Diyanet's 100th Anniversary Sermon Omits Atatürk

The Presidency of Religious Affairs 'forgot' Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in its Friday sermon titled "To many more centuries with a love for homeland and nation" on the 100th anniversary of the Republic. It chose to use the phrase "the state leaders who led our National Struggle."

The relevant section of the sermon included the following statements: "Our heavenly homeland is not just a piece of land for us. These lands are our home, where we are determined to live in peace and security until the end of time. It is a sacred trust left to us by the lives of our dear martyrs, the blood of our heroic veterans, and the perseverance, effort, and determination of the state leaders who led our National Struggle. This trust is more precious to each of us than our own lives. When necessary, we will give our lives, we will give up our loved ones, we will sacrifice all we have; but as expressed in our National Anthem, we will never give up on our homeland, the legacy of our ancestors."