading to
nationalisms. This, together with liberalism, became the ideology of
the emerging bourgeoisies.

The Ottoman system The Ottoman system had already an absolutism
of sort, expressed in a sultanic prerogative and law. As well as
Christian absolutisms, however, they remained allied with religion
as the major source of law and conduct. Due to special circumstances,
the sultanic prerogative about the lifes and properties of his servants
inhibited the emergence of a Muslim, but not of a Christian and Jewish
bourgeoisy. Growing predominance of West European economies further
enhanced Christian economic dominance in the Ottoman Empire, all the
more as any activity of Muslims in the West was nearly impossible;
European antiislamism had remained largely intact in practice since the
Middle Ages, despite Enlighteners and a few exceptions, like Venice.

Quite the contrary: Humanism and Enlightenment, by rediscovering
the heritage af the Antique, were deploring the "loss" of the "Greek
World" to Muslim rule and in consequence a secular crusader movement
under the flag of "Philhellenism" emerged. It wouldn’t be impossible
to imagine Valerie Giscard d’Estaing as one of its most prominent
stakeholders today.

A major handicap of the Ottomans in dealing with the problem was
certainly the predominance of Islam in state law and bureaucracy,
reinforced at times by a respective Islamic populism. Especially in its
populist form, the "No novelties!" paradigm of Sunnitic conservatism
was certainly a strong factor slowing down necessary adaptations.

Whereas the Ottomans in fact accomodated to the major developments,
including equality of their subjects, constitutional monarchy,
industrialization, public education a.s.o., they finally succumbed
to the emerging nationalisms supported by Western movements and Russia.

In fact, conservative and even many liberal governments supported the
OE in order to prevent Russian expansion to the Mediterranean, both
Christian and "Enlightened" neo-crusaders in effect supported Russia.

The latter proceeded by several ideologies, first pan-Orthodoxy, then
pan-Slawism, some pan-Christianism (regarding especially Armenians
and Georgians), and finally Marxism-Leninism – and, of course,
military aggression.

Nationalisms and Russian expansion In the larger West, those with an
idea of geopolitics opposed the Russian expansion and, up to now,
succeeded repeatedly, if only by a hair’s breadth. Many of those
with no idea of geopolitics in effect supported Russian advance and
continue to do so. And their unifying ideology is still antiislamism.

Ironically, it were "nationalisms" that succeeded the Ottoman Empire
by means of Russian military victories and with support from Western
sources. None of these nationalisms is known to have been supported
by a majority of the respective "nations" prior to the establishment
of an independent state by foreign powers. While expanding, each
new territory had to be ethnically cleansed in order to make the
attempted nation reasonably apparent; then, languages, architecture,
and history were cleansed as well. Lastly Titoism, which L. Carl Brown,
in 1996, proposed to understand as a neo-Ottoman pluralism rather than
Communism, failed, crushed under nationalism and antiislamism while
all the Europeans stood by and looked at and shackled their heads
about: Nay, those Balkan barbarians! And indeed, how could they,
who never had looked into a mirror, recognize their own heritage,
or rather their identity?

A heritage we can hardly be happy with.

The end :

Still, we cannot draw the geographical borders of Enlightenment,
Humanism, or "Jewo"-Christianity. Obviously, they cross through
countries, they even cross individual brains. The only way to draw
reasonable geographical borders is by geographical methods.

Otherwise, we sort people, not space. Necessarily, we’ll come back
to that issue.

Some stuff for further reading :

ADANIR, Fikret (1998): The Ottoman peasantries, c. 1360 – c. 1860. –
269-310 in: SCOTT, T. (ed.): The peasantries of Europe. From the
fourteenth to the eighteenth century. – 416 S., London (Longman)

ADANIR, F. (2001): Das Osmanische Reich als orientalische Despotie
in der Wahrnehmung des Westens. – 83-121 in: KURSAT-AHLERS, E., TAN, D.

& H.-P. WALDHOFF (Hrsg.): Turkei und Europa. Facetten einer Beziehung
in Vergangenheit und Gegenwart. – 235 S., Frankfurt am Main (IKO-Verlag
fur Interkulturelle Kommunikation)

ADANIR, Fikret (2003): Religious communities and ethnic groups under
imperial sway: Ottoman and Habsburg lands in comparison. – 54-886 in:
HOERDER, D., HARZIG, C. & A. SHUBERT (eds.): The historical practice
of diversity. – 278 S., Oxfort, New York (Berghahn)

AKSAN, Virginia H. (1999): Locating the Ottomans among early modern
empires. – Journal of Early Modern History 3 (2): 103-134. Leiden.

AYDIN, Mahmut (2001): Religious pluralism: A challenge for Muslims
– A theological evaluation. – Journal of Ecumenical Studies 38:
330-352. Philadelphia, Pa.

DARLING, Linda T. (2002): Another look at periodization in Ottoman
history. – The Turkish Studies Association Journal 26 (2): 19-28.

Bloomington, Indiana.

DAVID, G. (2001): Limitations of conversion: Muslims and Christians
in the Balkans in the sixteenth century. – 149-156 in: ANDOR, E. &
I.G. TOTH (eds.): Frontiers of faith. Religious exchange and the
constitution of religious identities 1400-1750. – 295 S., Budapest
(Central European University/European Science Foundation)

FAROQHI, Suraiya (1978): The early history of the Balkan fairs. –
Sudost-Forschungen 37: 50-68. Munchen.

FAROQHI, Suraiya (1997): Vom Sklavenmadchen zur Mekkapilgerin.

Lebenslaufe Bursaer Frauen im spaten funfzehnten Jahrhundert. –
7-29 in: KREISER, K. & C.K. NEUMANN (Hrsg.): Das Osmanische Reich in
seinen Archivalien und Chroniken. Neyat Goyunc zu Ehren. – 327 S.,
Istanbul, Stuttgart (Franz Steiner Verlag)

FISCHER-GALATI, Stephen A. (1959): Ottoman imperialism and German
protestantism 1521-1555. – 140 S., Cambridge, Massachusetts (Harvard
University Press), London (Oxford University Press)

FODOR, P. (2001): The Ottomans and their Christians in Hungary. –
137-147 in: ANDOR, E. & I.G. TOTH (eds.): Frontiers of faith.

Religious exchange and the constitution of religious identities
1400-1750. – 295 S., Budapest (Central European University/European
Science Foundation)

GOCEK, Fatma Muge (1996): Rise of the Bourgeoisie, Demise of Empire.

– 220 S., New York, N.Y. (Oxford University Press)

GOCEK, Fatma Muge (2002): Decline of the Ottoman empire and the
emergence of Greek, Armenian, Turkish and Arab nationalism. – 15-83 in:
GOCEK, F.M. (ed.): Social constructions of nationalism in the Middle
East. – 279 S., Albany (State University of New York press)

GOFFMAN, Daniel (2002): The Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe. –
273 S.. Cambridge (Cambridge University Press; New approaches to
Europen History 24)

GROTHUSEN, Klaus-Detlev (1979): Die Orientalische Frage als Problem
der europaischen Geschichte: 79-96 in: GROTHUSEN, Klaus-Detlev (Hrsg.):
Die Turkei in Europa. – 271 S, Gottingen (.Vandenhoek & Ruprecht)

GROTHAUS, Maximilian (2002): Vom Erbfeind zum Exoten: Kollektive
Mentalitaten uber die Turken in der Habsburger Monarchie der fruhen
Neuzeit: 99-113 in: FEIGL, Inanc, HEUBERGER, Valeria, PITTIONI,
Manfred & Kerstin TOMENENDAL (Hrsg.): Auf den Spuren der Osmanen in
der osterreichischen Geschichte. 179 S., Frankfurt am Main u.a.

(Peter Lang, Europaischer Verlag der Wissenschaften)

HOFERT, Almut (2003): Ist das Bose schmutzig? Das Osmanische Reich
in den Augen europaischer Reisender des 15. und 16. Jahrhunderts. –
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ITZKOWITZ, Norman (1996): The problem of perceptions. – 30-38 in:
BROWN, L. Carl (ed.): Imperial Legacy. The Ottoman imprint on the
Balkans and the Middle East. – 337 S., New York (Columbia University
Press).

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of California Press)

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architecture in the Balkans: the imaret and the mosque of Ghazi Evrenos
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of Ilica/Loutra in Greek Thrace (1370-1390). – Sanat Tarihi Yiligi –
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Thorverton.

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KULA, O.B. (2001): Zum Turkenbild im deutschen Schrifttum vom 11. bis
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Evolution without development. – 415 S., Cambridge (Cambridge
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