As humanity, we founded the first city states thousands of years ago. Easy to set up and after? In order to somehow control these states, leaders need to implement certain forms of management. ‘Come on and vote.’ Rather than saying that they cannot say, management styles focused on a single leader have been developed. At the point where we said, ‘Our leader should also handle religious affairs,’ theocracy emerged.
Of course, in these theocratic governments, that is, the theocracy, there were those who directly accepted the leader as god, but this idea disappeared, especially with monotheistic religions. Even if the leader was not a god, he was considered a proxy for him. The people around the leader were people who followed that deputy and had religious identities as well as bureaucratic identities. Even though there are countries governed by theocracy today, this form of government is a thing of the past.
Let’s start by briefly defining it; What is theocracy?
In its most basic definition, theocracy is a form of government based on religion. The administrators in this form of government are generally clergy. The political authority of the state is also the religious authority. In other words, theocracy is the form of government in which religion and state affairs are not separated, but are directly intertwined.
The word theocracy was inherited from Ancient Greek times:
The word Theocracy derives from the Ancient Greek word ‘Theokratia’ and means the order of god. Of course, this basic meaning has changed in subsequent uses. Theocracy, which was used in the sense of the Torah in the 17th century, that is, the government of priests under divine inspiration, has been used in the sense of civil power based on religion since the 19th century. The word theocratic came to our language from French.
The history of theocracy is as old as the history of states:
As we mentioned in the introduction, a certain power is required to govern states. In ancient civilizations, it was thought that the secret of this power was divine power. The ruler of the state was seen as god, and the ruling class was seen as officials working for this god. After monotheistic religions, the leader became the representative of God.
If we look at the Sumerians, we see that the leader of the city-state is the high priest and the ruling class consists of other priests. In ancient Egypt, the pharaoh was the god himself and the ruling class was his priests. In medieval European countries, kings were not gods, but the Catholic Church, which claimed to be God’s servant, was directly involved in the administration.
In the first Islamic state, Hz. As the messenger of Allah, Muhammad was also the head of state. The next rulers served as the ambassador’s deputy, that is, the caliph. This tradition continued for hundreds of years. This tradition continued when the Caliphate passed to the Ottoman Empire. In this respect, we can say that the Ottoman Empire was a theocratic state, but the legal rules changed in the following years.
If we look at world history from a broad perspective, we can say that almost every state was theocratic in some way until the 17th century. This situation began to change in Europe with the reform movements, and the change accelerated with the French Revolution. As this change spread all over the world, the understanding of secularism became dominant in state administration.
Theocratic governments have some basic features:
- Legal rules are based on religion.
- Since the rules come from a divine power, they are not subject to discussion.
- There is only one religion and one sect of that religion.
- There is an authoritarian state structure.
- The authority to interpret religion lies solely in the hands of the state.
- There is no pluralistic understanding.
- There are strict religious prohibitions.
- The principle of equality is often absent.
- Different practices can be applied to people with different beliefs.
When we look at today’s world, we see that countries governed by theocracy are devoid of freedoms as we know them. Because all the rules of the state, especially the law, are regulated within the framework of religious rules. Since it is a divine power that sets religious rules, no one has the right to criticize, interpret or change them.
Of course, it is possible to see different examples of this situation. The authority to interpret religious rules rests solely with the state. For this reason, the rulers of that state can bend that religion as they wish. This situation was clearly experienced especially in the European countries of the Middle Ages.
Theocracy and monarchy are intertwined concepts:
Monarchy is a form of government in which one person heads and rules the state, often without elections. When that person dies, one of his relatives takes his place in accordance with the sultanate system. When we look at the historical process, we see that almost every monarchy was also theocratic.
There is actually a very logical reason behind this system called theocratic monarchy. One day you wake up and someone else is in charge of the state. In order for you not to question that person’s accession to power, you must believe that he has divine powers or is a representative of God. Although there are exceptions, the monarchy form of government has often been theocratic.
Are there any countries governed by theocracy today?
To give an official answer to this question, we can say that today the Vatican, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Iran are governed by theocracy. Because the leaders and ruling class who come to power in these countries also constitute the religious authority. They don’t say that they have divine powers or that they are messengers of God, but they do say that they know more about religion than anyone else.
If we were to give an unofficial answer to this question, we could say that the number of countries governed by theocracies is much higher. Because in all countries that do not have a developed understanding of democracy or a strong legal system, the traditional religious understanding is always dominant.
In other words, if a rule of law is not compatible with international acceptances or the universal legal system, it is obviously compatible with something else. This thing is generally the religious understanding of that country. You don’t have to look at underdeveloped countries to see examples of this. Even when you examine some state laws implemented in the United States, it is possible to see outdated examples. Of course, how well these comply with real religious rules is another matter of debate.
We answered frequently asked questions such as what is theocracy, which is a form of government based on religion, what are its features, and are there still countries governed like this? Perhaps it would be best to interpret this issue in a single sentence; ‘You have your religion, my religion is for me.’
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