Lawrence Seidman on Fethullah Gulen and Hizmet Movement

Rabbi Lawrence Seidman
Rabbi Lawrence Seidman


Date posted: November 10, 2014

Rabbi Lawrence Seidman earned a Ph.D in Electrical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. After retiring from the Boeing Company, he dedicated himself to religious and spiritual studies. Lawrence Siedman was ordained as a rabbi in 2009 by the Academy for Jewish Religion.

Rabbi Seidman describes Hizmet Movement as a bottom-up driven organization “which has gotten the principles so deeply ingrained into every member that you can talk to anybody and get the same feeling of what the commitment is to Islam, what the commitment is to doing the right things in the world, and the personal sacrifice that Hizmet members produce.”

On the subject of interfaith activity, Rabbi Seidman says, “… if you believe there is one God and you believe there are many Prophets, then you have to believe that different people understand God in different ways. … As long as we’re all trying to fix the world, we can work together. And that requires we understand each other, it requires that we realize that you are good people, they’re all good people, and we’re all trying to do God’s work here on Earth in an interfaith way.”

He regards Mr. Gulen’s advice to build schools as “superb advice” and goes on to say, “If more energy was focused on building schools and less on fighting with other religions and less on building big temples and cathedrals, we’d have a much better world.”


*Produced by Spectra Media exclusively for Irmak TV, Atlas of Thoughts (Fikir Atlasi) connects the scholars, politicians, jurists, religious figures, journalists, and academics reflecting on Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gulen and the Hizmet Movement with the audience. Each episode features a person from a different segment of the society with diverse experiences regarding the Hizmet activities and its volunteers. If you are interested to hear about the Hizmet and Mr. Gulen from these people’s perspectives, do not miss this show!

Source: Spectra Media


Related News

Erdoğan steps up hateful speech against Gülen

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stepped up his attacks on Monday against members of a leading civil society group who are critical of his divisive discourse and discriminatory policies, calling the group modern “Lawrences of Arabia.”

America’s first Islamic university starts academic journey

The first university to be founded by Muslims to teach Islamic studies in the United States has started its new academic year, promising to be a leading institution in educating future scholars, including imams.

Guests Rub Elbows With Senators, Mayors At 2012 Greenville Dialogue Dinner

TRIPP MESSICK,  GREENVILLE, S.C. Close to one hundred guests turned out at the Embassy Suites in Greenville Monday night for the 2012 Dialogue Dinner, entitled “Empathy: Walking in Another’s Shoes.” Guest speakers included Dan Waldschmidt, CEO of Waldschmidt Partners International, S.C. Senator John Wesley Matthews, and Furman Professor A. Kadir Yildirim. Towards the end of […]

Gülen’s lawyer: Targeting overseas Turkish educators breaks law

Nurullah Albayrak, the legal representative of Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, in a written statement on Wednesday spoke out against a front-page story in the pro-government Star daily that published the photos of 160 educators at Turkish schools overseas that are affiliated with the faith-based Gülen movement, saying the daily is breaking the law and violating those individuals’ human rights by depicting innocent people as criminals.

Fethullah Gulen’s Statement on Mass Shooting at Pittsburgh Synagogue

I am shocked and deeply saddened by the horrific attack against the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. It is heartbreaking to see such a tragedy happen at a place of worship. I strongly condemn this hate-driven attack on the worshippers.

British politician Duff: So easy for some Turkish media to misreport

In a written statement to Today’s Zaman, the veteran British politician Andrew Duff, who is also the president of the Union of European Federalists, underlined that during the interview with Sabah, he also praised the “charitable works of the Hizmet movement and the fact that many honest businessmen and decent democrats were members of the movement” while also stressing the need for more transparency.

Latest News

Fethullah Gulen – man of education, peace and dialogue – passes away

Fethullah Gülen’s Condolence Message for South African Human Rights Defender Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Hizmet Movement Declares Core Values with Unified Voice

Ankara systematically tortures supporters of Gülen movement, Kurds, Turkey Tribunal rapporteurs say

Erdogan possessed by Pharaoh, Herod, Hitler spirits?

Devious Use of International Organizations to Persecute Dissidents Abroad: The Erdogan Case

A “Controlled Coup”: Erdogan’s Contribution to the Autocrats’ Playbook

Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?

Purge-victim man sent back to prison over Gulen links despite stage 4 cancer diagnosis

In Case You Missed It

UN representative found evidence of torture in Turkish prisons

‘Hizmet is really something that demonstrates what’s universal about Islam.’

Turkish Cultural Center opens in New Hampshire

Turkish charity dedicates well in Africa to brutally killed Özgecan Aslan

Teacher arrested after repairman found Gülen’s audio CD in computer

Afghan Turkish Schools have brought 75 medals to Afghanistan

Witch hunt spreads to courthouse

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News