Abstract

It is known that issues related to destiny are among the most vivid questions and problems of religious thought and life. As far as the history of Islamic thought is concerned, it is seen that some differences of approach regarding destiny have been discussed on political and theological grounds. Because of this debate, deep divisions have emerged among Muslims rather than mutual exchange of ideas and understanding. Muslims still engage in problematic practices and thoughts caused by some wrong perceptions of destiny. It is necessary to scrutinize the problematic areas in terms of the transmission of this situation from generation to generation. In this context, considering that individuals acquire their beliefs and perceptions of destiny by being influenced by environments such as family and school, it is thought that the approaches and attitudes of teachers who provide religious education in formal educational institutions towards the belief in destiny are decisive and effective on students. The subject and purpose of our study is to examine the results of teachers’ perceptions of destiny, how they are shaped and what kind of readiness they are in regarding the issue. In this study, which was conducted with a sample group consisting of teachers working at the Ministry of National Education, the perceptions of destiny of Imam Hatip High School Vocational Lessons and RCMK teachers were tested through various socio-demographic variables and questions prepared by the researcher. Imam Hatip High School Vocational Lessons and RCMK teachers’ perceptions of destiny were measured with a survey method consisting of questions that are different from each other and in which the correlation between them is tried to be kept strong and meaningful. According to the findings, it is observed that there are some problematic areas in the sample group considering the intensity of the answers given to questions such as sectarian affiliation, religious knowledge, being able to correctly interpret the basic reference sources of religion, knowing the basic concepts and approaches related to destiny and being able to use them correctly. In addition, a significant difference was found in the sample group’s approaches to some sectarian issues depending on the age variable. This shows that as a result of this and similar studies, the principles of Islamic belief should be examined in accordance with their authentic structure and the natural difference between religion and religious interpretation should be preserved. With this study, the importance of some methodological sensitivities, such as how religion and sectarian should be understood, seems to have increased further.