What happens when you put a Muslim imam, a Christian priest, a rabbi and a Buddhist monk in a room with 10 atheists?

Turkish television station Kanal T hopes the answer is a ratings success as it prepares to launch a gameshow where spiritual guides from the four faiths will seek to convert a group of non-believers.

The prize for converts will be a pilgrimage to a holy site of their chosen religion—Mecca for Muslims, the Vatican for Christians, Jerusalem for Jews and Tibet for Buddhists.

But religious authorities in Muslim but secular Turkey are not amused by the twist on the popular reality game show format and the Religious Affairs Directorate is refusing to provide an imam for the show.

“Doing something like this for the sake of ratings is disrespectful to all religions. Religion should not be a subject for entertainment programs,” High Board of Religious Affairs Chairman Hamza Aktan told state news agency Anatolian after news of the planned program emerged.

The makers of “Penitents Compete” are unrepentant and reject claims that the show, scheduled to begin broadcasting in September, will cheapen religion.

“We are giving the biggest prize in the world, the gift of belief in God,” Kanal T chief executive Seyhan Soylu told Reuters.

“We don’t approve of anyone being an atheist. God is great and it doesn’t matter which religion you believe in. The important thing is to believe,” Soylu said.

The project focuses attention on the issue of religious identity in European Union-candidate Turkey, where rights groups have raised concerns over freedom of religion for non-Muslim minorities.

Detractors of the ruling AK Party government, which is rooted in political Islam but officially secular, accuse it of having a hidden Islamist agenda, a charge it denies.

Some 200 people have so far applied to take part in the show and the 10 contestants will be chosen next month.

A team of theologians will ensure that the atheists are truly non-believers and are not just seeking fame or a free holiday.

Source

I would do that just to get a free trip. I’d probably choose Tibet.

Why bother the atheists?  Why can’t the religious sect just leave them alone?  If people are happy about their personal set of beliefs, why is it everyone else in the world’s problem?  I think if I was an atheist in that country, I’d be pretty darn pissed that even my gov’t was out to brainwash me.

What do the atheists win if they convert the religious folk? I’m thinking a trip to Disneyland.

The prize for converts will be a pilgrimage to a holy site of their chosen religion. . . the Vatican for Christians. . .

What if they decided to become Protestant?

Accipiter - 08 July 2009 07:30 AM

The prize for converts will be a pilgrimage to a holy site of their chosen religion. . . the Vatican for Christians. . .

What if they decided to become Protestant?

They go on a pilgrimage to Dokkum (Frisia, The Netherlands).

Then I will be glad to grand them a tour.

The station made one big mistake. Buddisme is not a religion.

It is a way of life and a seven cours epath you can follow if you chose too.