Muhammed Fethullah Gülen (27 April 1941 – 20 October 2024) was a Turkish
Muslim scholar, preacher, and leader of the
Gülen movement
The Gülen movement () or Hizmet movement () is an Islamist fraternal movement. It is a sub-sect of Sunni Islam based on a Nursian theological perspective as reflected in Fethullah Gülen's religious teachings. It is referred to by its membe ...
who as of 2016 had millions of followers.
Gülen was an influential
neo-Ottomanist,
Anatolia
Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...
n
panethnicist,
Islamic poet,
writer
A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles, genres and techniques to communicate ideas, to inspire feelings and emotions, or to entertain. Writers may develop different forms of writing such as novels, short sto ...
,
social critic
Social criticism is a form of academic or journalistic criticism focusing on social issues in contemporary society, in respect to perceived injustices and power relations in general.
Social criticism of the Enlightenment
The origin of modern ...
, and
activist
Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...
–
dissident
A dissident is a person who actively challenges an established political or religious system, doctrine, belief, policy, or institution. In a religious context, the word has been used since the 18th century, and in the political sense since the 2 ...
developing a
Nursian theological perspective that embraces democratic
modernity
Modernity, a topic in the humanities and social sciences, is both a historical period (the modern era) and the ensemble of particular Society, socio-Culture, cultural Norm (social), norms, attitudes and practices that arose in the wake of the ...
.
Gülen was a local state
imam
Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...
from 1959 to 1981
[Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh, ''The Gülen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam'', p 26. ] and he was a citizen of Turkey until his
denaturalization
Denaturalization is the loss of citizenship against the will of the person concerned. Denaturalization is often applied to ethnic minorities and political dissidents. Denaturalization can be a penalty for actions considered criminal by the state ...
by the Turkish government in 2017. Over the years, Gülen became a
centrist political figure in Turkey prior to his being there as a
fugitive
A fugitive or runaway is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from jail, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals. A fugitive from justice, also known ...
. From 21 March 1999 until his death on 20 October 2024, Gülen lived in self-exile in the United States near
Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania. Gülen's body was buried in a plot of land near the Chestnut Retreat Center in Pennsylvania due to the political situation in Turkey.
Gülen said his
social criticism
Social criticism is a form of academic or journalistic criticism focusing on social issues in contemporary society, in respect to perceived injustices and power relations in general.
Social criticism of the Enlightenment
The origin of modern ...
s are focused upon individuals' faith and morality and a lesser extent toward political ends, and self described as rejecting an
Islamist political philosophy, advocating instead for full participation within professions, society, and political life by religious and secular individuals who profess high moral or ethical principles and who wholly support
secular rule, within
Muslim-majority countries and elsewhere. Gülen was described in the English-language media as an imam "who promoted a tolerant Islam which emphasises altruism, hard work, and education" and as "one of the world's most important Muslim figures".
In 2003, a number of Gülen movement participants allied with
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...
's right wing
Justice and Development Party (AKP), providing the AKP political and sorely-needed administrative support.
This political alliance worked together to weaken left-of-center
Kemalist factions, but fractured in 2011. Turkish prosecutors accused Gülen of attempts to overthrow the government by allegedly directing politically motivated corruption investigations by Gülen-linked investigators then in the judiciary, who illegally wiretapped the executive office of the
Turkish president,
and Gülen's alleged instigations of the
2016 coup attempt.
Gülen denied the accusations.
A Turkish criminal court issued an arrest warrant for Gülen in 2016, and Turkey demanded his extradition from the United States.
U.S. government officials did not believe he was associated with any
terrorist activity, and requested evidence to be provided by the Turkish government to substantiate the allegations in the warrant requesting extradition, frequently rejecting Turkish calls for his extradition.
Gülen was wanted as a terrorist leader in Turkey and Pakistan, as well as by the
OIC and
GCC.
Biography
Muhammed Fethullah Gülen
was born in the village of Korucuk, near
Erzurum
Erzurum (; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. It is the site of an ...
,
to Ramiz and Refia Gülen, There is some dispute over his date of birth. According to some accounts, usually older ones, he was born on 10 November 1938, while others state his birth was on 27 April 1941.
State documents support the 1941 date,
which is now the accepted date,
used on Gülen's English website.
(Some commentators note that 10 November 1938 was the date of the death of the founder of modern Turkey,
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk ( 1881 – 10 November 1938) was a Turkish field marshal and revolutionary statesman who was the founding father of the Republic of Turkey, serving as its first President of Turkey, president from 1923 until Death an ...
, and suggest that the date was chosen for its political significance.
An alternative explanation for the discrepancy offered by one of Gülen's close students, and biographer, was that his parents waited three years to register his birth.)
Gülen's father was an
imam
Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...
.
His mother taught the
Qur'an
The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...
in their village, despite such informal religious instruction being banned by the
Kemalist
Kemalism (, also archaically ''Kamâlizm'') or Atatürkism () is a political ideology based on the ideas of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder and first president of the Turkey, Republic of Turkey.Eric J. Zurcher, Turkey: A Modern History. Ne ...
government.
Gülen's secular formal education ended when his family moved to another village.
He took part in Islamic education in some Erzurum
madrasa
Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...
s
and was influenced by the ideas of Kurdish scholar
Said Nursî
Said Nursi (1877Şükran Vahide, Islam in Modern Turkey: An Intellectual Biography of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, p 3. – 23 March 1960) was a Kurdish scholar of Islam who wrote the Risale-i Nur Collection, a body of Qur'anic commentary exceedin ...
. He gave his first sermon as a licensed state preacher in 1958, when he was in his teens.
Gülen was appointed an assistant imam at
Üç Şerefeli Mosque
The Üç Şerefeli Mosque () is a 15th-century Ottoman mosque in Edirne, Turkey.
History
The Üç Şerefeli Mosque was commissioned by Ottoman sultan Murad II (r. 1421–1444, 1446–1451), and built between 1438 and 1447. It is located in the ...
in
Edirne
Edirne (; ), historically known as Orestias, Adrianople, is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the Edirne Province, province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, Edirne was the second c ...
, 6 August 1959, and thus joined in the Turkish
civil service
The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...
where he served until he retired from formal preaching duties in 1981.
While Gülen was teaching at the
Kestanepazari Qur'anic School in
İzmir
İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...
in March 1971,
the Turkish military seized control of the government in an attempt to quell domestic political violence. During its aftermath, Gülen was arrested for organizing a clandestine religious group based on his teachings and was imprisoned for seven months.
Gülen's influence in civil society and number of followers grew steadily during the 1980s and 1990s.
From 1988 to 1991 he gave a series of sermons in popular mosques of major cities. In 1994, he participated in the founding of the Journalists and Writers Foundation and was given the title "honorary president" by the foundation. He reportedly avoided making any comments about the forced closures of the Islamist Welfare Party in 1998
or the Virtue Party in 2001,
or meeting with the leaders of Islamic political parties,
although he did meet with some of their politicians like
Tansu Çiller and
Bülent Ecevit
Mustafa Bülent Ecevit (; 28 May 1925 – 5 November 2006) was a Turkish politician, statesman, poet, writer, scholar, and journalist. He served as the Prime Minister of Turkey four times between 1974 and 2002. He served as prime minister in 197 ...
.
Coming to the United States
In March 1999, Gülen relocated to the United States for medical treatment,
and has remained there since.
According to the
Kemalist
Kemalism (, also archaically ''Kamâlizm'') or Atatürkism () is a political ideology based on the ideas of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder and first president of the Turkey, Republic of Turkey.Eric J. Zurcher, Turkey: A Modern History. Ne ...
Turkish law of the time, intending to ensure modernity and secularism, non-state sanctioned religious endeavors were outlawed and Gülen was under investigation for subverting the government,
especially over remarks (aired after he immigrated to U.S.) which seemed to favor an Islamic state.
In June 1999, after Gülen had left Turkey, videotapes were sent to some Turkish television stations with recordings of Gülen saying,
Gülen was tried ''in absentia'' in 2000, and found guilty of conspiring to embed his supporters into the Turkish civil service in important governmental offices to overthrow the government.
Gülen said his remarks were taken out of context, and his supporters raised questions about the authenticity of the tape, which he said had been "manipulated".
Gülen's conviction was reversed in 2008 under the new
Justice and Development Party (AKP) government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan,
a move that signaled cooperation between Erdoğan's AKP (whose Islamist ideas were becoming increasingly popular),
and Gülen's movement (whose media, banking and educational network in Turkey and elsewhere was becoming increasingly powerful).
Gülen applied for a "
green card
A green card, known officially as a permanent resident card, is an identity document which shows that a person has permanent residency in the United States. ("The term 'lawfully admitted for permanent residence' means the status of having been ...
", i.e. permanent residence in the United States in 2002. After
11 September 2001
The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
, the U.S. increased its scrutiny of its domestic Islamic religious groups. Objecting to Gulen's residency application were the
FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
, the State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security. Gülen first based his claim to residency on his being an
alien of extraordinary ability as an education activist; the
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services rejected it. Lawyers representing the
Secretary of Homeland Security
The United States secretary of homeland security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the federal department tasked with ensuring public safety in the United States. The secretary is a member of the Cabinet of the U ...
argued that Gülen has no degree or training in the field of education and questioned laudatory opinions about Gülen, cited by his lawyers, that had been expressed by scholars at academics conferences funded by
Gulenist foundations. CIA National Intelligence Council former vice chairman
Graham E. Fuller, former CIA official George Fidas and former US Ambassador to Turkey
Morton Abramowitz wrote endorsement letters for Gülen's green card application in 2008. The court ruled against the
USCIS
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that administers the country's naturalization and immigration system.
History
The USCIS is a successor to the Im ...
and in Gülen's favor, granting Gülen his green card.
With the advent of
Erdoğanist Turkey in the 2000s, structural impediments to Muslims' participation in civil life were gradually lifted. Many of those educated in institutions sponsored by participants in civil-society endeavors that Gülen had inspired ended up as members of the Turkey's judiciary, its governmental apparatus, and its military. While Gulen's movement had consistently maintained that it stayed above politics, in the 2011 election its print and broadcast media suddenly came out in support of Erdogan and his party, leading to another big AKP victory.
But as Turkey's secular state was dismantled, tension grew between Erdogan and Gulen beginning with Erdogan's closing down of Gulen's network of university prep schools.
In the period just prior to the
2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt
In the evening of 15 July 2016, a faction within the Turkish Armed Forces, organized as the Peace at Home Council, attempted a coup d'état against state institutions, including the government and president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. They attempted ...
, Erdoğanism changed in its perception of Gülenism from that of sometimes ally to a dangerous rival, attempting to construct a
parallel state structure. On 19 December 2014, a Turkish court issued an arrest warrant for Gülen after over 20 journalists working for media outlets thought to be sympathetic to the Gülen movement were arrested. Gülen was accused of establishing and running an "armed terrorist group".
Before and after the attempted putsch, Gülenists became the greatest portion of those caught up in the massive
2016–present purges in Turkey
Since 2016, the Government of Turkey, government of Turkey has conducted a series of purges, enabled by a Martial law and state of emergency in Turkey, state of emergency in reaction to the 2016 Turkish coup attempt, failed coup attempt on 15 Ju ...
.
Since the 2016 coup attempt, authorities arrested or imprisoned more than 90,000 Turkish citizens, and shut down Gulen's entire media and business empire in Turkey.
Later life and death
Gülen had resided at the Hizmet movement-affiliated Chestnut Retreat Center, a 25-acre wooded estate in the
Poconos (within
Ross Township, Monroe County, Pennsylvania, near
Saylorsburg).
About thirty people live and work on the estate, owned by the Golden Generation Foundation. Never married, Gülen's own living quarters and study were within a pair of small rooms, whose rent he paid out of his publishing royalties and which contained a mattress on the floor, prayer mat, desk, bookshelves, and treadmill, within one of the estate's several structures, among which is a hall used as a mosque.
Gülen was reported to be in ill health. In 2017, reports identified four candidates to succeed Gulen, if necessary, in leadership of the Hizmet movement: Mehmet Ali Şengül, Cevdet Türkyolu, Osman Şimşek and Ahmet Kurucan.
Gülen died at a hospital in Pennsylvania on 20 October 2024, at the age of 83.
He was being treated for heart and kidney failure at the time of his death. Due to the political situation in Turkey, he was buried on the grounds of the Chestnut Retreat Center, contrary to his wish to be interred in
İzmir
İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...
.
Influence in Turkish society and politics
The
Gülen movement
The Gülen movement () or Hizmet movement () is an Islamist fraternal movement. It is a sub-sect of Sunni Islam based on a Nursian theological perspective as reflected in Fethullah Gülen's religious teachings. It is referred to by its membe ...
, also known as ''Hizmet'' ('Service') or ''Cemaat'' (pronounced ''Jamaat'' and meaning 'Community'), has millions of followers, as well as many more abroad. Beyond the schools established by Gülen's followers, many Gülenists held positions of power in Turkey's
police forces
The police are a constituted body of people empowered by a state with the aim of enforcing the law and protecting the public order as well as the public itself. This commonly includes ensuring the safety, health, and possessions of citize ...
and
judiciary
The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...
.
Turkish and foreign analysts believe Gülen also has sympathizers in the Turkish parliament and that his movement controlled the widely read Islamic conservative ''
Zaman'' newspaper, the private
Bank Asya bank, the
Samanyolu TV
Samanyolu TV was an international Turkish language TV station with its headquarters in Istanbul.
The channel is known for its closeness to Fethullah Gülen, the leader of the Gülen movement. Samanyolu TV was previously owned by Yayıncılık A. ...
television station, and many other media and business organizations, including the
Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON).
All have been shut down following the coup attempt. In March 2011, the Turkish government arrested the investigative journalist
Ahmet Şık
Ahmet Şık (; born 1970, Adana) is a Turkish investigative journalist, the author of several books, a trade unionist, and member of Grand National Assembly of Turkey, Parliament in Turkey.Details othis website; accessed on 11 April 2011 His book, ...
and seized and banned his book ''
The Imam's Army'', the culmination of Şık's investigation into Gülen and the Gülen movement.
Gülen taught a
Hanafi
The Hanafi school or Hanafism is the oldest and largest Madhhab, school of Islamic jurisprudence out of the four schools within Sunni Islam. It developed from the teachings of the Faqīh, jurist and theologian Abu Hanifa (), who systemised the ...
version of
Islam
Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
, deriving from
Sunni
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...
Muslim scholar
Said Nursî
Said Nursi (1877Şükran Vahide, Islam in Modern Turkey: An Intellectual Biography of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, p 3. – 23 March 1960) was a Kurdish scholar of Islam who wrote the Risale-i Nur Collection, a body of Qur'anic commentary exceedin ...
's teachings. Gülen has stated that he believes in science,
interfaith dialogue among the
People of the Book
People of the Book, or ''Ahl al-Kitāb'' (), is a classification in Islam for the adherents of those religions that are regarded by Muslims as having received a divine revelation from Allah, generally in the form of a holy scripture. The clas ...
, and
multi-party democracy.
He has initiated such dialogue with the Vatican
[Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh, The Gülen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam, p 38. ] and some Jewish organizations.
The Gülen movement's constituent local entities function independently from each other, existing, in the aggregate, as
leaderless activist entities. "I really don't know 0.1% of the people in this movement", Gülen has said. "I haven't done much. I have just spoken out on what I believe. Because it
ülen's teachingsmade sense, people grasped it themselves." "I opened one school to see if people liked it. So they created more schools." The movement includes some theological staff as imams or spiritual counselors, although their identities are kept confidential due to such positions being illegal in Turkey. This has led some observers to argue that the movement includes a clandestine aspect.
1970s, 1980s and 1990s
Gülen opened an ''ışık evler'' or "light houses" (students' hostel offering scholarships for poorer scholars) in 1976, with there being informal ''sohbet''s (Quranic discussions) available there for the students as well. Gülen encouraged like-minded individuals to follow suit, which became the genesis of the Gülen movement.
During the
political violence in Turkey
Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of status or resources.
The branch of social science that studies poli ...
between the right and left in the 1970s, Gülen "invited people to practice tolerance and forgiveness."
Following the
1980 Turkish coup d'état
The 1980 Turkish coup d'état (), headed by Chief of the General Staff General Kenan Evren, was the third coup d'état in the history of the Republic of Turkey, the previous having been the 1960 coup and the 1971 coup by memorandum.
During ...
, in which the military targeted communists, Gülen gave his "explicit assent" to the coup,
saying:
Following the political violence of the preceding years, Gülen expected that the coup would reestablish stability and lead to a subsequent restoration of democracy. Gülen's assent to the coup later prompted criticism from
Turkish liberals.
Despite Gülen's support for the coup, the military authorities issued an
arrest warrant
An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual or the search and seizure of an individual's property.
Canada
Arrest warrants are issued by a jud ...
against him, which was revoked by a "state security court" in 1986.
In the 1980s and 1990s under
Turgut Özal, Gülen and his movement benefited from social and political reforms, managing "to turn his traditional and geographically confined faith movement into a nationwide educational and cultural phenomenon" that "attempted to bring 'religious' perspectives into the public sphere on social and cultural issues."
[M. Hakan Yavuz, ''Toward an Islamic Enlightenment: The Gülen Movement'' (Oxford University Press, 2013), pp. 39–40.] The growth of the Gülen movement sparked opposition from both
Kemalists, who perceived the movement as threatening to undermine secularism, and from more radical
Islamists who viewed the movement as "accommodating" and "pro-American".
[M. Hakan Yavuz, ''Toward an Islamic Enlightenment: The Gülen Movement'' (Oxford University Press, 2013), pp. 40–41.]
2000s and 2010s
Sharing Turkish President
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...
's ambition to empower religious individuals in civil life previously disenfranchised in
secular Turkey, in 2003 a number of Gülen movement participants pivoted from the Turkish political center to become the junior partner with the newly ruling Erdoğan-led and center-right
Justice and Development Party (AKP), providing the party political and sorely-needed administrative support.
This political alliance worked together to weaken left-of-center
Kemalist
Kemalism (, also archaically ''Kamâlizm'') or Atatürkism () is a political ideology based on the ideas of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder and first president of the Turkey, Republic of Turkey.Eric J. Zurcher, Turkey: A Modern History. Ne ...
factions in the judiciary, military, and police. It internally fractured in 2011, which became common knowledge by the time of the
corruption investigations of highly placed members of Turkey's ruling party in 2013.
Ergenekon Trials
In 2005, a man affiliated with the Gülen movement approached U.S. Ambassador to Turkey
Eric S. Edelman during a party in Istanbul and handed him an envelope containing a document supposedly detailing plans for an imminent coup against the government by the
Turkish military. However, the documents were soon found to be forgeries.
Gülen affiliates state that the movement is "civic" in nature and that it does not have political aspirations.
However, he was accused of being the mastermind behind the
Ergenekon trials by secularists, who see the trial's objective as weakening of Turkish military. Those who publicly said that the trial was a sham were subject to harassment by ''
Zaman'', some examples being
Dani Rodrik
Dani Rodrik (born August 14, 1957) is a Turkish economist and Ford Foundation Professor of International Political Economy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He was formerly the Albert O. Hirschman Professor of ...
and
İlhan Cihaner
İlhan Cihaner (born 23 February 1968, Kağızman), is a Turkish people, Turkish leftist politician and a former prosecutor. He's a parliamentary deputy for the Republican People's Party (CHP) since 2011. He was the Chief Public Prosecutor of Erz ...
.
Split with Erdoğan
Despite Gülen's and his followers' statements that the organization is non-political in nature, analysts believed that a number of corruption-related arrests made against allies of Erdoğan reflect a growing political power struggle between Gülen and Erdoğan.
These arrests led to the
2013 corruption scandal in Turkey
The 2013 corruption scandal in Turkey or 17–25 December Corruption and Bribery Operation was a criminal investigation that involved several key people in the Turkish government. All of the 52 people detained on 17 December were connected in v ...
, which the ruling AKP's supporters (along with Erdoğan himself) and the opposition parties alike have said were choreographed by Gülen after Erdoğan's government came to the decision early in December 2013 to shut down many of his movement's private pre-university schools in Turkey.
The Erdoğan government has said that the corruption investigation and comments by Gülen are the long term political agenda of Gülen's movement to infiltrate security, intelligence, and justice institutions of the Turkish state, a charge almost identical to the charges against Gülen by the Chief Prosecutor of Turkey in his trial in 2000 before Erdoğan's party had come into power.
Gülen had previously been tried ''in absentia'' in 2000, and acquitted of these charges in 2008 under Erdoğan's AKP government.
In emailed comments to ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'' in January 2014, Gülen said that "Turkish people ... are upset that in the last two years democratic progress is now being reversed", but he denied being part of a plot to unseat the government.
Later, in January 2014 in an interview with
BBC World, Gülen said "If I were to say anything to people I may say people should vote for those who are respectful to democracy, rule of law, who get on well with people. Telling or encouraging people to vote for a party would be an insult to peoples' intellect. Everybody very clearly sees what is going on."
On 28 October 2015, Ministry of Interior placed Gülen in the red category of the "most wanted terrorists list". The Ministry announced that a monetary reward of up to 10 million Turkish liras will be given to Gülen in this category.
According to some commentators, Gülen is to Erdoğan what
Trotsky
Lev Davidovich Bronstein ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky,; ; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky'' was a Russian revolutionary, Soviet politician, and political theorist. He was a key figure ...
was to
Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
. Ben Cohen of the
Jewish News Syndicate wrote: "Rather like Leon Trotsky, the founder of the Soviet Red Army who was hounded and chased out of the USSR by Joseph Stalin, Gülen has become an all-encompassing explanation for the existential threats, as Erdogan perceives them, that are currently plaguing Turkey. Stalin saw the influence of 'Trotskyite counter-revolutionaries' everywhere, and brutally
purged every element of the Soviet apparatus. Erdogan is now doing much the same with the 'Gülenist terrorists.
Extradition request, U.S.–Turkey tensions
Shortly after the botched coup attempt of 15 July 2016, the
Turkish government stated that the coup attempt had been organized by Gülen and/or
his movement. Turkish prime minister
Binali Yıldırım
Binali Yıldırım (; born 20 December 1955) is a Turkish politician who served as the List of Prime Ministers of Turkey, 27th and last prime minister of Turkey from 2016 to 2018 and Speaker of the Grand National Assembly from 2018 to 2019. He w ...
in late July 2016 told ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'': "Of course, since the leader of this terrorist organisation is residing in the United States, there are question marks in the minds of the people whether there is any U.S. involvement or backing. So America from this point on should really think how they will continue to cooperate with Turkey, which is a strategic ally for them in the region and world." Gülen, who denied any involvement in the coup attempt and denounced it, has in turn accused Erdoğan of "turning a failed putsch into a slow-motion coup of his own against constitutional government."
On 19 July, an official request had been sent to the U.S. for the extradition of Fethullah Gülen.
On 23 July 2016, Turkey formally submitted a formal extradition request accompanied by certain documents as supporting evidence.
Senior U.S. officials said this evidence pertained to certain pre-coup alleged subversive activities.
On 19 September, Turkish government officials met with retired US Army Lt. General
Mike Flynn, former CIA Director
James Woolsey, and others to discuss legal and potentially illegal ways such as
enforced disappearance
An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person with the support or acquiescence of a State (polity), state followed by a refusal to acknowledge the person's fate or whereabouts with the i ...
for removing Gülen from the US. In March 2017, Flynn registered as a
foreign agent
A foreign agent is any person or entity actively carrying out the interests of a foreign principal while located in another host country, generally outside the Diplomatic immunity, protections offered to those working in their official capacity fo ...
for his 2016 lobbying work on behalf of the government of Turkey.
Rudy Giuliani
Rudolph William Louis Giuliani ( , ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and Disbarment, disbarred lawyer who served as the 107th mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney ...
privately urged
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
in 2017 to extradite Gülen.
All Hizmet's schools, foundations and other entities in Turkey have been closed by the Turkish government following the
2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt
In the evening of 15 July 2016, a faction within the Turkish Armed Forces, organized as the Peace at Home Council, attempted a coup d'état against state institutions, including the government and president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. They attempted ...
.
In addition, the Turkish government reportedly sought to pressure a number of foreign governments into shutting down schools and medical facilities allegedly associated with the Gülen movement including in Pakistan, Somalia, Germany, Indonesia, Nigeria and Kenya. In Somalia, two large schools and a hospital linked to the movement have been shut down following a request by the Turkish administration. Albania and Bosnia have also seen requests by Turkey to close or investigate Gülen-linked schools.
Egypt asylum proposal
In Egypt, MP Emad Mahrous called on the Egyptian government to grant asylum to Gülen in 2016. In the request, sent to Speaker of the House of Representatives Ali Abdel-Aal, Prime Minister
Sherif Ismail and Foreign Minister
Sameh Shoukry on 24 July 2016, Mahrous noted that "
urkeywas a moderate Muslim country that
adbecome an Islamist dictatorship at the hands of
urkish presidentRecep Tayyip Erdoğan
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who is the 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister of Turkey, prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the Jus ...
and his affiliated
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
political party", arguing that it was highly distasteful that Erdoğan has requested Gülen's extradition from the United States while at the same time "giving shelter to hundreds of leaders of the
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
terrorist organisation and members of other bloody militant Islamist groups which attack Egypt by day and night".
Mahrous argued that Erdoğan had not only accused Gülen of plotting the failed coup attempt, but also used this allegation as an excuse to
engage in mass purges against public institutions allegedly loyal to Gülen—"but at the same time Erdoğan
addecided to turn Turkey into a media battleground against Egypt, with Turkish intelligence providing funds for several Muslim Brotherhood TV channels to attack Egypt". Mahrous stated that his advice to Gülen was to not wait until he would get extradited, but instead leave the United States and obtain permanent asylum in Egypt. Former Egyptian President
Anwar Sadat
Muhammad Anwar es-Sadat (25 December 1918 – 6 October 1981) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the third president of Egypt, from 15 October 1970 until Assassination of Anwar Sadat, his assassination by fundame ...
granted asylum to Shah
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (26 October 1919 – 27 July 1980) was the last List of monarchs of Iran, Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 to 1979. He succeeded his father Reza Shah and ruled the Imperial State of Iran until he was overthrown by the ...
following his arrival in Egypt from the US, regardless of the threats that were issued by Iran's ayatollahs during the
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...
.
Continuing aftermath
In March 2017, former
CIA Director James Woolsey told ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'' that he had been at a 19 September 2016 meeting with then Trump campaign advisor
Mike Flynn with Turkey's foreign minister,
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, and energy minister,
Berat Albayrak
Berat Albayrak ( born 21 February 1978) is a Turkish businessman and politician. He served as the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources from 2015 to 2018 and as the minister of treasury and finance from 2018 to 2020. In the general elections ...
, where the possibility of Gulen's
abduction and forced rendition to Turkey was discussed. Although no concrete kidnapping plan was discussed, Woolsey left the meeting, concerned that a general discussion about "a covert step in the dead of night to whisk this guy away" might be construed as illegal under American law. A spokesman for Flynn denied Woolsey's account, telling ''
Business Insider
''Business Insider'' (stylized in all caps: BUSINESS INSIDER; known from 2021 to 2023 as INSIDER) is a New York City–based multinational financial and business news website founded in 2007. Since 2015, a majority stake in ''Business Inside ...
'' that no nonjudicial removal had been discussed at the meeting.
In July 2017, one year after the anti-Erdoğan putsch, Gülen wrote: "Accusations against me related to the coup attempt are baseless, politically motivated slanders." In the 1990s, Gulen had been issued a special Turkish passport as a retired holder of the religious post, in the Turkish state religion of Sunni Islam, of
mufti
A mufti (; , ) is an Islamic jurist qualified to issue a nonbinding opinion ('' fatwa'') on a point of Islamic law (''sharia''). The act of issuing fatwas is called ''iftāʾ''. Muftis and their ''fatāwa'' have played an important role thro ...
; in 2017 this passport was revoked. Unless Gulen travels to Turkey by the end of September 2017, he will be
stateless. On 26 September 2017, Gulen asked for a
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
commission to investigate the 2016 coup attempt.
Also, Gulen said in an interview with
NPR
National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...
: "To this day, I have stood against all coups. My respect for the military aside, I have always been against interventions. ... If any one among those soldiers had called me and told me of their plan, I would tell them, 'You are committing murder.' ... If they ask me what my final wish is, I would say the person
rdoganwho caused all this suffering and oppressed thousands of innocents, I want to spit in his face."
On 28 September 2017, Erdoğan requested the U.S. to
extradite Gülen in exchange for American pastor
Andrew Brunson, under arrest in Turkey on charges related to Brunson's alleged affiliation with "
FETO" (the Gulen movement); Erdoğan said, "You have a pastor too. Give him to us. ... Then we will try
runsonand give him to you".
"You have a pastor too. ... You give us that one and we'll work with our judiciary and give back yours."
The
Federal judiciary alone determines extradition cases in the U.S. An August 2017 decree gave Erdogan authority to approve the exchange of detained or convicted foreigners with people held in other countries. Asked about the suggested swap on 28 September 2017,
U.S. State Department spokeswoman
Heather Nauert said: "I can't imagine that we would go down that road. ... We have received extradition requests for him
ulen" Anonymous US officials have said to reporters that the Turkish government has not yet provided sufficient evidence for the
U.S. Justice Department
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a United States federal executive departments, federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of Law of the Unite ...
to charge Gulen.
As of September 2017, what Turkey had provided the U.S. was information about Gulen dating to before the 2016 coup attempt and Turkey was in the process of compiling information allegedly linking Gulen to the coup attempt.
In 2017,
Amnesty International
Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...
and
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...
separately issued statements urging governments to avoid extraditions to Turkey.
In November 2018, the Trump administration asked the U.S. Justice Department to explore what legal justifications could be used, should it decide to seek for Gulen to be deported. On 17 November 2018, U.S. President
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
announced that the issue of Gülen's extradition to Turkey was not on his agenda. On 17 December 2018, the US Department of Justice announced the indictment of two men, alleging that they acted "in the United States as illegal agents of the Government of Turkey" and conspired "to covertly influence U.S. politicians and public opinion against" Fetullah Gulen. The two men, former associates of ex-US national security adviser
Michael Flynn
Michael Thomas Flynn (born 24 December 1958) is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who served as the 24th U.S. national security advisor for the first 22 days of the first Trump administration. He resigned in light of reports tha ...
, used the now-dissolved Flynn Intel Group in an effort to discredit Gulen dating back to July 2016, according to the indictment.
In a February 2019 opinion piece, Gülen said, "
Turkey, a vast arrest campaign based on guilt by association is ongoing. The number of victims of this campaign of persecution keeps increasing ... . Erdogan is draining the reputation that the Turkish Republic has gained in the international arena, pushing Turkey into the league of nations known for suffocating freedoms andjailing democratic dissenters. The ruling clique is exploiting diplomatic relations, mobilizing government personnel and resources to harass, haunt and abduct Hizmet movement volunteers all around the world."
In 2022, U.S. Senate candidate for Pennsylvania
Mehmet Oz
Mehmet Cengiz Oz ( ; ; born June 11, 1960), also known as Dr. Oz (), is an American television presenter, physician, author, educator and government official serving as the 17th administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services sinc ...
predicted (to ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
''), "Gulen cannot be touched. There are no credible allegations that he was involved in the coup. He will stay in Pennsylvania."
Thought and activism
Initiatives
The
Gülen movement
The Gülen movement () or Hizmet movement () is an Islamist fraternal movement. It is a sub-sect of Sunni Islam based on a Nursian theological perspective as reflected in Fethullah Gülen's religious teachings. It is referred to by its membe ...
is a transnational Islamic civic society movement inspired by Gülen's teachings. His teachings about ''hizmet'' (altruistic service to the common good) have attracted a large number of supporters in Turkey,
Central Asia
Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...
, and increasingly in other parts of the world.
Education
In his sermons, Gülen has reportedly stated: "Studying physics, mathematics, and chemistry is worshipping God."
With regard to terrorism, Gülen believes "The antidote is a religious education program that teaches the tradition in a holistic and contextualized way. To be able to resist the deceits of radical ideologues, young Muslims must understand the spirit of their scripture and the overarching principles of their Prophet's life".
Gülen's followers have built over 1,000 schools around the world. In Turkey, Gülen's schools are considered among the best: expensive modern facilities where the English language is taught from the first grade.
However, former teachers from outside the Gülen community have called into question the treatment of women and girls in Gülen schools, reporting that female teachers were excluded from administrative responsibilities, allowed little autonomy, and—along with girls from the sixth grade and up—segregated from male colleagues and pupils during break and lunch periods.
Interfaith and intercultural dialogue
During the 1990s, he began to advocate interreligious tolerance and dialogue.
He has personally met with leaders of other religions, including
Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005.
In his you ...
,
the
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople
Bartholomew (born Dimitrios Archontonis, 29 February 1940) is the current Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople since 1991. In accordance with his title, he is regarded as the ''primus inter pares'' (fir ...
, and Israeli
Sephardic
Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...
Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi () is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a capitulation by Ben-Zion Meir ...
Eliyahu Bakshi-Doron.
Gülen has said that he favors cooperation between followers of different religions as well as religious and secular elements within society. Among his strongest supporters and collaborators has been for years the Greek Orthodox Turcologist and professor at the
University of Ottawa
The University of Ottawa (), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a Official bilingualism in Canada, bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ot ...
,
Dimitri Kitsikis.
Gülen has shown sympathy towards certain demands of Turkey's
Alevi
Alevism (; ; ) is a syncretic heterodox Islamic tradition, whose adherents follow the mystical Islamic teachings of Haji Bektash Veli, who taught the teachings of the Twelve Imams, whilst incorporating some traditions from shamanism. Differing ...
minority, such as recognising their
cemevi
A cemevi or cem evi (pronounced and sometimes written as djemevi; meaning literally "a house of gathering" in Turkish) is a place of fundamental importance for Turkey's Alevi- Bektashiyyah tariqa populations. Certain Alevi organizations describ ...
s as official places of worship and supporting better Sunni-Alevi relations; stating Alevis "definitely enrich Turkish culture".
Political views
Theology
Gülen does not advocate a new theology but refers to classical authorities of theology, taking up their line of argument. His understanding of Islam tends to be moderate and mainstream. Though he has never been a member of a
Sufi
Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism.
Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
''
tarekat'' and does not see ''tarekat'' membership as a necessity for Muslims, he teaches that "Sufism is the inner dimension of Islam" and "the inner and outer dimensions must never be separated."
He teaches that the Muslim community has a duty of service (Turkish: ''hizmet'') to the common good of the community and the nation and to Muslims and non-Muslims all over the world; and that the Muslim community is obliged to conduct dialogue with not just the "People of the Book" (Jews and Christians), and people of other religions, but also with agnostics and atheists.
Gülen's Sufism is greatly influenced by
Sufi
Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism.
Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
Kurdish Quranic scholar
Said Nursi (1877–1960), who advocated illuminating modern education and science through Islam. Gülen expands on Nursi to advocate what has been described as a "Turkish nationalist, state-centered and pro-business approach" centered on service (''hizmet'', in Turkish).
Some participants within Gülen's movement have viewed Nursi's or Gülen's works as that of ''
mujaddid
A ''mujaddid'' () is an Islamic term for one who brings "renewal" () to the religion. According to the popular Muslim tradition, it refers to a person who appears at the turn of every century of the Islamic calendar to revitalize Islam, clean ...
s'' or "renewers" of Islam within their respective times. Others have opined in more
eschatological
Eschatology (; ) concerns expectations of the end of present age, human history, or the world itself. The end of the world or end times is predicted by several world religions (both Abrahamic and non-Abrahamic), which teach that negative world ...
terms, equating Gülen's work as assistance toward the prophesied
Mahdi
The Mahdi () is a figure in Islamic eschatology who is believed to appear at the Eschatology, End of Times to rid the world of evil and injustice. He is said to be a descendant of Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad, and will appear shortly before Jesu ...
to come, albeit Gülen's spokespersons discourage broaching such speculation. and an official gülenist website hosts an article entitled "Claiming to be the Mahdi is Deviation". In 2016, Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate (
Diyanet),
Mehmet Görmez, said Gülen's is a "fake Mahdi movement".
Anatolian nationalism; Turkish Islam
Gülen defines
Turkish nationalism
Turkish nationalism () is nationalism among the people of Turkey and individuals whose national identity is Turkish. Turkish nationalism consists of political and social movements and sentiments prompted by a love for Turkish culture, Turkish ...
by particular type of
Anatolia
Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...
n Muslim culture that is at the roots of the modern Turkish nation state, rather than by any specific ethnicity. He believes ''Turkish Islam'' (meaning "Sufism") an especially legitimate, if not an exclusively valid expression of the Islamic faith, especially with concern individuals of a Turkish background. Albeit Gülen ascribes positive characteristics to various localized entities, overall the tenor of Gülen's teachings warn against the human tendencies toward insularity or discriminations against people of other ethnicities, other branches of Islam, or other faiths.
Kurdish issues
He was accused of being against the
peace process
A peace process is the set of political sociology, sociopolitical negotiations, agreements and actions that aim to solve a specific armed conflict.
Definitions
Prior to an armed conflict occurring, peace processes can include the prevention of ...
that had aimed to resolve the long-running
Kurdish-Turkish conflict. However, Gülen's supporters dismiss this claim, citing his work with many Kurds.
Freedom of expression
Excerpt from Gülen-penned op-ed in ''The New York Times'':
Secularism
Gülen has criticized
secularism in Turkey
In Turkey, secularism or laicism (see ''laïcité'') was first introduced with the 1928 amendment of the Constitution of 1924, which removed the provision declaring that the "Religion of the State is Islam", and with the later reforms of Turk ...
as "reductionist materialism". However, he has in the past said that a secular approach that is "not anti-religious" and "allows for freedom of religion and belief, is compatible with Islam."
According to one Gülen press release, in democratic-secular countries, 95% of Islamic principles are permissible and practically feasible, and there is no problem with them. The remaining 5% "are not worth fighting for".
Turkish bid to join the EU
Gülen has supported Turkey's bid to join the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
and has said that neither Turkey nor the EU have anything to fear, but have much to gain, from a future of full Turkish membership in the EU.
Women's roles
According to Aras and Caha, Gülen's views on women are "progressive".
Gülen says the coming of Islam saved women, who "were absolutely not confined to their home and ... never oppressed" in the early years of the religion. He feels that extreme feminism, however, is "doomed to imbalance like all other reactionary movements" and eventually "being full of hatred towards men".
Terrorism
Gülen has condemned terrorism.
He warns against the phenomenon of arbitrary violence and aggression against civilians and said that it "has no place in Islam". He wrote a condemnation article in ''The Washington Post'' on 12 September 2001, one day after the
September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
, and stated that "A Muslim can not be a terrorist, nor can a terrorist be a true Muslim." Gülen lamented the "hijacking of Islam" by terrorists.
Gaza flotilla
Gülen criticized the
Turkish-led Gaza flotilla for trying to deliver aid without Israel's consent to Palestinians in Gaza. He spoke of watching the news coverage of the deadly confrontation between Israeli commandos and multinational aid group members as its flotilla approached Israel's sea blockade of Gaza. He said, "What I saw was not pretty, it was ugly." He has since continued his criticism, saying later that the organizers' failure to seek accord with Israel before attempting to deliver aid was "a sign of defying authority, and will not lead to fruitful matters."
Syrian civil war
Gülen is strongly against
Turkish involvement in the
Syrian civil war. While rejecting the Turkish government's desire to topple the Syrian government of President
Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad (born 11September 1965) is a Syrian politician, military officer and former dictator
Sources characterising Assad as a dictator:
who served as the president of Syria from 2000 until fall of the Assad regime, his government ...
, Gülen supports
military intervention against ISIL
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
.
Armenian genocide
Addressing the
Armenian genocide
The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was implemented primarily t ...
in a 6 May 1965 letter, Gülen wrote:
Publications
Gülen's official website lists 44 publications by him; these are, however, more akin to essays and collections of sermons than books on specific subjects with a specific thesis. He is also said to have authored many articles on a variety of topics: social, political and religious issues, art, science and sports, and recorded thousands of audio and video cassettes. He writes the lead article for ''
The Fountain'', ''Yeni Ümit'', ''
Sızıntı'', and ''Yağmur'' Islamic philosophical magazines. Several of his books have been translated into English.
*''The Messenger of God: Muhammad'', Tughra Books, 2nd edition, 2008.
*''Reflections on the Qur'an: Commentaries on Selected Verses'', Tughra Books, 2012.
*''Toward Global Civilization Love and Tolerance'', Tughra Books, 2010.
*''From Seed to Cedar: Nurturing the Spiritual Needs in Children'', Tughra Books, 2013.
*''Terror and Suicide Attacks: An Islamic Perspective'', Tughra Books, 2008.
*''Journey to Noble Ideals: Droplets of Wisdom from the Heart'' (Broken Jug), Tughra Books, 2014.
*''Speech and Power of Expression'', Tughra Books, 2010.
*''Selected Prayers of Prophet Muhammad'', Tughra Books, 2012.
Reception
Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at
Morehouse College
Morehouse College is a Private college, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black, Men's colleges in the United States, men's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia, ...
awarded its 2015 Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award to Gülen in recognition of his lifelong dedication to promoting peace and human rights.
Gülen topped the 2008 Top 100 Public Intellectuals Poll and came out as the most influential
thinker.
Gülen was named as one of ''
Time
Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' magazine's
100 Most Influential People in 2013.
In 2015,
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Confer ...
basketball player
Enes Kanter said that he was excluded from the
Turkish national basketball team for his public support of Gülen. Kanter was disowned by his family in 2016 due to his support for Gülen.
Gülen was listed as one of
the 500 most influential Muslims
''The 500 Most Influential Muslims'' (also known as ''The Muslim 500'') is an annual publication first published in 2009, which ranks the most influential Muslims in the world.
The publication is compiled by the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies C ...
by the
Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre
The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre is a research centre affiliated with the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought.
Its publications include:
*''A Common Word Between Us and You''
*''Amman Message, The Amman Message''
*''Fort ...
in
Amman
Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...
,
Jordan
Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
.
''Rise Up (Colors of Peace)'' album
''Rise Up (Colors of Peace)'' was a musical project to turn Gülen's poems and writings in
Turkish language
Turkish ( , , also known as 'Turkish of Turkey') is the most widely spoken of the Turkic languages, a member of Oghuz languages, Oghuz branch with around 90 million speakers. It is the national language of Turkey and one of two official languag ...
into songs. A total of 50 poems were sent to various Muslim and non-Muslim artists from various countries, who were free to pick, and then compose and vocalize the poem chosen, record it in their own country and send it back for inclusion in the planned album. Reportedly, no restrictions were put on the artists in using instrumentation, despite reservations by stricter Muslim interpretations about music and use of musical instruments. The album ''Rise Up (Colors of Peace)'' turned into an album of world music encompassing various genres like
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
,
pop,
flamenco
Flamenco () is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the Gitanos, gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and Region of Murcia, ...
,
rai,
Indian music
Owing to India's vastness and diversity, Indian music encompasses numerous genres in multiple varieties and forms which include classical music, folk, rock, and pop. It has a history spanning several millennia and developed over several ...
among others.
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* (a review of former Hizmet participants' scholarly commentary about the movement)
*
Notes
References
Specific citations:
General references:
*
"Turkey's Champion of Interfaith Dialogue" Interfaith Radio.
"Global Muslim networks – How far they have travelled" ''The Economist''.
"Fethullah Gulen – A farm boy on the world stage" ''The Economist''.
"Turkish Islamic preacher – threat or benefactor?" Reuters.
''The New York Times''.
*
ttps://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/18/world/europe/18iht-19oxan-Turkishpreacherprofile.9324128.html "Fethullah Gulen profile" ''The New York Times''.
"Fethullah Gulen as a Top Public Intellectual" ''Foreign Policy''.
Profile ''Religion and Ethics''. PBS. 21 January 2011.
"The Global Imam" ''The New Republic''.
Qantara.de.
*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20110919100055/http://meria.idc.ac.il/journal/2000/issue4/jv4n4a4.html "Fethullah Gülen and his Liberal 'Turkish Islam' movement" MERIA.
"Turkish Islam's Moderate Face" ''The Middle East Forum''.
"Fethullah Gülen's Grand Ambition: Turkey's Islamist Danger" ''The Middle East Forum''.
The Gülen Movement: a modern expression of Turkish IslamThe Nurcu Movement in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan
Further reading
* Jon Pahl (2019)
Fethullah Gülen: A Life of Hizmet Blue Dome Press.
External links
*
Fethullah GulenHizment and Fethullah Gulen''Love is a Verb'' (2014), a film directed by Terry Spencer Hesser
**
**
*
IMDb
*
; Multi-media
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gulen, Fethullah
1941 births
2024 deaths
People from Pasinler
*
Turkish Sufis
Turkish anti-communists
Turkish dissidents
Turkish exiles
Turkish scholars of Islam
Turkish emigrants to the United States
Turkish male writers
Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam
Christian–Islamic–Jewish interfaith dialogue
Muslim critics of atheism
Islam and politics
Islamic democracy activists
Scholars of Sufism
Stateless people
Quranic exegesis scholars
Fugitives wanted on terrorism charges
Fugitives wanted by Turkey
People involved in the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt
20th-century Muslim scholars of Islam
21st-century Muslim scholars of Islam
20th-century Turkish male writers
21st-century Turkish male writers
Conservatism in Turkey