Mr. Fethullah Gulen addressed the issue of Jerusalem in his message to Geneva Peace Conference held on October 2014. Gulen proposes to grant Jerusalem a supranational and supra-religious status including visa-free access for the followers of all religions and to develop a unique administration for the city whereby it would be governed by a committee under the United Nations comprising the representatives of three Abrahamic religions. Here is related section from his message:
“The purpose of all the religions and moral doctrines I know is to build the peace-loving man. This could refer to international peace, interpersonal peace, peace with other elements of the nature or inner peace of the man. I acknowledge that developing a perspective of peace is possible also through the enabling criteria of reason and conscience alone; however, I believe that large masses could get to love peace only through the encompassing and overarching climate of a religion. It is sad, though; almost all the major religions in the world have been abused by fundamentalists as an outfit to cover up their political pursuits and made to serve as a catalyst of conflict at one time or another throughout the history. Yet, the sacred origins of all religions and moral doctrines have sufficient material to build peace. Peace is essential and the exploitation of religious texts for the sake of war and conflict is an atrocity against not only people but also these religious texts. Therefore, the followers of all religions and particularly those of Judaism, Christianity and Islam as they come from the Abrahamic tradition, must organize joint activities for world peace, exchange ideas at events such as your meeting and seek ways to translate these ideas into practice. This is more than necessary not only to safeguard world peace but also to preserve the religions in their true and authentic form. Previously, I had brought a proposal regarding the issue of Jerusalem and Palestine which seem to be the source of almost all conflicts in the Middle East;
My proposal was to grant Jerusalem a supranational and supra-religious status including visa-free access for the followers of all religions and to develop a unique administration for the city whereby it would be governed by a committee under the United Nations comprising the representatives of three Abrahamic religions.
I now see this proposal makes more sense than ever today as the ISIS terror continues to agonize the Middle East. Had this proposal been put into practice, this city which has been the subject of ongoing conflicts and disputes might have become a city of peace, as signified by its name, Jerusalem, which originates from Darusselam, that is, the land of peace.”
Tags: Fethullah Gulen | Palestine | Peacebuilding |
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