Pacifica Institute San Diego holds its Dialogue and Friendship Dinner


Date posted: November 30, 2013

Pacifica Institute’s San Diego chapter held its 9th Annual Dialogue and Friendship Dinner at Marriot Hotel, La Jolla. The gathering saw the attendance of some 170 guests including academics, bureaucrats and religious figures.

Atilla Kahveci, Pacifica Institute’s vice-president, in his inaugural address, reflected on the crucial role of occasions that bring people of diverse faiths and cultures in fostering intercultural understanding, cooperation and peace.

The night featured journalist-author Mustafa Akyol’s keynote speech centered on his latest book “Islam without Extremes”, followed by remarks by First Assistant U.S. Attorney, Cindy Cipriani; FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge, Mark Hudson; and Fr. Ron Cochran of Saint Luke Catholic Church.

Akyol illustrated the role of dominant cultural factors and authoritarian rules in various countries, alongside the media lacking sound judgment, in misinterpretation of Islam with specific examples. Attorney Cipriani highlighted the importance of exercising cultural awareness and recognition of diversity in legal system to be able to achieve peace and security in society. Cipriani reaffirmed the president Obama’s call for senior state officials to reach out to and engage with every segment of society.

Next, Fr. Cochran took the floor to deliver his remarks, in which he expressed his thanks to Pacifica Institute associates who invited him over for iftar dinners throughout the month of Ramadan. He further conveyed his pleasure to have seen prejudices removed after first encounters among communities and growing hope for tomorrows.

As the night passed on with live Turkish classical music on the background, the institute’s advisory board members were presented plaques for their contributions in dialogue. Finally, the promo video of “Love is a Verb”, a documentary on Hizmet Movement -filmed in six different countries including the US and anticipated to be aired on PBS- was displayed.

Published [in Turkish] on Zaman Amerika,  November 27, 2013.

Source: HizmetMovement.Com , November 30, 2013

Tags: | | |


Related News

10 unanswered questions about the Dec. 17 operation

Would we have learned about the endemic corruption if there was no conflict between the government and the Hizmet movement?

Hizmet is rooted in the culture of dialogue

Dr. Marcia Hermansen, the Director of the Islamic World Studies Program and a Professor in the Theology Department at the Jesuit Loyola University Chicago, presented a lecture on Hizmet Movement (here after HM) at Indialogue Foundation, New Delhi on 7 March 2012. Dr. Hermansen teaches courses in Islamic Studies and the academic study of religion. […]

Mothers meet in İstanbul to mark Mother’s Day, see their children

A mother, Vera Stamova from Moldova, expressed similar feelings. “My two children study in Turkey. My younger daughter studied in Turkish schools [in Moldova]. She received a quality education. I love Turkey and I have great confidence in Turkish people. If I had another child, I would also send her to Turkey. I miss them a lot, but they are very lucky and are taken good care of here,” she said.

WaPo publishes editorial from Fethullah Gulen on the day Erdogan meets Trump

If nothing else, the timing of this is certainly interesting. Yesterday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived in Washington for his meeting with President Trump scheduled for later today. It’s an encounter which I already described as problematic at best, given Erdogan’s new status as a strongman and tyrant, and it doesn’t seem to hold the promise of much benefit on our part.

Kofi Annan’s remarks about Gulen Movement

Hon. Kofi Annan said: I think it is extremely important to have institutions like the Gulen Institute (Gulen Movement) bringing people together, getting them to understand that we all are in the same boat and in today’s world you cannot be secure at the expense of the other, you cannot be safe and prosperous at the expense of other.

While Erdogan Demonizes a Peaceful Movement, International Community Applauds Them.

It is no secret that the corruption scandal on December 17, 2013 that encircled the Turkish government was one of the biggest threats to Erdogan’s rule since he took the office in 2003.

Latest News

Turkish inmate jailed over alleged Gülen links dies of heart attack in prison

Message of Condemnation and Condolences for Mass Shooting at Bondi Beach, Sydney

Media executive Hidayet Karaca marks 11th year in prison over alleged links to Gülen movement

ECtHR faults Turkey for convictions of 2,420 applicants over Gülen links in follow-up to 2023 judgment

New Book Exposes Erdoğan’s “Civil Death Project” Targeting the Hizmet Movement

European Human Rights Treaty Faces Legal And Political Tests

ECtHR rejects Turkey’s appeal, clearing path for retrials in Gülen-linked cases

Erdoğan’s Civil Death Project’ : The ‘politicide’ spanning more than a decade

Fethullah Gülen’s Vision and the Purpose of Hizmet

In Case You Missed It

They busted the house of a deceased teacher to take her under custody

EU and Turkey’s rights abuse

Gulen, Moderate Cleric, Vilified In Turkey

Ex-ministers call on gov’t to abandon efforts to shut down Turkish schools

Kimse Yok Mu to send aid for Syrian refugees with 50 TIRs

Turkish cultural center celebrates opening in Mount Prospect

Court imposes punitive fine on author for libeling Gülen family

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News