Community of İskenderpaşa

İskenderpaşa Jamia or The Community of İskenderpaşa (Turkish: İskenderpaşa Cemaati) is a branch of Naqshbandiyya-Khalidiyya Ṭarīqah (Sufi Order) in Turkey.

History

The Jamia of İskenderpaşa was first established by Mehmed Zahid Kotku (1897–1980) when he was appointed as the imam of İskender Pasha Mosque in Fatih district of Istanbul, which was constructed by the Grand Vizier Skender Pasha of Ottoman Sultan Bayezid II (reigned 1481–1512). The leader of the jamia after Kotku's death was Mahmud Esad Coşan. Nowadays, Coşan's son Muharrem Nureddin Coşan is the leader of this jamia.

Notable members

This community has many prominent members, including current Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.[1][2]

Former Prime Ministers of Turkey

Necmettin Erbakan, Turgut Özal[2][1] and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Former President of Turkey

Turgut Özal.

Other ministers, political party leaders, and members of parliament

Abdülkadir Aksu, Beşir Atalay,[2] Recai Kutan, Korkut Özal, Hasan Hüseyin Ceylan, Cevat Ayhan, Ahmet Tekdal, Akif Gülle, Temel Karamollaoğlu and Nevzat Yalçıntaş.[3]

References

1. Insight Turkey: "Islam, Conservatism, and Democracy in Turkey: Comparing Turgut Özal and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan" by METİN HEPER Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine February 15, 2013
2. Eurasia Review: "The Naqshbandi-Khalidi Order And Political Islam In Turkey – Analysis" By Hudson Institute September 5, 2015
3. Radikal: "Nakşibendi şeyhi öldü - Nakşibendi tarikatının ünlü kollarından İskender Paşa cemaatinin şeyhi Coşan, Avustralya'da trafik kazasında yaşamını yitirdi. Aynı kazada ölen Uyarel, şeyhin olası haleflerinden sayılıyordu" 5 Şubat 2001