In this article, the effective and authoritative position of religious officials and especially those working in Sultan mosques in social and political issues from the Ottoman period to the present has been emphasized. The duties other than imam and muazzin, which are peculiar to Sultan mosques, are explained. Another aim of the article is to examine the current situation of Sultan mosque officials in a comparative way with its historical position. This study will only examine the officials of the Sultan (...) mosques in Istanbul. In order to achieve these goals, first of all, studies that have been made so far in the form of encyclopedia articles, archive documents, stand-alone books and articles about Sultan mosques and their officials have been examined. In order to be able to analyze the positions of these mosques and those who work there today, a survey and evaluation of the imams and muazzins who are currently working in Istanbul Sultan mosques are included. (shrink)

What was the point of view of the Ottoman thinkers or scholars in general to philosophy and in particular to subjects of the philosophy of religion and to philosophers? In Ottoman, what was the existence and level of philosophy according to the other sciences? These kinds of questions have been frequently asked by those who deal with philosophy. The answers given to these questions are as important as at least the questions. To discuss such an important subject, what we need (...) is to accept scientific issues as basis. To answer these questions together with a different motivation which is far from scientific methods may lead us to a vicious circle. The first thing of this kind of scientific attitude is to examine the Ottoman thinkers’ studies and try to understand them. General aim of this article is to shed a light to these discussions and in particular, to understand the approach of Harputlu Ishak Efendi to some issues of the philosophy of religion and his attitude towards some philosophers. (shrink)