Fethullah Gülen Religion, particularly Islam, has become one of the most difficult subject areas to tackle in recent years. Contemporary culture, whether approached from the perspective of anthropology or theology, psychology or psychoanalysis, evaluates religion with empirical methods. On the one hand, religion is an inwardly experienced and felt phenomenon, one mostly related to life’s [...]
Dr. Saribay: Fethullah Gulen clearly shows that Islam can have different interpretations. In the coming days, there is going to be a settling of accounts between populist and radical Islam. I believe that the first group’s victory will enable democracy to develop more evenly. Cerrahoglu: Is the Refah Party (RP) using politics as a tool? [...]
LEONID R. SYKIAINEN* Compatibility between Islamic and modern democratic liberal values is not more than theoretical ground to combine the both for success of political reforms in the Muslim world. It will be possible only through the dialogue of different cultures and civilizations. In this respect Fethullah Gülen underlines that for centuries the civilizations of [...]
Dr. Ihsan Yilmaz* Until the late 1970s and early 1980s, a relatively widespread consensus had existed in the sociology of religion discipline over the privatization of religion. Some scholars such as Jose Casanova have argued that during the course of the last few decades, a process of “de-privatization” of religion has taken place in the [...]
LEONID R. SYKIAINEN* Explaining the meaning of this principle for the modern Muslim world, Fethullah Gülen states that for the Muslims of today, consultation (shura) is a vital attribute and an essential rule, just as it was for the first Islamic generations. According to the Qur’an, it is the clearest sign of a believing community. [...]
LEONID R. SYKIAINEN* Fethullah Gülen stressed that when comparing Islam with democracy, we must remember that democracy is a system that is being continually developed and revised, on the one hand. It also varies according to the places and circumstances where it is practiced. On the other hand, religion has established immutable principles related to [...]
Fethullah Gülen refutes in his speeches and writings Islamist claims for an Islamic political platform: “Islam does not propose a certain unchangeable form of government or attempt to shape it. Instead, Islam established fundamental principles that orient a government’s general character, leaving it to the people to choose the type and form of government according [...]
Fethullah Gülen directly criticizes Islamist political thought in his many books and articles and argues in favor of democracy and the modernization and consolidation of democratic institutions in order to build a society where individual rights are respected and protected. He carefully makes clear his position that some forms of democracy are preferable to others [...]
In today’s Turkey Gülen movement represents an Islam, which is liberal and tolerant, which is in favor of the country’s EU bid and democratizing reforms. And this means that it is a “modern” movement. Yet this modernity has not been achieved by the authoritarian secularist policies of the state. It has been achieved thanks to [...]
As a progressive thinker Gülen believes that the future can be better than the past and that rather than wistfully looking back to a forever lost ‘golden age’ Muslims, together with other people of good will, should work to achieve societies that are progressively more just, compassionate and decent. This progressive outlook lies at the heart [...]
From Hizmet News