My conclusion? He’s a mystic in the Sufi tradition of Islam. And like other famous mystics in history—notably Gandhi, or Rumi—from whom Gülen draws deeply, Fethullah Gülen is a peacebuilder. And history teaches us that peacebuilders are likely to be misunderstood, vilified, and targeted. It would be tragic if once again historical forces conspire to turn a mystic into a martyr.…
As Thomas Michel concludes in his paper entitled “Fethullah Gülen: Following in the Footseps of Rumi” in this book, “(i)t is not an exaggeration to say that Gülen is a modern Muslim thinker and activist whose life work of promoting an Islamic appreciation of love, tolerance, and universal peace is in fact a renewed interpretation for our times of the central insights of Mevlana.”…
In Gülen’s thinking, tolerance is indispensable to Sufism. Above all, he has signified the tolerant nature of Sufism by the three principles of Sufism, as “overflowing with Divine Love and getting along with all other beings in the realization (originating from Divine Love) that the universe is a cradle of brotherhood”, “giving preference or precedence to the well-being and happiness of others” and “being open to love, spiritual yearning, delight and ecstasy.” Further, Gülen directly related this quality of tolerance to love in describing the Sufi knowledge of God.…
Sufism requires the strict observance of all religious obligations, an austere lifestyle, and the renunciation of carnal desires. Through this method of spiritual self-discipline, the individual’s heart is purified and his or her senses and faculties are employed in the way of God, which means that the traveler can now begin to live on a spiritual level.…
Gulen echoes Rumi also in telling us not to ignore the laws of the universe, not to sit around aimlessly, but rather to exert all our energies to change this world into a world of peaceful coexistence and justice. Gulen’s ideal man, man of action, does his best until this world is turned into paradise; and also struggle for a better world, to be stopped by nothing except death itself.…
Although Rumi lived about 800 years before Gülen, they both lived in cosmopolitan environments and thus both made intercultural dialogue their main tool of social innovation and conflict resolution for social inclusion, coherence and peaceful coexistence. They inspired the lives and practices of their students, sympathizers, followers, scholars, and the larger community to contribute to solutions that better the world. …
Gülen transmits Islamic tenets in a way that everyone can see a role for himself and herself in building a compassionate society where all human beings can co-exist with one another for greater causes based on sacrifice and altruism. …
Thomas Michel The writings of Jalal al-Din Rumi, the thirteenth-century mystical poet and founder of the Mevlevi Sufi confraternity, have influenced the thinking and behavior of many Muslims down to our own times. One of the modern Muslims who have…
Doğu Ergil Can the Gülen Movement be characterized as a Sufi order? Is it possible to call it a Sufi order considering the teachings regarding the spiritual realm and practices of daily life? Although the basic dynamics of the Gülen…
Heon Kim Gülen’s perception of humanism is at the heart of his thought, so much so that it serves as the reason for the existence and activities of the Gülen movement. My attempt here is to lay bare some constructional and…