It’s not Pan-Turkish or Pan-Islamist. It is not a religious sect, fraternity, or cult; nor is it an extension or a branch of any of the above. The movement celebrates the universal moral dynamics and values that were exemplified by the Sufis of the early Islamic history and continue to be universally appreciated today.…
By the 1990s, there is no doubt that the millions of citizens gathered around the ideas of Fethullah Gülen, along with the hundreds of service projects that they support, constituted a social movement. What is surprising, however, is the fact that the movement, rooted in a Turkish Islamic identity, was then and continues to be, as active in as many non-Muslim as well as Muslim countries.…
The basic money-raising strategy in the movement consists in the establishment of local circles of businessmen, teachers, principals, professionals, and students who meet together regularly to discuss the works of Gülen and consider how his ideals can be applied in their local communities.…
The Movement’s chief priority is education. In Gülen’s view the establishment of justice is hindered by the lack of well-rounded education, as is the recognition of human rights and attitudes of acceptance and tolerance toward others: ‘If you wish to keep the masses under control, simply starve them in the area of knowledge.…
A marginal group in Turkey lives with their groundless fears, and they perceive this movement in the same way. Their current situation bothers themselves before anyone else; they cannot help but think “what may happen tomorrow?” Nothing will happen, tomorrow is Wednesday, and then Thursday and Friday will come, and nothing will change.…
As for the movement; neither now, nor in the future should our friends have any ambition for government, they should not be engaged in politics, even if all the power and pomp of the world is laid at their feet; my friends who love me and heed my advice should not show a moment’s hesitation to push all this away with the back of their hand.…