Özet:

Culture cannot be reduced to religion only despite the fact that religion is an important aspect of it. However, exceptionally, religion most usually is the first thing to come to the mind when middle-eastern societies are at stake.  In a sense, the culture of all middle-eastern societies, including Turkey, is equated with Islam – a world religion currently echoing with “oppression” and “terrorism”. This paper will explore what kinds of perceptions European young people have regarding religious life in Turkey. Additionally and more importantly, the paper will question if European youth's perceptions of religious life in Turkish society get significantly changed after living in this society for about a year. The data for this paper comes from a qualitative/ethnographic research conducted to examine major effects of European Voluntary Service Program. Prior to the voluntary service, more or less a similar line of thinking on Islam is expected to be found among European young volunteers while a diversity of perceptions is anticipated to be arising from an experience of living in Turkey, a finding that would partially confirm the literature. 

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