Fethullah Gulen Movement as a Global Educational and Inter-Religious Model (1)

Ian G. Williams*

The Gulen Movement and “Soft Power”

Many descriptions have been applied to the Gulen-inspired initiatives, civil, cultural, political, confrontational, conflictual, reactionary, regressive, exclusivist, sectarian, alienating, competitive, Islamist, mediating, reconciliatory, pluralist, democratic, altruistic and peaceful [White 2002. 112]. In using social movement theories how may one define this association? Is it a civil society movement; a reaction to a crisis, a Sufi tariqa or order, a political movement; or an altruistic collective action?

There is clear evidence from both my own fieldwork and the observations of others that the Gülen Movement is notable for its unrelenting contribution to the potential of students and people in positions of influence to pursue and implement new goals and life changing decisions. It has encouraged voluntary participation and service in a network of global schools and universities, developed trusting relationships between faith leaders and communities though inter-faith dialogue, creating shared objectives for their respective societies [Gulen 2000. 21].

…The approach of the movement especially through its educational “agencies” is from the grass roots upwards. It is the transformation of individuals through education to facilitate the establishment of a harmonious and inclusive society based upon a liberal public sphere. This is the rationale for Gülen’s emphasis on the primacy of ‘education’ among the Movement’s commitments regardless of whether it is a paralyzed social and political system or one that operates like clockwork’, [Gulen 2004. 199].

While the Movement’s origin and services arise from a civil society- based faith initiative, its discourse and practice in its schools for example affirm the idea that religion and state may be separated in Islam. This need not threaten faith and may well inhibit its exploitation and indeed subtle control by the state. Thus, we meet a movement which proffers transformation of the individual, a consequent conversion of society into a “moral society”, and thence a convergent society as dialogue and respect is enjoined. We may indeed therefore, discern the characteristics of a civil movement within the activities of individuals and groups inspired by the Hodjaeffendi [an affectionate title for Fethullah Gulen preferred by his followers, meaning 'respected teacher'] and the sources he draws upon.

…Historical observation however, would indicate that the Hodjaeffendi did not so much create a movement in reaction to crises and conflicts [an endemic feature of Turkish society since 1950] but tapped deeply into an underground reservoir of yearning, ideals and hopes for a renewed national identity and potentially a transformed global order. If the economic and political liberalization initiatives of Turgut Ozal, who dominated such aspects of the Turkish national scene from 1983 – 1993, allowed fresh social movements to emerge, the ‘volunteer’ movement stimulated by Fethullah Gulen was not conceived in that decade de novo.

…Education is the Movement’s priority. In Gülen’s view it is not only the establishment of justice that is hindered by the lack of wellrounded education, but also the recognition of human rights and attitudes of acceptance and tolerance toward others. He writes ‘....if you wish to keep the masses under control, simply starve them in the area of knowledge. They can escape such tyranny only through education.

The road to social justice is paved with adequate, universal education, for only this will give people sufficient understanding and tolerance to respect the rights of others’. [Unal and Williams] As I have observed in four national contexts the schools are focused on creating literate, independent thinkers who will be agents of change for equality, inclusiveness and social justice.

The ‘spirituality’ evident in Gülen’s writings as observed by Michel [2006. 110] include not only directly Qur’anic and Sunnah based teachings, but also ethics, logic, psychological and emotional health. Key terms are ‘compassion’ and ‘tolerance’. Gülen believes that ‘non-quantifiable’ qualities need to be instilled in students alongside training in the ‘exact’ disciplines. Equally, there is no one conformist curriculum for the schools as they adopt the prescribed curriculum of the state within which they are placed. This leads towards an inclusive openness that is an attribute of the many expressions of the movement if coupled with an optimistic idealism about the future of humanity and the construction of a new social order. Unal and Williams [2000. 277] cite Gulen: Gigantic developments in transportation and telecommunication technology have made the world into a big village. In these circumstances, all the peoples of the world must learn to share this village among them and live together in peace and mutual helping. We believe that peoples, no matter of what faith, culture, civilization, race, colour and country, have more to compel them to come together than what separates them. If we encourage those elements which oblige them to live together in peace and awaken them to the lethal dangers of warring and conflicts, the world may be better than it is today If the movement is termed a tariquat it is only so to the extent in which the volunteers adopt and follow their din and fulfil their dawah in a manner that is universally Qur’anic, based on the sunnah of the Prophet, and centered upon seeking the state of insan i-kamil [ideal person].

Rather than see Turkey as a hermetically closed society, Gülen has supported initiatives for a democratic, pluralistic and free society [Unal and Williams 2000. 38]. In a comparative theological exercise the place of individual morality is pivotal in this perspective to build, strengthen, and maintain a just political order as in Christian Reformed Spirituality. Similarly the Turkish overtures to enter the European Union have been supported by the Hodjaeffendi on the basis that Turkish society has much to gain from the achievements of European empirically based sciences whereas many from both the Islamist circles and the dominant secularist elite have been opposed to such rapprochement. [Yilmaz 2000. 399]. To them, the European Union is a Christian Club and a menace to both Turkish national and also to Muslim identity whereas a logical outcome of Gülen’s emphases on dialogue and tolerance and thus affiliation with the EU would bring the rewards of amity and dialogue with ethno-religious minorities within the Turkish state and between nations as an integral part of Islam and Turkish Muslim character.

…The Hodjaeffendi seeks answers to the questions all people living in complex modern societies face: ‘how to develop humane qualities, good behavior, love for others, enthusiasm for self-improvement, and an active desire to serve others, make a difference in the world, and to persevere in this desire in the face of setbacks and failures [Michel 2005. 354]. It therefore assumes a role as a mediator of demands. It invites and allows society to take responsibility for its own actions within the legal boundaries. It helps to create common public spaces in which an agreement can be reached to share the responsibility for a social field, beyond party interests or positions.

This generates innovative energies, keeps the system open, produces innovation and new movements, develops elites, brings into the area of the decidable that which has been excluded, and illuminates the problematic areas for the healthy functioning of an open democratic society.
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*Senior Lecturer and Subject Leader in Religious Education, University of Central England

Excerpted from Williams, Ian. "A Movement in Counter-Point: The Significance of the Fethullah Gulen Movement as a Global Educational and Inter-Religious Model of Social and Religious Change-a UK Perspective" presented at the international conference “Islam in the Age of Global Challenges: Alternative Perspectives of the Gulen Movement”, Georgetown University, Washington D.C., November 14-15, 2007.

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