Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, who has inspired the popular civic and social movement called Hizmet, said the ballot box is not everything, urging his followers to not stick to only one but to cast their votes freely based on their personal conviction. He added that focusing on the ballot box only makes some people comfortable in telling lies.
The Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) held a panel on Saturday on “Respect for Sacred Values” at the United Nations’ Geneva headquarters. Many academics and diplomats showed great interest in the panel, which was held as the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) conducted its annual meetings in Geneva.
The prominent Saudi scholar Salman Al-Ouda said : “From this day on, I will refer people from our world to you. Please let them see all these services because we have serious problems in our world. We have a radical Salafi line and an emerging secular one. But we need a moderate attitude which is, I believe, the Hizmet. Please do not neglect it and tell them about the Hizmet. It is of vital importance for us.”
Erdogan is clearly intent on marginalizing the Gulenist movement, even at the expense of the rule of law in Turkey. Turkey would clearly be harmed if Gulenist teachings on tolerance and individual rights were successfully quieted. But the loss for Islamic culture would be an even greater tragedy.
The Gülen approach to education aptly demonstrates the group’s global strategy—Gülen movement schools are open to both Turkish migrants and citizens of host countries, and they avoid advancing a religious agenda. These schools aim to help Turkish migrants succeed in their host societies without losing sight of their Turkish roots, and at the same time they promote social unity by serving the needs of migrants and local students alike. The success of Gülen movement schools stems both from the success of the students (and the satisfaction of the parents) and from the prestige and goodwill they enjoy among local and political authorities for promoting integration and acting as a social mediator.
HIZMET NEWS In relation to month of Muharram, friendship programs were organized in Istanbul and Ankara as well as several cities of Anatolia including Tunceli, Balikesir, Corum and Tokat in November 2013. In Istanbul, government officials and representatives of religions came together at the traditional Muharram iftar (fast breaking) dinner organized by The World Ahlul […]
Professor Tom Gage portrays eight modern educators and the development of their theories viewed from personal, cultural, and historical perspectives. He links their ideas to those of Fethullah Gülen, a highly influential educator of today who draws on an entirely different tradition.
Hon. Maggie Hassan, Governor of New Hampshire visited the Turkish Cultural Centers’
headquarters in Manhattan.Hassan spoke very highly of TCC-New Hampshire’s activities and underlined the contributions of
these intercultural dialog organizations to the society.
Koru told Gülen to express his feelings in a letter. The scholar wrote this letter on Dec. 22. Koru took the letter to its addressee, the president. He met with the prime minister the same day in Ankara and told him about his impressions from his contact with Gülen. I mean to say, there is not “bargaining” or “mediation.” There is only a “goodwill initiative” here.
“In those days [of the corruption debate], it was conveyed to us that President Abdullah Gül, having held meetings with various groups in the name of peace for the nation and to prevent debates from escalating further, wished to send an envoy to Gülen to transmit his thoughts as well as to learn Gülen’s considerations,” Şimşek explained.
Delivering constructive messages to move away from political crisis over the graft probe, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has invited the Fetullah Gülen movement to engage in “dialogue and a strategic look toward the horizon.”