Studies Review VOLUME: 1 NUMBER: 1 AUTUMN Greg Barton How the Hizmet Works: Islam, Dialogue and the Gülen Movement in Australia

Transcription

1 Hizmet Studies Review An international scholarly journal on Fethullah Gülen and Hizmet Movement Greg Barton How the Hizmet Works: Islam, Dialogue and the Gülen Movement in Australia Philipp Bruckmayr Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition Selçuk Uygur Islamic Puritanism as a Source of Economic Development : Contributions of the Gülen Movement Margaret J Rausch Progress Through Piety: Sohbetler (Spiritual Gatherings) of the Women Participants in the Gülen Movement Book Reviews VOLUME: 1 NUMBER: 1 AUTUMN 2014

2 Hizmet Studies Review Editors Prof. Dr. Johan Leman, Emeritus, KU Leuven Dr. Erkan Toğuşlu, KU Leuven Editorial Board Khaled Abou El Fadl, UCLA School of Law; Philip Clayton, Claremont School of Theology; Trudy Conway, Mount Saint Mary s University; John L. Esposito, Georgetown University; Eddie Halpin, Leeds Metropolitan University; Özgür Koca, Claremont Lincoln University; Thomas Michel, Georgetown University; Ides Nicaise, KU Leuven; Simon Robinson, Leeds Metropolitan University; Niyazi Öktem, Doğuş University; Ori Soltes, Georgetown University; İhsan Yılmaz, Fatih University; Pim Walkenberg, The Catholic University of America; Paul Weller, Derby University. Hizmet Studies Review is a scholarly peer-reviewed international journal on the Hizmet Movement. It provides interdisciplinary forum for critical research and reflection upon the development of Fethullah Gülen s ideas and Gülen Movement (Hizmet movement). Its aim is to publish research and analysis that discuss Fethullah Gülen s ideas, views and intellectual legacy and Hizmet Movement s wider social, cultural and educational activities. Hizmet Studies Review is subject to peer review process. The journal is published two times a year, in Autumn and Spring. Submissions are invited in English or in French. Submissions in all two languages will be considered. For further information about style guide please visit Subsrcription Annual subscription: Institutions 50 + p & p; individuals 25 + p & p; Editorial correspondance should be addressed to Dr. Erkan Toğuşlu, Hizmet Studies Review, Parkstraat 45, box Leuven-Belgium. HSR is edited at the KU Leuven in Belgium at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Gülen Chair for Intercultural Studies. Disclaimer KU Leuven Gülen Chair for Intercultural Studies makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the Content ) contained in its publications. However, Gülen Chair and its agents and licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness or suitability for any purpose of the Content and disclaim all such representations and warranties whether express or implied to the maximum extent permitted by law. Any views expressed in this publication are the views of the authors and are not the views of Gülen Chair. ISSN: Gülen Chair

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4 First published in Belgium, 2014 KU Leuven Gülen Chair for Intercultural Studies All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of KU Leuven Gülen Chair for Intercultural Studies. The Gülen Chair for Intercultural Studies in KU Leuven University is a research chair specialising in academic research, teaching and publication in the field of interculturalism, Muslims in Europe, cohabitation of ethnicreligious differences in plural societies.

5 Contents Editor s Note 6 Articles How the Hizmet works: Islam, dialogue and the Gülen movement in Australia Greg Barton 9 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition Philipp Bruckmayr 27 Islamic Puritanism as a source of Economic development : Contributions of the Gülen Movement Selçuk Uygur 57 Progress Through Piety: Sohbetler (Spiritual Gatherings) of the Women Participants in the Gülen Movement Margaret J Rausch 73 Forum-Debate 95 Book Reviews 97 Book Notes 101

6 6 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 Editor s Note This is the first issue of the Hizmet Studies Review (HSR). HSR is a scholarly, peer-reviewed international journal on the Hizmet movement. It provides an interdisciplinary forum for critical research and reflection upon the development of Fethullah Gülen s ideas and the Gülen movement (the Hizmet movement). The journal is looking to provide a forum for researchers and authors who reflect upon the Hizmet movement. The aim of the journal is to stimulate debates, alternative perspectives and critical thinking on the Hizmet movement. New research and studies are emerging on the movement and another aim of this new journal is to suggest possible new areas of study for the emerging research on the Hizmet movement. The academic study of the Hizmet movement which is the heart of this journal will mean the publication of original researches into the Hizmet movement and on Fethullah Gülen s thoughts in order that they can be critically discussed and debated. The journal will publish conceptual-theoretical researches and case studies opening up discussions of the wider social, religious, economical and political issues related to the Hizmet movement. Every issue of the journal will cover a particular topic in depth, although interesting off-topic articles will always be accepted. We welcome theoretical papers, case studies and fieldwork, particularly critical thoughts which are neither hagiographic nor prejudiced, but are well researched and relevant to the subject matter. Contributions from all disciplines will be welcome. The current first issue presents a diverse selection of stimulating articles from a number of international scholars. Greg Barton discusses how Hizmet works in Australia, where the movement s activities initially focused on education. Alongside education, the other major focus of activity of the Hizmet movement in Australia has been dialogue and bridge-building. The activities of the Gülen Movement in Australia follow a familiar pattern to those elsewhere in the world but are shaped by local factors. Barton argues that, as elsewhere, the movement takes the form of a loose semi-autonomous network directed by local initiative but global in inspiration.

7 7 Philipp Bruckmayr examines Gülen s own scholarship. His article provides an assessment of Gülen s relationship with the rich Islamic literary tradition by way of an analysis of direct and indirect references to both classical and modern Muslim scholars in his works. Such a survey gives an indication of Gülen s position within the Islamic literary tradition and his attitudes towards Islam s diverse intellectual history. Selçuk Uygur s article focuses on the growth of a new bourgeoisie which is overwhelmingly religious. He describes the motives behind the attitudes of religious business people and discusses their contribution to the Gülen movement. Margaret J Rausch offers an account of how weekly religious gatherings (sohbetler) for women participants in America play a role in their faith and piety. Her article explores women s perspectives on the controversy surrounding the role of faith and piety in society today. In each issue, brief opinion-oriented pieces (of 1,000-3,000 words) run in the Forum section. Full-length articles (6,000 9,000 words) based on original research are at the core. We welcome also review essays about books, not exclusively on Hizmet and Fethullah Gülen. For your information, hardcopies of the journal are now available free-of-charge. However, we only have a limited stock so we may not be able to fulfil every request. So if you believe in what we are doing and would like to help us to grow, please get in touch with us. Alternatively, you can access our homepage at Finally, on behalf of the HSR team, we hope you enjoy your read. Johan Leman, Erkan Toğuşlu, Editors.

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9 9 Hizmet Studies Review Vol. 1, No. 1, Autumn 2014, 9-25 How Hizmet Works: Islam, Dialogue and the Gülen Movement in Australia GREG BARTON, Monash University ABSTRACT The story of the Gülen Movement in Australia has never been documented in any great detail and consequently is not well known. It deserves study for a number of reasons, not least being that the pioneering nature of the hizmet, as it likes to refer to itself (hizmet means service) and the fact that New World Australian society is frequently at the leading edge of social change on many issues. As is generally the pattern around the world, hizmet activities in Australia initially focused on education. Alongside education, the other major focus of activity of the hizmet in Australia has been dialogue and bridge-building. In 2000, the Melbourne based Australian Intercultural Society (AIS) was established, only six years after the pioneering Journalists and Writers and Foundation (Gazeteciler ve Yazarlar Vakfi JWF) was set up in Turkey. This was followed in 2001 with the establishment of the Affinity Intercultural Foundation (AIF) in Sydney. Gülen Movement activities in Australia follow a familiar pattern but are shaped by local factors. As elsewhere, the movement takes the form of a loose semi-autonomous network directed by local initiative but global in inspiration. Given the fact that only 3,000-4,000 people - around five percent of the 60,000 Turkish-Australians are thought to be closely affiliated with the movement in Australia, the achievements are remarkable by any measure. In global terms (in Turkey and around the world, including Australia) the movement represents one of the world s most significant examples of progressive civil society Islamic activism. It displays strong parallels with earlier forms of religious philanthropy in the West over the past four centuries and represents an important counterpoint to Samuel Huntington s clash of civilizations thesis. The story of the Gülen movement in Australia has never been documented in detail and consequently is not well known. It deserves study for a number of reasons, not least being the pioneering nature of the Hizmet movement, as it likes to refer to itself (hizmet means service ) and the fact that New World Australian society is frequently at the leading edge of social change on many issues (Kucukcan, 2007: 193; Ebaugh & Koç, 2007: 548-9). With around 60,000 people identifying as Turkish-Australians, the absolute size of the community is several times smaller than that of the Turkish-American community but still represents a significantly large proportion of the national population (0.3 percent of the Austral-

10 10 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 ian population of 21 million). Australia is fifteen times smaller than the US but, leaving aside New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, the cities of Melbourne and Sydney are comparable with large American cities, and with Turkish populations in excess of 26,000 and 22,000 respectively, are home to Turkish communities larger than most, if not all, those found in US cities. At the same time, whilst less than one in five Muslim-Australians have Turkish heritage, their national profile, thanks in large part to the work of Hizmet, is much greater than these numbers would suggest. Evidence of this can be found in recent activities such as the several dozen public Ramadan iftar fast-breaking dinners held in September In Melbourne these included the first ever iftar held at Government House and hosted by the Governor of Victoria, the second Australian Federal Police iftar, the fourth Victoria Police iftar, the first Turkish Consulate public inter-faith iftar, the first Masonic Lodge iftar, and so forth. In 2008 there were also the commencement of the Fethullah Gülen Chair in the Study of Islam and Muslim-Catholic Relations at the Australia Catholic University, and a similar, Hizmet-sponsored, Lectureship in Islamic Studies at Monash University. Turkish migration to Australia began in 1967 with large numbers of Turks settling in the 1970s and 1980s, with inflows peaking in 1976 but continuing in a steady stream thereafter through to the present. In the first two decades, Turkish migrants to Australia came predominantly from rural Anatolia. At that stage, influenced by the experience of Germany, most expected to come for two years and then return to Turkey. Most, however, settled permanently and raised families. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the dynamic started to change as significant numbers of urban Turks begin to arrive. Amongst these urban Turkish migrants were followers of Gülen who brought with them the ideals of the Hizmet movement. As has been generally the pattern around the world, Hizmet activities in Australia initially focused on education. The history of Hizmet in Australia is interesting for a number of reasons, not least being that it represents a stand-alone case study of how the social and organisational dynamics of Hizmet work. The Hizmet movement continues to be widely misunderstood, and in some circles, particularly in Turkey, viewed with suspicion arising in part because of misunderstandings about how it functions. The organization and direction of its many far-flung activities, the financial sponsorship that supports them, and the individual and group motivations of Hizmet members represent a mystery to most onlookers. For most, it presents a social movement unlike any other that they have encountered. Arguably, no social organization or movement is entirely unique just as no big idea is truly unique, but for all intents and purposes Hizmet does represent a unique development. 1 To be properly understood, it needs to be read in the broader context of not just Muslim history but the history of religious philanthropy more generally. Strong parallels can be found between the activism of the Hizmet movement over the past three decades and the development of Christian and Jewish philanthropy, in particular educational philanthropy, over the past three centuries (Agai, 2003; Bakar, 2005). Viewed in this broader context, the underlying dynamic and vision of Hizmet does not appear so mysterious. Most who encounter it, however, particularly in Turkey and Central Asia, do not view it through this frame of

11 How the Hizmet Works 11 reference. And sadly, in the West, there has been much too much readiness to view Islam as an existential other and consequently too little preparedness to recognize the many parallels between the three Abrahamic faiths of Islam, Judaism and Christianity, and between Muslim social movements and Western religious social movements. One of the causes for the misunderstandings about Hizmet is that its social dynamics are difficult to explain. Although not a particularly secretive organization, and in fact in recent years it has been a strikingly self-reflexive and open organization, the dynamics of the movement remain mysterious to most outsiders (Çetin 2007: 383; Çetin 2005). After all, general experience would suggest that religious movements or social organization responsible for more than 500 schools and dozens of colleges and universities throughout Turkey, across Central Asia and around the world must have a high degree of centralised coordination and unified planning (Hermansen 2007: 61). 2 When one adds to that the extensive media and publication ventures associated with Hizmet, it seems only natural to assume that it must be guided by a very astute CEO and board of management. It therefore follows that Gülen himself must necessarily be not merely an inspirational religious figure but also a brilliant organisational leader and an astute businessman. In some respects, this assessment does hold some truth, but the details of the way in which Gülen actually engages with the movement that has grown up around him and which bears his name run contrary to most expectations and do not fit the regular model of either religious organizations or business enterprises. There is no doubt that much of the big-picture vision and direction for Hizmet does come from Gülen himself, but he nevertheless appears remarkably disengaged with the fine-grained detail of what is now a truly global network. Nor do any of his immediate associates, including those living with him in his rural retreat in Pennsylvania, appear to be functioning as hands-on executives. Rather, the Hizmet movement appears to function just as Gülen describes it as functioning. That is to say, it appears to be a loosely connected network of significantly autonomous and spontaneous local initiatives. These local initiatives are very aware of what many of their counterparts in the movement are doing, whether within the nation in which they are located, or in other nations around the world, and they frequently model themselves upon, and draw inspiration from, these other initiatives. At the same time, the entire Hizmet network clearly draws considerable inspiration and motivation from the writings and teachings of Gülen himself and from the movement s reading of the Qur an and Sunnah, mediated to a considerable extent through the reading of Risale-i Nur. Funding for the various initiatives likewise appears to flow reasonably spontaneously and autonomously from local groups, whilst receiving some assistance from older Hizmet communities of businessmen within Turkey. Foundational to the financial support of Hizmet ventures is sustained, generous giving by businessmen associated with the movement who understand it to be their calling to work hard and produce wealth that can be used for the work of Hizmet (Uygur 2007). These businessmen, whose ranks now number in the thousands, typically donate 10 to 70 percent of their annual income to the work of the movement (Ebaugh & Koç 2007: 545-7). They belong to local sohbet communities with whom they meet on a daily basis for encourage-

12 12 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 ment, fellowship, devotional studies and philanthropic planning (istişare), led by senior members serving as trustees (mütevelli), and in their personal commitment (himmet) enjoying remarkable social capital and sense of purpose (ibid.: 548-9). The various business enterprises associated with Hizmet such as the Zaman newspaper group, Samanyolu Television and Işık Publishing, to name just three of the largest, are autonomous enterprises linked by social ties rather than by any formal business connections. The same can be said for the many NGOs associated with Hizmet. A close examination of the development of Hizmet in Australia reveals these underlying dynamics very clearly. It is precisely because what has happened in Australia is not unique that it is instructive to look carefully at this particular case study. As is the case with many parallel developments in the Hizmet movement around the globe, the early story of Hizmet in Australia is tied up very closely with the story of one individual. This story and this person, Orhan Cicek, and his family, are simultaneously both remarkable and ordinary at a number of levels. Remarkable because what has been achieved and the manner in which it has been achieved exceed the usual expectations that one might apply to religious philanthropy. Similarly, the determination and vision of the individual involved and, one might say invoking another religious philanthropic tradition the sheer chutzpah, are truly remarkable. And yet, the pattern in Australia is a familiar one to people studying the Hizmet movement around the world. And the individual involved is genuinely modest and unassuming. Because of the central role played by this individual, particularly in the first two decades of Hizmet activism in Australia, and because of the illustrative nature of this story, it is worth devoting a little attention to the personal story. By 2008, the Hizmet movement in Australia was estimated to involve several thousand people, including dozens who worked full-time for its schools and NGOs. In 1980, when Cicek left Ankara for Melbourne, Hizmet had no presence in Australia. By the end of the decade, a small but enthusiastic Hizmet community had been established and the foundations laid for future growth. In 1985, prompted by concerns about delinquency amongst second-generation Turkish young people, Cicek established The New Generation Youth Association, based in the Melbourne suburbs of Richmond, Sunshine, Broadmeadows and Dandenong. Two years later, in 1987, the Light Tutoring Centre, a free tuition centre aimed at Muslim students, was set up in inner-city Melbourne. Around this time, in December 1989, senior Gülen movement leader Mehmet Ali Şengül began to make regular visits to the community in Australia and in 1990, less than ten years after the first Hizmet schools were established in Turkey, the Selimiye Foundation was established with the aim of building a school in Melbourne, an aim that was fulfilled with the opening of Işık College in 1997, one year after Şule College was opened in Sydney. When Cicek arrived in Australia in 1980, not only was there no Hizmet in Australia, the sense of there being a broad social movement associated with Gülen, even within Turkey itself, was a very novel concept. Between 1969 and 1980, Gülen, then employed as a state imam (a civil service position in Turkey where the state preferred to control public religious affairs), had concentrated on building up small communities in the cosmopolitan Mediterranean port city of Izmir in-

13 How the Hizmet Works 13 volving summer camps for young people, sponsored ışık evler lighthouse student hostels and, most importantly, dershane reading groups which met weekly to read and discuss together the Risale-i Nur, the multi-volume thematic commentary on the Qur an written by the great Kurdish Sufi scholar Said Nursi in the first decades of the twentieth century (Vahid 2005; Abu-Rabi 2003; Markham & Özdemir 2005; Sarıtoprak 2005). The Hizmet dershane largely followed the pattern of other Risale-i Nur dershane which had been meeting across Turkey since the 1930s but were now infused with the insights and action-orientated outlook of Gülen to the study of Nursi s much-loved text. In time, these small groups became the nucleus local Hizmet communities and fostered an extraordinary degree of social capital. In 1982, a second Hizmet school opened in Izmir and the following year a school was opened in Ankara. In December 1983, the moderate Turgut Özal was sworn in as prime minister, following three years of military rule and a decade of social upheaval. He was only the third democratically-elected leader in the history of the Turkish Republic. Özal himself was a keen student of Nursi and, unlike most earlier leaders, did not harbour deep suspicions about all religious-based social movements (Yavuz 2003b: 75-9; Introvigne 2006: 38-40; Mango 2004: 81-91; Kalaycıoglu 2002; White 2002). Under his leadership, private schools where encouraged as part of a programme of educational reforms and the way was opened for the nascent Hizmet to enter into educational philanthropy on a significant scale. In 1986, Özal overturned the charges that the post-coup military regime of 1980 had brought against Gülen. 3 These charges caused the nascent Hizmet to disperse from Izmir to Istanbul and Ankara as Gülen himself resigned his civil-service post in İzmir and relocated to Istanbul, precipitating a new phase in the development of the Hizmet movement. Liberalization of laws relating to the establishment of private schools followed by the relative stability and openness of the Özal government opened the way for Hizmet to focus on building schools, developing the earlier work with students through hostels, tutoring centres and summer camps. It was only a decade after the first school opened in Turkey that a school was established outside Turkey when, in 1991, a Hizmet school was opened in Azerbaijan. The impetus, and the opportunity, to open a school in Central Asia arose directly from the collapse of the Soviet Union and awareness of the dire needs that existed in the former Soviet republics of Central Asia. It was this that precipitated the expansion of the Hizmet movement outside Turkey and, in time, led to activities across Asia and in Europe and the new world. Australia led developments in the southers hemisphere, with Sule College opening in Sydney in 1996, one year before the first school opened in America. In Europe, it was not until 2000 that the first schools were established in Denmark and The Netherlands. The steady expansion of the Hizmet movement from decade to decade, from small circles based upon dershane, ışık evler and student summer camps in western Turkey in the 1970s, to schools and colleges across Turkey in the 1980s, to media enterprises, dialogue NGOs and schools throughout Central Asia and beyond in the 1990s, to diverse educational and dialogue initiatives in the Western Hemisphere in the 2000s, has clearly been shaped by political and social changes. 4 But more than this, it has also been directed by the development and growth of thinking about Islam and society within Hizmet, beginning with the wider publication

14 14 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 of the thinking of Gülen himself. Gülen modestly describes his own thinking as subject to growth and development as providence delivers new experiences. Speaking to Hakan Yavuz in Philadelphia in October 2000, he said: We all change, don t we? There is no exit from change. By visiting the States and many other European countries, I realized the virtues and the role of religion in these societies. Islam flourishes in America and Europe much better than in many Muslim countries. This means freedom and the rule of law are necessary for personal Islam. Moreover, Islam does not need the state to survive, but rather needs education and financially rich communities to flourish. In a way, not the state but rather community is needed under a full democratic system. (Yavuz, 2003c: 45) This dynamic is captured by Marcia Hermansen in a brilliant essay about the cultivation of memory in the Gülen community in which she highlights the importance of the stories that Hizmet tells itself. Introducing a well-known story about Gülen (affectionately known, after the Turkish manner of referring to religious teachers, as Hoca Effendi/Hocaefendi) within Hizmet, she wrote: The development in Gülen s outlook from earlier Ottoman/Turkish nationalism to a pan-turkic and ultimately more global and even universal perspective may be represented by the map story. In my interviews I heard the story as follows from a businessman and early supporter, Ali Reza Tanrisever: On the wall in his dormitory room, Hoca Effendi used to have a map of the Ottoman empire with the inscription you are still in my dreams. Later this was exchanged for a world map and finally a satellite view from space (Hermansen 2007: 67). Orhan Cicek grew up in the Turkish capital of Ankara and immediately prior to coming to Australia had been studying at a state college for imams, completing some but not all of his theological studies. He was a keen student of the Risale-i Nur and was close to some of Gülen s first generation of disciples, or students as they referred to themselves. These first generation students of Gülen, addressed within Hizmet circles as Abi, or older brother, such as Mehmet Ali Sengul, belonged to the same generation as Gülen himself, being born around Cicek is around fifteen years younger than this first cohort and represents the generation of students first drawn into the nascent Hizmet network through isik evler, dershane and summer camps conducted in the 1970s. Living in Ankara, Cicek was removed from the early Hizmet nucleus in Izmir and from Gülen himself, but was nevertheless exposed to dershane meetings and seminars led by abi visiting the capital. When faced with an opportunity to emigrate to Australia, he sought advice from the abi, who advised him to see this as an opportunity to take the teachings of Gülen to Turkish communities living outside Turkey. After arriving in Melbourne, Cicek married and settled down in the inner-city, working-class, Melbourne suburb of Richmond. His wife s family had moved to Melbourne in 1972 as had several of his brothers. When he settled in Melbourne, he knew of no other followers of Gülen in Australia. He had no particular sense

15 How the Hizmet Works 15 of what he might do in Australia save to replicate the sort of Hizmet activities which he had become familiar with in Turkey, as the opportunity arose. In 1981, a year after he arrived, a small number of followers of Nursi settled in Australia. For the next five years, Cicek was active in setting up and running Risale-i Nur dershane. Most of the members of these reading groups had not previously been familiar with the Risale-i Nur. They consisted mostly of Turkish Australians in their thirties and forties who had moved to Melbourne in the previous decade or so. By 1985, some of the earliest migrants had been in Australia for sixteen or seventeen years and had teenage children born to them in their new temporary home. Cicek had settled in Richmond because of family connections but later came to see his location as providential. As it happened, within Richmond there were beginning to be a number of Turkish teenagers coming to the attention of local police because of their delinquent behaviour. Their parents had difficulty in relating to their children s lives in Australia. Most had moved to Melbourne directly from the Anatolian countryside and spoke little English; they had started out with ideas of soon returning to Turkey after having made some money in Australia. In 1985, Cicek started a drop-in centre and youth programme which he called the New Generation Youth Association (NGYA). Inspired by Gülen s teachings about the importance of soundly educating and developing young people and the potential for youth-driven generational change through the development of a golden generation (altın nesil), Cicek was convinced that he should focus his efforts on trying to help second-generation Turkish Australian youth (Hermansen 2007: 70-71). He sought to mentor the young people who he encountered and engage them in practical programmes involving sport and outings and some basic tutoring. He also began to lead Risale-i Nur reading groups amongst these teenagers as well as amongst their parents. The NGYA extended its activities to the Melbourne suburbs of Sunshine in the west and Dandenong in the south. Cicek s actions came about as a result of him trying to do what he thought best in the situation that he found himself in, and drawing upon what he knew of Gülen s circles in Turkey. In the late 1980s, Cicek made several trips to Turkey and met with followers of Gülen there. In 1987, the Hizmet in Turkey had started a tutoring centre and when he learned of this, Cicek decided to try to do something similar in Melbourne. Later that year, he started the Light Tutoring Centre in inner-city Melbourne, with the primary aim of helping struggling Turkish and other Muslim youth. At this stage, Cicek and his wife were still the only members of Hizmet living in Melbourne. They were beginning to build a small community around them of people who would become committed supporters but who for guidance and encouragement had to travel back to Turkey. For some years he had been encouraging the abi to visit them in Australia and to encourage the work there. These pleas finally bore fruit when Mehmet Ali Sengul visited Melbourne for the first time in Thereafter, Sengül and other senior abi made visits to Australia once or twice a year. By 1989, the character of Turkish migration to Australia had begun to change. Whereas the first wave of migrants who began arriving in 1968 and those that followed over the next two decades came from rural Anatolia, beginning in 1989 a number of urban professional Turks began to settle in Australia. These included

16 16 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 some who had became active within Hizmet in Turkey. By this point, foundations had been laid to build the work of the Hizmet movement not just in Melbourne but also in Sydney. Cicek visited Sydney every month or so in order to encourage the small Hizmet community that had formed around recent migrants with Hizmet connections in Turkey. In the late 1980s, the activists in Melbourne and Sydney were committed to working with young people through dershane, tutoring centres and isik evler student hostels, but beyond that had little sense of how the work would unfold. By this stage, on his trips back to Turkey Cicek had talked with Gülen and the abi about his work in Australia, and had received general encouragement to pursue opportunities as they came up. It was always assumed that the focus would be on education and the development of youth, together with initiatives in dialogue and the media (Sarıtoprak & Griffith 2005). But beyond these general lines of encouragement there was no specific guidance given, nor was there any automatic line of financial support (Atay 2007: 465-6; Özdalga 2003; Michel 2003; Agai 2003). The Hizmet supporters in Melbourne and Sydney began to get a sense of what might come next when the collapse of the Soviet Union, together with the growth of the Hizmet schools and social networks across Turkey, led to the first Hizmet school outside Turkey being opened in Azerbaijan in 1991, just a decade after the very first school had opened in Turkey. As it happened, in April 1992 Gülen visited Melbourne and Sydney for the first and, so far, only time and encouraged the young Hizmet communities to pursue their dreams of expanding their activities. To Cicek and the several dozen families around him which now constituted the Hizmet in Melbourne, it seemed that the time had come for the community to open a school in their city. The small Hizmet community in Melbourne began exploring its options and looking around for models on which to base its educational programme. Cicek began making visits to independent religious schools in Melbourne to learn from the experience of others and to look for templates that might be copied. He visited King Khalid Islamic College, Melbourne s first Islamic school which had opened in the Northern suburb of Coburg in 1983 with a mixed Islamic and secular curriculum. He also visited Christian and Jewish schools such as the Methodist Wesley College and the King David School, a progressive Jewish day school. He eventually spoke with the leaders of seven different schools and examined their foundational documents and organisational structure. Although he was looking to these schools for practical details about the nuts and bolts of building and running an independent school, the broad vision of what they hoped to achieve came from the Hizmet schools in Turkey. Their vision was to build schools that provided high standards of academic achievement and general discipline in an environment that encouraged students to develop to the best of their potential. They wanted the schools to be accessible to working-class people, particularly in the north of Melbourne where there were very few opportunities for affordable quality schooling. Importantly, they also were firmly convinced that the schools should be completely secular in their curriculum, and whilst initially meeting the needs of Muslim migrants they should be open to people of all backgrounds. Gülen and the abi in Turkey did not prescribe a detailed plan for how the schools should develop but it was very clear that the proposed schools should be secular in nature and conform with the vision of temsil preaching by example rather than simply preaching tablig (Yavuz & Esposito 2003: xiii-xxxiii; Kuru 2003). The con-

17 How the Hizmet Works 17 viction that the schools should not be religious was not merely a product of the political environment in Turkey, or in any other country, but rather was a conviction that came from the heart of Gülen s teaching. Gülen urged his followers to a life of willing service out of compassion for others and the sincere desire to serve God by helping young people to reach their full potential and become a golden generation which would help to transform society. He encouraged the development of spirituality through the education and training of both heart and mind but he also argued that this spirituality did not have to be Islamic. For Gülen, religious service through hizmet could be fulfilled through entirely secular activity. Education was an end in itself and although it might be inspired by religion it did not need to be expressed through religion. In fact, Gülen argued, temsil living out a positive example was much to be preferred to tabligh telling people what to believe (Yavuz 2003: 41; Barton 2007: ). This is why he taught his community to devote themselves to building schools rather than mosques, saying that Turkey already has enough mosques. Consequently, the model that Cicek had in mind was much closer to that of Wesley College and the King David School than that of the King Khalid Islamic College. Eventually, it was decided to establish a not-for-profit foundation expressly focused on education, and in 1990 the Selimye foundation was established in Melbourne, becoming one of the first not-for-profit Muslim educational foundations in Australia. It was very much the ethos of the Hizmet movement from the beginning that individuals and local communities took responsibility for their own initiatives and gave sacrificially of their own resources. Consequently, it was following a typical pattern one that had occurred across Turkey for more than a decade and was to occur around the world in the decades that came that Cicek and the several dozen families which formed the nucleus of the Hizmet community in Melbourne pooled their resources to make a start on their ambitious programme. And so it was that one evening in late 1991, around forty people gathered for a fund-raising event prepared to make substantial donations towards acquiring a property that could be used as a student dormitory cum tutoring centre. They had been preparing for this event for much of the previous twelve months. By the end of the evening, they had raised A$70,000, enough to purchase a modest two-storey ex-housing Commission house in the working-class suburb of Dallas, on the edge of Broadmeadows. The Broadmeadows area on Melbourne s northern rim was best known for its Ford car plant and the large migrant communities associated with its workforce, including many Turkish and other Muslims. Melbourne s largest mosque was located in the suburb. Clearly, although its community was still small, this achievement evidenced a high level of social capital and collective commitment. 6 The following year, the Dallas/Broadmeadows house became Hizmet s first boarding college and marked a transitional step towards establishing a school. In that same year, 1992, the Aurora Sydney Education Centre was established and Hizmet developments in Sydney began to track those in Melbourne. In 1993, the Feza Foundation was established in Sydney and a boarding college was formed there. In 1996, Sule College was opened in Preston, Sydney, followed in 1997 by Isik College in East Meadows, Melbourne. Today there are four schools on three campuses in NSW and eight schools on six campuses in

18 18 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 Victoria. In 2001, primary schools opened in the rural Victorian cities of Mildura and Geelong. In 2003, a primary school was established in Adelaide and in the following year a primary school opened in Perth. In 2006, the Queensland Education and Culture Foundation was founded, land was purchased, and planning commenced for a primary school to be later followed by a secondary school. By mid-2008, there were sixteen Hizmet schools in Australia serving a collective student body of over Within Turkey, and around the world, the second focus of the Hizmet movement, one that has steadily grown stronger over the past two decades, has been initiatives in the print and electronic media. Unlike education, it can be said that this in the field Hizmet s work in Australia has lagged behind the experience of Hizmet in Turkey and in Europe and North America. No particular significance should be attached to this, however, as there are clearly different dynamics at work. Whereas the schools programme, and educational initiatives in general, are very local in focus (even when international collaboration is involved such as in the sponsoring of schools in Asia by Turkish business communities at home) it is the nature of the media, particularly electronic media, to be oriented towards global networks. Most of the media content required by Hizmet in Australia can now be readily obtained from the movement s networks, whether in Turkey itself or in North America. Nevertheless, it is interesting that from the earliest days of Hizmet in Australia, the movement was involved in some local media initiatives. For example, Cicek was a sub-editor of several Turkish newspapers between 1984 and 1988 and later worked for four years ( ) with 3ZZZ community radio four days a week for one to two hours at a time discussing general issues, politics in Turkey, Australia, culture, history, religious matters (at the time, and even today, the Australian government-sponsored Special Broadcasting Service, SBS, TV and radio broadcasts of Turkish content tended to represent the views of staunchly secular Turks). In 1993, The Fountain, an English-language magazine, was launched in the US but distributed globally, including in Australia. Four years later, in 1997, eleven years after its birth in Turkey in 1986, and one year after launching its online site, Zaman Australia was launched. This newspaper started with a circulation of 1,000. Today its regular circulation is around 6,000 copies, suggesting that thirty to forty percent of Turkish-Australian households receive Zaman Australia. Most of the content of the paper comes from the Turkish edition but Australia-based journalists and editors provide local content. Alongside education, the other major focus of activity of Hizmet in Australia has been initiatives in dialogue and bridge-building. In 2000, the Melbourne-based Australian Intercultural Society (AIS) was established, just six years after the pioneering NGO on which it was based, the Journalists and Writers and Foundation (Gazeteciler ve Yazarlar Vakfi JWF), was launched in Turkey (Sarıtoprak 2005a: 423). JWF was a direct inspiration and model for AIS and in turn became a model for other similar dialogue NGOs around the world, reflecting a core concern of Gülen. 7 AIS commenced its programme of dialogue by holding the first annual Abraham Conference intended to promote greater understanding between Muslims, Christians and Jews. This was followed in 2001 with the establishment of the Affinity Intercultural Foundation (AIF) in Sydney. As well as holding confer-

19 How the Hizmet Works 19 ences, seminars and public events such as Whirling Dervish performances and music evenings, AIS and AIF began to take groups of Australian community leaders, politicians, academics, police officers and journalists to Turkey on intercultural study tours. In 2001, the first major public iftar dinners were held, with the tradition of inter-faith home iftar dinners commencing in The same year also witnessed the establishment in Melbourne of the inter-faith magazine Dialogue Australasia Pacific. More recently, in 2007, the Intercultural Harmony Foundation (IHF) was founded in Perth. Planning is currently underway to hold two major international conferences in Melbourne in July 2009: The Vision of Fetullah Gülen and Muslim Christian Relations From dialogue to collaboration at the Australian Catholic University and Islamophobia Confronting Fears in Old and New Worlds at Monash University. Such conferences mark a new level of self-reflexivity and confidence within the Hizmet community. This is by no means unique to the Australian context. Rather, Hizmet in Australia is responding to initiatives taken by Hizmet throughout the western hemisphere. Conclusion Despite there being no central board of management and no unified source of direction, Hizmet initiatives tend to develop along familiar lines. Most of the more senior members of the Hizmet movement, and certainly those working for it in a full-time capacity in cities across Europe, North America and Australia, know each other well and regularly interact in public and in private gatherings. In Australia, as in North America, the individual branches of the movement tend to function at a sub-national city level. So whereas AIS in Melbourne and AIF in Sydney are in regular contact with each other, they are responsible for activities in their own city and state, and remain completely autonomous. When needed, they are quick to help each other, as happened particularly in the earlier days when Cicek from Melbourne helped to establish the work in Sydney, and generally they operate with a healthy sense of competition, spurring each other on. The activities undertaken in each city tend to follow a familiar pattern but they also respond to local conditions and opportunities. In Sydney, for example, where the Hizmet leadership is composed of more recent migrants from Turkey coming from a more cosmopolitan background, and from second-generation Turkish Australians, AIF proudly boasts a circle of active members in which only half have Turkish heritage and the rest come from Arab, Asian and European backgrounds. This represents a significant development as Hizmet moves away from a predominantly Turkish character to become more truly universal. Hizmet activity around the world tends to revolve around autonomous, citybased, local branches, with their own schools and dialogue associations, whose lack of a uniform naming convention reflects the decentralised, organic, autonomous nature of the movement. Nevertheless, as a whole it can clearly be categorised as a transnational Islamic social movement. This is significant for a number of reasons, not least being that almost all other transnational Islamic social movements are Islamist in nature. Moderate and progressive traditionalist and neo-traditionalist Islamic movements, such as Indonesia s Nahdlatul Ulama, tend

20 20 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 to be very regional and national in focus. The major transnational social movements, such as the Muslim Brotherhood, Hizbut Tahrir and al-qaeda tend towards exclusivism and fundamentalism. As a result, they tend to have an uncomfortable relationship with their host societies and encourage in their members a siege mentality. As the example of Hizmet activism in Australia makes very clear, the movement has a very different relationship with host societies. It is characterised by a positive, optimistic and forward-looking outlook which consistently sees opportunities for friendship rather than enmity, and cooperation rather than conflict. Rather than a siege mentality, there exists a strong sense of connection with, and responsibility for, host societies. The Hizmet members put down roots and embrace the cities and nations to which they have moved. This positive attitude tends to produce its own positive results. Members are driven to engage in dialogue comfortable in the conviction that dialogue and cooperation is what God intends and encouraged by the realisation that they are not called to convert but simply to serve. This awareness is deeply rooted in the thinking of Gülen, reflecting a central theme within the writings of Nursi which in turn was partly inspired by the ecumenism arising from the centrality of love and of God s grace in the works of the earlier Anatolian Sufi writers Jalal ad-din Rumi and Yunus Emre. Gülen has a clear sense that he is articulating a Turkish interpretation of Islam which is distinctively different from some other interpretations that vie for influence in the modern world, including Arab Salafism, although he is careful not to denigrate them by name. He is convinced that the Turkish, Sufistic understanding of Islam which emphasises tolerance of and respect for difference, based on love which can be said to be a theistic humanism reflects a deeper and more complete understanding of the message of Islam: The Hanafi understanding and Turkish interpretation dominates more than threefourths of the Islamic world. This understanding is very dear to me. If you like you can call this Turkish Islam. Just as I see no serious canonical obstacle to this, I don t think it should upset anyone. The Turkish nation interpreted Islam in the areas open to interpretation it attained a very broad spectrum and became the religion of great states. For this reason, I think the Turkish Muslimness is appropriate. Another aspect of this that in addition to profound devotion to the Qur an and Sunnah, the Turks always have been open to Sufism, Islam s spiritual aspect. Turkish Islam is composed of the main, unchanging principles of Islam, found in the Qur an and Sunnah, as well as in the forms that its aspects open to interpretation assumed during Turkish history, together with Sufism. This is why Turkish Islam always has been broader, deeper, more tolerant and inclusive, and based on love. 8 Gülen taught his followers to look beyond sectarian differences, to respect and love all humankind and to recognise and value goodness and belief wherever they are found: Applaud the good for their goodness; appreciate those who have believing hearts; be kind to the believers. Approach unbelievers so gently that their envy and hatred would melt away. Like a Messiah revive people with your breath. 9 Whether you re a Christian, a Jew, a Buddhist, or of another creed, you re carrying a believer s attribute. (Kurtz 2005: 377)

21 How the Hizmet Works 21 Regardless of how their adherents implement their faith in their daily lives, such generally accepted values as love, respect, tolerance, forgiveness, mercy, human rights, peace, brotherhood, and freedom are all values exalted by religion. Most of these values are accorded the highest precedence in the messages brought by Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad, upon them be peace, as well as in the messages of Buddha and even Zarathustra, Lao-Tzu, Confucius, and the Hindu prophets. (Kurtz 2005: 377) Members of the Hizmet movement believe that when they take the initiative and reach out in goodwill, their good intentions will be rewarded. And indeed, this does tend to be the case. Hizmet leaders in Australia such as Orhan Cicek have built up good relations with state and federal politicians up to the level of ministers and prime ministers. They enjoy good relations with senior police officers and civil servants and have access to a wide range of decision-makers and leaders, who for their part tend to be only too glad to find Muslim leaders who desire to engage to take initiatives in dialogue and cooperation. Given the fact that only 3,000-4,000 people around 5% of the 60,000 Turkish-Australians are thought to be closely affiliated with the movement in Australia, the achievements are remarkable by any measure. In global terms, the movement represents one of the world s most significant examples of progressive civil society Islamic activism. It displays strong parallels with earlier forms of religious philanthropy in the west over the past four centuries and represents an important counterpoint to Samuel Huntington s clash of civilizations thesis (Huntington 1993: 1996). Notes 1 For a comparison with Indonesia s Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama, two of Hizmet s closest analogues, see Barton (2006). 2 Although Hermansen refers to there being over 500 schools world wide in her 2007 paper, as this figure has been quoted for some years now it is likely that this considerably understates the current extent of the schools. With no central registry of Hizmet schools, it is difficult to be sure of precise numbers but in the light of the steady growth of the community around the world, the total number of schools might now well exceed For a discussion of critiques and attacks on Gülen by ultra-nationalist elements within the Turkish establishment, which include a brief period of imprisonment in 1971, charges in 1980 and an insidious media campaign in 1997, see Ozdalga (2005) and Eickelman (1998). 4 For an explanation of isik evler and of Hizmet summer camps, see Hermansen (2007: 69 and 72). 5 For a discussion of the role of the abi, see Hermansen (2007:75). Every three to four years, Gülen takes on a new cohort of fifteen to twenty private students who, as they graduate and move out into the broader Hizmet community, add to the ranks of abi. (Atay, 2007: 467). 6 Is with considerable pride that Cicek recalls the imam of this mosque berating his community for failing to give on the same scale as the small Hizmet community. The Imam of Broadmeadows pointed out in his Friday sermon that when people had gathered at the mosque the previous week on the 27th night of Ramadan the holy night of power the offering taken up for charity came to only A$5, For further discussion of Gulen s personal involvement in dialogue, see Michel (2005b), Sariotoprak & Griffith (2005) and Gülen (1999).

22 22 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 8 Gülen, quoted in Yilmaz (2005: 395). On Gülen and Sufism, see Michel (2005a) and Saritoprak (2003). See also Gülen (2005a: 325-7). For works by Gülen in English, see Gülen (2005b; 2004; 2001; 2000; 1997), and Unal & Williams (2000). 9 Gülen, quoted in Kurtz (2005: 376). REFERENCES Abu-Rabi, (2003). Islam at the Crossroads: On the Life and Thought of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi. Albany: State University of New York Press. Agai, B. (2003). The Gülen movement s Islamic ethic of education. in Hakan Yavuz and John Esposito(eds) Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, pp Atay, R. (2007). Reviving the suffa tradition, in Muslim World in Transition: Contributions of The Gülen Movement Conference Proceedings, Leeds: Leeds Metropolitan University Press. Bakar, O. (2005). Gülen on religion and science: A theological perspective, The Muslim World: Special Issue, Islam in Contemporary Turkey: The Contribution of Fethullah Gülen, Vol. 95 no. 3, pp Barton, G. (2007). Preaching by example and learning for life: understanding the Gülen Hizmet in the global context of relgious philanthropy and civil religion, Muslim World in Transition: Contributions of The Gülen Movement Conference Proceedings - October, Leeds: Leeds Metropolitan University Press, pp Barton, G. (2006). Turkey s Gülen hizmet and Indonesia s neo-modernist NGOs; remarkable examples of progressive Islamic thought and civil society activism in the Muslim world, in Fethi Mansouri and Shahram Akbarzadeh (eds), Political Islam and Human Security, Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Press, p Cetin, M. (2007). The Gülen movement: its nature and identity, Muslim World in Transition: Contributions of The Gülen Movement Conference Proceedings - London October, Leeds: Leeds Metropolitan University Press,. Cetin, M. (2005). Mobilization and counter mobilization: the Gülen movement in Turkey, a paper presented at the conference: Islam in the Contemporary World: The Fethullah Gülen Movement in Thought and Practice, November 12-13, Rice University, Houston, TX. Eickelman, Dale F. (1998). Inside the Islamic reformation, Wilson Quarterly, Winter, Vol. 22 Issue 1, pp

23 How the Hizmet Works 23 Ebaugh, H. R. and Koc, D. (2007). Funding Gülen-inspired good works: demonstrating and generating commitment to the movement, Muslim World in Transition: Contributions of The Gülen Movement Conference Proceedings - October, Leeds: Leeds Metropolitan University Press. Gülen, F. (2005). An Interview with Fethullah Gülen translated by Zeki Saritoprak and Ali Unal, The Muslim World, Special Issue, Islam in Contemporary Turkey: The Contribution of Fethullah Gülen,Volume 95, No.3, July, pp Gülen, F. (2005). The Statue of Our Souls: Revival in Islamic Thought and Activism, The Light Inc., Somerset, New Jersey. Gülen, F. (2004). Toward a Global Civilization of Love and Tolerance, New Jersey: The Light. Gülen, F. (2001). A Comparative approach to Islam and democracy, SAIS Review 21, no. 2., pp Gülen, F. (2000). Prophet Muhammad: Aspects of His Life, translated by Ali Unal, Fairfax, VA: The Fountain. Gülen, F. (1999). The necessity of interfaith dialogue: a muslim approach, speech given at the Parliament of the World s Religion. Capetown. 1-8 December. Gülen, F. (1997). Understanding and Belief: The Essentials of the Islamic Faith, Izmir: Kaynak. Hermansen, M. (2007). The Cultivation of Memory in the Gülen Community, Muslim World in Transition: Contributions of The Gülen Movement Conference Proceedings London October, Leeds: Leeds Metropolitan University Press. Huntington, S. (1996). The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of the World Order. New York: Simon and Schuster. Huntington, S. (1993). The Clash of Civilizations? Foreign Affairs. (Summer). Kalaycioglu, E. (2002). State and civil society in Turkey: democracy, development, Amyn B. Sajoo (edt), Civil Society in the Muslim World: Contemporary Perspectives, London: I.B.Tauris. Kucukcan, T. (2007). Social and Spiritual Capital of the Gülen Movement, Muslim World in Transition: Contributions of The Gülen Movement Conference Proceedings - London October, Leeds: Leeds Metropolitan University Press. Kurtz, L. R. (2005). Gülen s paradox: combining commitment and tolerance, The Muslim World, Special Issue, Islam in Contemporary Turkey: The Contribution of Fethullah Gülen,V. 95, No.3, July, pp

24 24 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 Kuru, A. T. (2003). Fethullah Gülen s search for a middle way between modernity and muslim tradition M. Hakan Yavuz and John Esposito (eds), Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement. Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press: Mango, A. (2004). The Turks Today, Woodstock and New York: The Overlook Press. Markham, I. and Ozdemir, I. (eds). (2005). Globalization, Ethics and Islam: The Case of Bediuzzman Said Nursi, Aldershot: Ashgate. Michel, T. (2005). Sufism and modernity in the thought of Fethullah Gülen, The Muslim World, Special Issue, Islam in Contemporary Turkey: The Contribution of Fethullah Gülen, Vol. 95 no. 3, July, pp Michel, T. (2005b). Two frontrunners for peace: John Paul II and Fethullah Gülen, at the Frontrunners of Peace symposia organized by the Cosmicus Foundation, Holland, at universities in Tilburg, Erasmus, and Amsterdam, March 16-18, 2005; available at Michel, T. (2003). Fethullah Gülen as educator M. Hakan Yavuz and John Esposito (eds.) Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press, p Nursi, S. (1996). Risale-i Nur Kulliyatı, Vol. 1. Istanbul: Nesil. Ozdalga, E. (2003). Following in the footsteps of Fethullah Gülen in M. Hakan Yavuz and John Esposito (eds.), Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press, p Ozdalga, E. (2005). Redeemer or outsider? The Gülen community in the civilizing process, The Muslim World, Special Issue, Islam in Contemporary Turkey: The Contribution of Fethullah Gülen, Vol. 95 no. 3, July, pp Sariotoprak, Z. & Griffith, S. (2005). Fetullah Gülen and the People of the Book : A voice from Turkey for interfaith dialogue, The Muslim World, Special Issue, Islam in Contemporary Turkey: The Contribution of Fethullah Gülen, Vol. 95 no. 3, July, pp Saritoprak, Z. (2005a). An Islamic approach to peace and non violence: A Turkish experience, The Muslim World, Special Issue, Islam in Contemporary Turkey: The Contribution of Fethullah Gülen, Vol. 95 no. 3, July, pp Saritoprak, Z. (2005b). Introduction, The Muslim World, Special Issue, Islam in Contemporary Turkey: The Contribution of Fethullah Gülen, Vol. 95 no. 3, July, pp

25 How the Hizmet Works 25 Saritoprak, Z. (2003). Fethullah Gülen: a sufi in his own way, M. Hakan Yavuz and John Esposito (eds), Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement. Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press, pp Unal, A. and Williams, A. (2000). Fethullah Gülen: Advocate of Dialogue, Fairfax, VA: Fountain. Uygur, S. (2007). Islamic Puritanism as a source of economic development: the case of the Gülen movement in Muslim World in Transition: Contributions of The Gülen Movement Conference Proceedings - London October, Leeds: Leeds Metropolitan University Press, pp Vahide, S. (2005). Islam in Modern Turkey: An Intellectual Biography of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, Albany: SUNY Press. Voll, John O. (2003). Fethullah Gülen: transcending modernity in the new islamic discourse, in M. Hakan Yavuz and John Esposito (eds.), Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press, pp White, Jenny B. (2002). Islamist Mobilization in Turkey: A Study in Vernacular Politics. Seattle: University of Washington Press. Yavuz, H. and Esposito, J. (eds). (2003). Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, Syracuse: Syracuse University Press. Yavuz, H. (edt.) (2006). The Emergence of a New Turkey: Democracy and the AK Parti, Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. Yavuz, H. (2003a). Islamic Political Identity in Turkey, Oxford: Oxford University Press. Yavuz, H. (2003b). Islam in the public sphere: the case of the Nur movement, in M. Hakan Yavuz and John Esposito (eds.) Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press, p Yavuz, M. H. (2003c). The Gülen Movement: The Turkish Puritans, in M. Hakan Yavuz and John Esposito (eds.) Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press, pp Yilmaz, I. (2003). Ijtihad and Tajdid by Conduct: The Gülen Movement, in Yavuz, Hakan and Esposito, John (eds) Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2003, pp Yilmaz, I. (2005). State, Law, Civil Society and Islam In Contemporary Turkey, in The Muslim World: Special Issue, Islam in Contemporary Turkey: the Contributions of Gülen, Vol. 95, No.3, July, pp

26 26 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1

27 27 Hizmet Studies Review Vol. 1, No. 1, Autumn 2014, Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition PHILIPP BRUCKMAYR, Universität Wien ABSTRACT This paper will offer an assessment of Fethullah Gülen s relationship with the rich Islamic literary tradition by way of analysis of direct and indirect references to both classical and modern Muslim scholars in his works. Major questions to be addressed are the following: Who are the authors cited or referred to by Gülen in his works? To what end does he appear to take recourse to directly citing or alluding to a specific precursor in Islamic tradition? Are these allusions aimed at reconciling distinctively modern approaches with tradition? Can the writers in question be regarded as household names of traditional Islamic scholarship or education in Turkey? Subject to analysis here are Gülen s major works on Islam in general, which are also widely distributed in the West in English and German translations. This therefore excludes Gülen s trilogy on Sufism, in which the necessity and purpose of citing and referring to specific Sufi masters and writers are more obvious. Such a survey as this not only gives an indication of the breadth and depth of Gülen s own scholarship, but also of his own position within the Islamic literary tradition and his attitudes towards Islam s diverse intellectual history. Although probably best known for his Sufi leanings, which are often regarded as the foundation of Gülen s remarkably tolerant message, he is by no means content with solely referring to figures pertaining to Islamic mysticism. Indeed scholars of hadith figure prominently in his work, and Qur an commentators, philosophers and even Muslim historians similarly appear in Gülen s writings. Even though he normally refers to other writers in positive terms, his allusions are not always affirmative, and especially issues on which Gülen explicitly voices his disagreement, or persons who are assessed by him in negative ways, warrant attention. Introduction Recent years have witnessed a flourishing of scholarly literature on Gülen and especially on the religiously-inspired voluntary mass movement which has grown out of a community of his followers and has come to be commonly referred to as the Gülen Movement (Yavuz & Esposito 2003; Yilmaz 2007; Tittensor 2014). Public and academic interest in Gülen and the movement in the West has been paralleled by the wide distribution of Gülen s works in western languages, for both diasporic

28 28 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 and native consumption. Analysis of these works, when concerned with inspirational influences and forebears, has usually emphasized the role of Sufism and eminent figures in its history such as al-ghazali (d. 1111) and Rumi (d. 1273) (Aslandoğan 2007; Schlubach 2005; Michel 2005), as well as of the twentiethcentury Turkish reformer Said Nursi (Mardin 1989; Agai 2004: ), whose method of synthesizing religion and science as well as tradition and modernity is considered to be carried on by Gülen (Weismann 2007: 159). This situates Gülen at the contemporary end of a long tradition. Notwithstanding the many progressive aspects of his thinking, he is usually described as a traditional Muslim scholar emerging out of a likewise traditional Islamic educational background, but this says hardly anything about the depth and breadth of his scholarship nor about the actual relevance of the Islamic literary tradition and all its aspects as displayed in his writings, nor about his use of the thinking and exemplars of other scholars to support his own views. This current study therefore seeks to highlight the diversity and assess the importance of authors, works and genres of the Islamic literary tradition referred to, cited or used by Gülen. In addition, it will question to what end he appears to take recourse to directly citing or alluding to a specific precursor in the Islamic tradition and whether these allusions are aimed at reconciling distinctively modern approaches with tradition. Additionally, given both Gülen s as well as academic scholarship s emphases on the concept of a distinctively Anatolian Islam, it will ask which of the authors in question could be regarded as figures pertaining to this brand of locally evolved and circumscribed Islamic tradition, or who were prominent in Ottoman and Turkish traditional Islamic education. As not all exponents of Islam s diverse history of literature are assessed in positive terms by Gülen, a commentated look at such criticized figures, and those of their views which he explicitly rejects, will likewise be included. Subject of Analysis and Methodology This survey involves a total of six works by Gülen, 1 all of which can be regarded as works of a general character, pertaining not to a specialized or clearly delineated field of Islamic sciences, as it is the premise of this analysis to trace the importance of figures and strands of Islamic intellectual history in Gülen s overall discourse rather than in specific fields. In line with this approach, as has already been stated, his trilogy on Sufism 2 has been excluded, as it appears to be more rewarding to assess the relevance of figures of Islamic mysticism vis-à-vis representatives of other branches of religious knowledge in a general framework rather than in one focusing on mysticism. More specifically, our selection encompasses different genres of books, namely a work on the basics of Islam (2005a), a collection of essays on diverse topics (2004a), 3 one of the author s works in classical Islamic question-and-answer style (2005b), 4 books with ethical/religious content (1996; 2005d) and one of his biographical works on the prophet (2005c). This last work, though arguably belonging to a specific field and thus being less general

29 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition 29 in character, has been chosen for two reasons. First, the importance of its subject informs all levels of Gülen s discourse, and second, despite its natural emphasis on prophetic tradition (Sunna), it is a goldmine as far as references to Islamic scholars belonging to a variety of fields and eras are concerned, as it can rightfully be regarded as the most scholarly of the works in question. Moreover, it presents not only an analysis of the prophet s life but also of the whole concept of Sunna and its vehicle, the study of hadith. As will become evident in the following discussion, this latter branch of the Islamic sciences also holds an important position in most discussed works. Methodologically, appearances of specific figures of the Islamic literary tradition in the surveyed books were first classified concerning frequency of occurrence and their character (in the form of a joint reference, an individual allusion, a paraphrase or a quotation). Subsequently, the scholars who emerge as more relevant in Gülen s discourse will be discussed in seven different arguably at times overlapping categories: a) scholars appearing extraordinarily frequently, b) figures of Islamic mysticism, c) legal scholars, d) scholars of hadith, e) commentators of the Qur an (mufassirun), historians, exponents of scholastic theology (kalam) and other multi-faceted scholars, f) Turkish scholars, and g) subjects of explicit criticism. Two Towering Figures: Said Nursi and Jalal al-din Rumi The two dominant figures in the analysed works are the great Sufi master Rumi (d. 1273), and even more important, the Turkish reformer Said Nursi (d. 1960), who similarly was strongly influenced by Sufism, albeit rejecting its institutionalized form (Weismann 2007: 156). Both have not only left behind influential literary works, but are the starting points of significant Turkish religious groups; Rumi as the eponymous figure of the Mevlevi brotherhood and tradition 5, the epitome of the image of Turkish Sufism in the West, and Nursi as the point of departure for the most important exponent of a new kind of Islamic community organization arising out of the context of the founding of the aggressively secular Turkish republic, the Nur cemaat (community), built around the activism of devoted followers of Nursi and their engagement with his major work, the Risale-i Nur ( Epistle of Light ), as their spiritual literary basis. 6 These two scholars are by far the most frequently quoted and alluded to in Gülen s surveyed works, with Nursi appearing twice as often as Rumi. 7 Nursi s treatment in particular is unique throughout Gülen s works, demonstrating the author s close identification with this individual and their shared

30 30 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 desire to reconcile religion with science and modernity without sacrificing the former to the latter. Nursi is directly quoted, paraphrased and alluded to on a variety of subjects including theological questions, socio-historical issues such as the factors behind the emergence of revolutions and conflicts (2005a: 115), Muhammad and the Qur an (for example, 2005a: 169, 226; 2005c: 298), love as the essence of creation (2004a: 60), and his personal self-sacrificing devotion to his reforming mission (2004a: 93; 2005c: 151). However, of greater relevance for both Gülen s as well as the Movement s mission appears to be Nursi s thinking on their pressing concerns for inter-religion dialogue (2004a: 74, ) and for furthering knowledge and science in accordance with Islamic ideals to avoid both Muslim stagnation and science-based positivism and materialism (2004a: 197; 2005d: 34; 1996:6). Nursi s paramount position in Gülen s thinking is further exemplified by the fact that Gülen has modeled a whole section of a book (under the sub-heading Arguments for divine unity ) on Nursi s exposition of the topic in his Sözler ( Words ) (2005a: 9-16). He further includes, contrary to his usual practice of making use of only short quotations or two to four lines of poetry, a long quotation of Nursi which exceeds a whole page (concerning the existence of angels) (2005a: 84-85), he derives one of his section titles ( Devotees of love ) from the reformer s words (2004a: 91), and elsewhere he provides the reader with an intellectual biography of his great forebear (2005d: 74-83). Mention of Nursi is often accompanied by a remark on his merits as cause for a major Islamic revival (2005a: 115) and as a great saintly scholar of our time (2005c: 151). Indeed, Gülen lists Nursi, al-ghazali and Ahmad Sirhindi as revivers and renewers of religion (2005c: 2004), with Nursi being tirelessly praised as a far-sighted thinker (2005d: 75), a man with a broad vision [..] almost tantamount to that of the great prophets (ibid.: 81) and as engaging in efforts [..] outstanding and almost superhuman (ibid.: 76). On the other hand, Rumi is mostly invoked and quoted for his all-encompassing love for creation and his related virtue of (inter-religious) tolerance (2004a: 6, 58, 93, 179, 199; 2005d: 87), similarly two important facets of Gülen s discourse, as well as for his presumed deep religious understanding and conscientious lifestyle (2004a: 97; 2005d: 25-26), and obviously also for his qualities as a writer of allegorical Sufi poetry (2004a: 126; 2005c: 100). Presumably mostly due to Rumi s legacy of tolerance, Gülen stresses the relevance of his interpretation of Islam for the future (2004a: 60). As Rumi is mentioned in this regard together with Yunus Emre, 8 and both are subsequently presented as examples of an historically tolerant Turkish way of Islam (2004a: 181), the reader receives a clear indication of Gülen s concept of Anatolian Islam as it has evolved and should be preserved, an argument further strengthened when Gülen indeed speaks of a specific school of the Mawlana [Rumi] and Yunus [Emre] in which the teacher was the Prophet Muhammad (1996: 191).

31 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition 31 Figures of Islamic Mysticism: the Great Saints and the Naqshbandi Legacy Apart from Rumi, Gülen makes mention of around forty figures primarily known to posterity for their attachment to Islamic mysticism, clearly testifying to his own thorough engagement with this current within Islam and its relevance in his thinking. Many of the persons quoted and referred to in this category, especially early Sufis such as Bayazid al-bistami (d. 784), his contemporary Ibrahim b. Adham or the female mystic Rabi a al-adawiyya (d. 801), have not left us any written works, although aspects of their thinking and lives, as well as snippets of their poetry and sayings, have been preserved in later biographical Sufi literature. Thus, whereas all these figures need not occupy us here any further, it must be kept in mind that their treatment by Gülen appears to be an indication of his acquaintance with relevant classical works such as Hilyat al-awliya ( The Saints Adornment ) 9 by Abu Nu aym al-isfahani (d. 1037) and Abd al-rahman al-jami s (d. 1492) Nafahat al-uns ( Breaths of Intimacy ), which built on al-sulami s (d.1021) Tabaqat al-sufiyya ( Classes of Sufis ). In fact, apart from hadith collections, Abu Nu aym s work, as its exposition of the pious begins with Muhammad and the companions, is one of Gülen s most important sources for his discussed biography of the prophet (2005c), among whose sources al-jami also appears. Leaving Rumi aside, the most frequently cited and invoked Sufi by Gülen is clearly al-ghazali (thirteen times), followed by Ahmad Sirhindi (ten times), Yunus Emre, Ibn Arabi (both nine times) and Abd al-qadir al-jilani (eight times). Admittedly, al-ghazali was an expert in various other fields apart from Sufism, 10 which is also explicitly appreciated by Gülen when he writes of his hopes for the advent of people with [..] the [scholarly] breadth of Imam Ghazali (2005d: 87). Nevertheless, although often alluded to in general terms, when praising his exemplary sincerity and profundity (2005d: 34; 1996: 6), it is obviously in Sufism and his famous Ihya Ulum al-din ( Revival of the Religious Sciences ) that Gülen sees his greatest achievements. This is supported by his inclusion of al-ghazali in a line of representatives serving as an extension of the prophetic mission up until the modern day (2004a: 254), which otherwise features only the great Sufis Ibn Arabi, Ahmad Sirhindi and Khalid Diya al-din al-baghdadi as well as Nursi, who is similarly associated with Sufism by Gülen (2005c: 304). The only explicit reference to al-ghazali s endeavors in kalam and philosophy is a casual remark to the effect that both al-ghazali s Tahafut al-falasifa ( The Incoherence of the Philosophers ) 11 as well as Ibn Rushd s answering Tahafut al-tahafut ( Incoherence of the Incoherence ) (van den Berg, 1954) are something to become entangled in (2005d: 139). Just as is the case with Nursi and Sirhindi, Gülen fully endorses al-ghazali s label as an outstanding figure of his time, specifying him as one of the few great revivers of Islamic religious sciences and one of our greatest religious guides (2005c: 351). The Indian founder of the Mujaddidi branch of the Naqshbandiyya brotherhood, Ahmad Sirhindi (d. 1624), is considered by Gülen to be the principal

32 32 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 figure among revivers or renewers 12 appearing between Al-Ghazali and Nursi. The denomination of these scholars as the renewing figures of their respective eras (sg. mujaddid) is highly traditional in nature. 13 Al-Ghazali, the most eminent mujaddid, has been labeled renewer of the sixth (Islamic) century, Sirhindi was (according to Mujaddidi tradition) already adorned with the epithet of renewer of the second millennium (Pers. mujaddid-i alf-i thani) by Abd al-hakim Siyalkuti (d. 1657), scholar at the court of Shah Jahan (r ), 14 shortly after his death (Friedman, 2000: 14 n.7, 103). 15 Similarly, Nursi came to be referred to as Bediüzzaman ( The wonder of the time ) 16 early in his life (Weismann, 2006: ). However, perfectly in line with historically molded orthodox Sunnism, Gülen sees the cycles of great renewals most recently embodied by Nursi and Sirhindi not as beginning with al-ghazali but rather with the Ummayad caliph Umar (II.) b. Abd al- Aziz (r ). 17 Consequently, Gülen views Islam as preserved [ ] through a devoted self-sacrificing community in every period, concentrated every time in different locations (Damascus, Baghdad, Istanbul) around different outstanding figures ( Umar II, al-ghazali, Ahmad Sirhindi) (2005c: ). 18 It is noteworthy that Gülen similarly cherishes Sirhindi s most outstanding successors, the renowned Indian hadith scholar Shah Wali Allah (d. 1760) and the founder of the Naqshbandiyya s Khalidi sub-branch, Khalid Diya al-din al-baghdadi (also al-shahrizuri) (d. 1827) of Iraqi Kurdistan (2005d: 34; 1996: 6; 2004a: 254). All three are referred to as regarding love as the ultimate goal of the Sufi s spiritual journey (2004a: 59, 180). It is significant that Sirhindi is nevertheless, unlike Rumi, Emre, al-yasawi 19 and Nursi, not included in the group of exemplary figures whom Gülen terms the people of love (2004a: 93) or pillars of love and affection (2004a: 179). This might indicate that Gülen, as one of the main Muslim figures behind inter-religious dialogue, disapproves of Sirhindi s intolerant trait regarding adherents of other faiths. 20 Significant references to Emre (d. around 1321) have already been discussed above. Gülen s appreciation of Emre s thinking imbued with love for creation and tolerance is further exemplified by the content of the quotations chosen from this poet, which centre around love, the rejection of retribution for unjust deeds or words, and wholeheartedness even towards wrongdoers (2004a: 46, 70). Moreover, the importance of Emre for the concept of Anatolian/Turkish Islam can hardly be overestimated, as he is its first major truly Turkish figure, or at least the first to produce genuinely Turkish mystical verses in Anatolia, who came to form a lasting legacy (Schimmel, 1985: 396, 463ff.). Al-Jilani (d. 1166) and Ibn Arabi (d. 1240) are undoubtedly two of the most widely known personalities of Islamic mysticism, yet whereas the former was mostly considered beyond dispute also among scholars critical of Sufism, the latter, albeit being highly influential for centuries throughout Sufi circles from the Arab to the Malay-Indonesian world, was and still is on the other hand also a highly controversial figure. 21 However, it has to be noted that this was much less the case in the Turkic world (Tahrali 1999) than in the Arab heartlands (Knysh

33 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition ), which could be regarded as another hint at a justified scheme of Anatolian/Turkish Islam. Indeed, Ibn Arabi holds a more prominent position in Gülen s discourse than al-jilani, who is mostly invoked in a symbolical and nominal manner in connection with other Sufis. 22 In contrast, Gülen reproduces a story out of Ibn Arabi s collection of anecdotes, Muhadarat al-abrar wa Musamarat al-ahyar ( Expositions of the Dutiful and Nightly Conversations of the Chosen Ones ) (2005c: 373), 23 praises his fundamental al-futuhat al-makkiyya ( The Meccan Openings ), and highlights the saint s alleged abilities of communication with the dead and the unborn (2005a: 59) as well as of the prediction of future events (2005a: 57, 194). Moreover, given Rumi s role in Gülen s discourse and in Anatolian Islam, the story of his meeting with the Andalusian saint, related by al-jami, is also noteworthy (2005c: 135). Although Gülen was never affiliated with a Sufi brotherhood, and, like Nursi, harbours doubts concerning the validity of contemporary organized Sufism, 24 he nevertheless expresses his reverence for some Sufi masters who became eponyms for major brotherhoods. Whilst these figures were neither adherents of a tariqa themselves nor culpable of what might be viewed as deviances from Islamic dogma by some of the respective brotherhoods which came to use their names as emblems, joint references to Abu l-hasan al-shadhili (d. 1258), Ahmad al-badawi (d. 1278), Ahmad al-rifa i (d. 1178), al-jilani, and Baha al-din Naqshband (d. 1390) (2005c: 169, 283) seem to be implicit acknowledgements of the established brotherhoods and the particularities in their traditions and practices. 25 As far as brotherhoods are concerned, Gülen clearly stands out as an heir to the Naqshbandiyya tradition, as is evident from his references to figures associated with this brotherhood and its Mujaddidi and Khalidi sub-branches, which represent the vast majority of mentioned Sufis affiliated with any specific tariqa. 26 Apart from the aforementioned Baha al-din Naqshband, Ahmad Sirhindi, Shah Wali Allah and Khalid Diya al-din, these also include Mir Ali Shir Nawa i (d. 1501) (1996: 83), contemporary and friend of al-jami in the Timurid capital of Herat, where they were the chief representatives of the Naqshbandiyya (Schimmel, 1985: ). 27 Moreover, Qasim b. Muhammad as well as the Baghdadi Sufis Ma ruf al-karkhi (d. 815) and al-junayd (d. 910), whose definition of Sufism is quoted by Gülen (2004a: 164), are links in the spiritual chains of the Naqshbandiyya going back to the prophet, which is even explicitly stated by Gülen in the former case (2005c: 381, 303). 28 Still, it has to be stressed that, even though he later discarded the brotherhood framework altogether, Nursi too was the pupil of several Khalidi masters (Weismann, 2006: 156). Finally, it must be noted that the most frequently quoted piece of Sufi literature in Gülen s assessed works is not, as one might expect, Rumi s Mathnawi ( Doublets ), but the famous al-burda ( The Mantle ) of al-busiri (d. 1298). 29 However, this finding has to be qualified in the light of the fact that all the quotations of this ode of love for Muhammad are confined to Gülen s biographicalanalytical work on the prophet (2005c: 31, 37, 86, 142, 265, 402 n. 2).

34 34 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 As Abu Hanifa stands out, together with al-ghazali, as the third most frequently mentioned scholar in Gülen s works (thirteen times) after Nursi and Rumi, closely followed by al-shafi i as sixth (eleven times), we can now turn to the category of legal scholars (fuqaha ). The Place of the Fuqaha and the Hanafite School Compared with the large number of Sufis appearing in Gülen s works, the appearance of scholars of law is minimal (around only a quarter of the former). However, given Gülen s identification with the Mujaddidiyya and Khalidiyya traditions, which both stressed the importance not only of activism, but likewise of complying to the precepts of law, we might assume that Islamic law is not at all a negligible component of Islam for Gülen, which is further exemplified by his many references to figures such as Abu Hanifa (d. 767) and al-shafi i (d. 820). Although the latter ranks not far behind the former, Gülen makes clear whom he considers superior when he remarks that Abu Hanifa is generally accepted as the greatest Muslim jurist (2005c: 393). 30 Moreover, Gülen specifically highlights his background as an emancipated slave, which did not keep him from becoming a great scholar (2005c: 302). The importance of this character for the author (and probably also his prospective readership) is also discernible in another instance. When he sets out to confirm the reliability of Abu Hurayra, one of the most important narrators of prophetic traditions, Gülen makes it clear that he regards reported doubts of Abu Hanifa concerning the former as a mere lie (2005c: 382). Obviously, reservations about Abu Hurayra by such an eminent scholar would seriously weaken Gülen s supportive presentation of the narrator. Generally, Gülen, in line with the Sunnite orthodox view as it has developed since the thirteenth century, 31 presents the schools of law (madhahib, sg. madhhab) and especially their eponyms as being on equal footing (2005c: 303; 1996: 83). Nevertheless, a subtle gradation is not absent, as was shown by the above instance, and will be shown through further examples. More importantly, better acquaintance with or even preference for the Hanafite school, certainly due to both Gülen s Turkish origin and his cherishing of Anatolian Islam, of which Hanafism, as official madhhab of the Ottoman empire 32 and quasi-official one of modern Turkey, also has to be a main ingredient, is easily detectable. Unlike Abu Hanifa and al-shafi i, Malik b. Anas (d. 795) and Ahmad b. Hanbal (d. 855) are not exclusively referred to as fuqaha but also, or in Ibn Hanbal s case even mostly, as hadith collectors. Subtracting these references from their totals, the Central Asian Hanafite al-sarakhsi (d. 1090) emerges to be more often mentioned in connection with Islamic law (five times) than these two madhhab eponyms. His Kitab al-mabsut ( The Book of Expatiation ) is additionally the only work of fiqh mentioned more than once, which could indicate that Gülen indeed regards it as the major such book. This is noteworthy regarding the predominant position of al-maghinani s (d. 1197) al-hidaya fi l-furu ( The Guide

35 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition 35 to the Rules of Law ) in both the Ottoman and Mughal empires as well as in post-mughal India. 33 Gülen s awe of the Mabsut might be grounded less in its superiority from the juristic point of view, but rather in its monumental size (thirty volumes) and the assumptions that it basically contains what Abu Hanifa himself had dictated to his pupil Muhammad al-shaybani (d. 805) (2005c: 303), and that the imprisoned al-sarakhsi in turn dictated the whole of it to his students from memory (2005c: 359). 34 Concerning the above-mentioned grading regarding different scholars expertise and standing, two more interesting examples merit attention. First, Gülen informs the reader, without reservation, that Ahmad b. Hanbal was not considered an expert jurist by the great historian, Qur an commentator, and, as is less widely known, also legal scholar and eponym of the long defunct Jariri school of law, 35 Ibn Jarir al-tabari (d. 923). Nor was Ibn Hanbal, according to Gülen, given the same status as the other three founders of surviving Sunnite madhahib, Abu Hanifa s student and early Hanafite authority Abu Yusuf al-kufi (d. 798) and unspecified others, by some likewise unspecified authorities (2005c: ). Second, it is emphasized, again without qualification, that al-sarakhsi regarded himself as knowing forty times more prophetic traditions by heart than al-shafi i (2005c: 303, 359). However, Gülen s commitment to the Hanafite school is best exemplified by a look at the persuasions of the scholars mentioned by him in connection with fiqh living during or after the consolidation of the schools of law. 36 In fact, apart from the other three Imams (here as eponyms of schools of law), we are confronted with an almost exclusively Hanafite club, encompassing, in addition to the aforementioned (Abu Hanifa, Abu Yusuf al-qadi, al-sarakhsi and al-tahtawi), the eponym s students Zufar b. al-hudhayl (d. 774) and al-shaybani (2005d: 25; 2005c: 302), Ibn al-humam (d. 1456) (2005c: 382), al-maghinani (2005d: 25) and al-taftazani (d. 1390) (2005b: 157). 37 There are, moreover, some instances in which Gülen explicitly introduces the Hanafite standpoint on specific issues, such as the definition of the Sunna (2005c: 315) and regarding the necessary procedure for the cleansing of bowls earlier used by dogs (ibid.: 353). Elsewhere Gülen has made clear that he regards keeping the madhahib separate and accordingly sticking to one s madhhab as the proper way, albeit emphasizing the possibility of following another school s ruling in specific cases out of immediate necessity (ar. darura) (Yilmaz 2005: ). Even so, he shows himself to be far from uncritical of his own madhhab when he stresses that a particular hadith involving the prophet s alleged praise for Abu Hanifa is inauthentic and must have been fabricated for sectarian considerations (2005c: 348).

36 36 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 Establishing the Sunna: the Hadith Collectors and Later Authorities A closer look reveals that Gülen relies heavily on hadith in all but one of the surveyed works, in which they are almost absent (2005d). This applies naturally for the most part to his analysis of the prophet s life (2005c) but also to the other works in question. Accordingly, a book such as 2005a includes 68 citations from the six canonical hadith collections and Ahmad b. Hanbal s al-musnad alone, 38 thus not including the numerous citations of hadith out of other collections, whereas traditions from the works of al-bukhari and Muslim alone appear 379 times in 2005c. Al-Bukhari s Sahih ( The Authentic ) is generally the most frequently cited collection followed by Muslim s Sahih, except in 2005a, where the number of citations is equal. In third position we usually find Ibn Hanbal s al-musnad, except in 2005a, where al-tirmidhi s Sunan appears twice as frequently, 39 with the other three canonical collections, especially al-nasa i s, mostly coming far behind. Such a dominant position of the Sahihayn (the two Sahihs) is far from unusual, and their long established and eventually largely uncontested predominance 40 is also mirrored in the curricula of Ottoman times. Thus, the syllabus for imperial medreses drawn up under Süleyman the Magnificent (r ) commissioned a study of twelve works of hadith, of which seven were the Sahihayn and commentaries thereupon (Ahmed & Filipovic, 2004: ). More striking seems to be the prominence of Ibn Hanbal s Musnad, yet this is accepted and valued by Sunnism as an authentic book of tradition and even included by some (excluding Gülen [2005c: 365]) among the six canonical works and regarded as more reliable than Ibn Maja s and al-nasa i s (apparently including Gülen). More importantly, its author is, within Sunnism in general and not only among the Hanbalis, an almost legendary figure due to his alleged unfaltering stance during the inquisition (mihna) of the Mu tazilite caliphs al-ma mun (r ) and al-mu tasim (r ) (Cooperson, 2000: ). 41 However, the role model among the early hadith scholars for Gülen is obviously al-bukhari. Whereas the other five canonical traditionists are merely referred to in joint references concerned with their place in the science of hadith (2005c: 303, 347, 365), which also goes for Ibn Hanbal, except that his keen memory and importance in the classification of hadiths are highlighted (2005c: 345, 365), the author furnishes much more information on al-bukhari, who is mentioned seven times in the works in question (excluding statements merely introducing hadith such as al-bukhari relates... and containing no information on the traditionist nor on Gülen s attitude towards him whatsoever). Biographical details are conveyed to testify to al-bukhari s impeccable character and supreme knowledge (2005c: ), as well as to the high standards of morality which he demanded of transmitters in order to accept them as trustworthy and reliable (2005c: 365). Intriguingly, the traditionist is also portrayed as having been able to ask the prophet for his approval concerning each hadith to be written down (2005c: 345). Moreover, not only the Sahih but likewise his al-ta rikh al-kabir

37 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition 37 ( The Great History ) is mentioned, as Gülen elaborates on collections of biographies of companions of the prophet (sahaba) and their immediate successors (tabi un) (2005c: 346). Apart from these early authorities, Gülen also allots space for later scholars of hadith. In fact, the most frequently invoked figure in this field belongs to that category, whilst others still receive a more thorough treatment than the early authorities other than al-bukhari. The eminent scholar here is Ibn Hajar al-asqalani (d. 1449), an important figure in Ottoman education 42, who is mentioned nine times and therefore ranks on the same level as Emre. The former is presented as an extraordinarily devoted scholar. He is credited with reading the whole Sahih of Muslim several times, and appears as one of four incredibly productive writers (the others are to be discussed below), who, according to Gülen, must have written more than twenty pages a day (2005c: 359) and are thus prime examples of outstanding scholarly activity for Gülen. Ibn Hajar s al-isaba fi Tamyiz al-sahaba ( Finding the truth in the assessment of the Companions ) is, like al-bukhari s aforementioned history, listed among the most significant biographical works on sahaba and tabi un, and his work of hadith criticism al-qawl al-musaddad fi Dhabb an al-musnad li l-imam Ahmad ( The Gap-Filling Word Regarding the Defence of the Musnad of Imam Ahmad ) 43 is similarly referred to, yet without mentioning its title. More importantly, al- Isaba is quoted on a topic as relevant as the definition of who can be rightfully labeled a companion of the prophet (2005c: 369). Other leading hadith experts for Gülen, mentioned together with Ibn Hajar, are Ibn al-madini (d. 849), Ibn Hibban (al-busti, d. 965), Abu Khatim (al-razi, d. 938) and Shams al-din al-dahabi (d. 1348) (2005c: 397). A particularly valuable field for the author is obviously hadith criticism, as whose prime exponents he regards again Ibn Hajar and al-dhahabi as well as the great scholar of Muslim Spain (2005c: 343) Ibn Abd al-barr (d. 1071), 44 the Hanbalite Ibn al-jawzi (d. 1200) and Zayn al-din al- Iraqi (d. 1404). 45 Here it is noteworthy that whereas Ibn Hajar, al-dhahabi and Ibn al-jawzi were indeed upholders of the more critical approach and methodology of rigorous critics of hadith (and especially concerning the backgrowth of isnads to the prophet) 46 such as Abu Khatim al-razi (who is surprisingly absent from this list), Ibn Abd al-barr and al- Iraqi are on the contrary representatives of a much more permissive attitude, which came to dominate in Sunnism (Brown, 2007b). 47 Two other hadith scholars who appear in Gülen s works should be mentioned here. First, al-hakim al-naysaburi (d. 1014) from whose Ma rifat Ulum al-hadith ( Knowledge about the Sciences of Hadith ) Gülen takes his division of the companions into twelve ranks (2005c: 370). He further refers to the same author s al-mustadrak ala al-sahihayn ( Restoration of the two Sahihs ), yet not without pointing to its re-evaluating glosses by al-dhahabi (2005c: 347), who criticizes al-hakim severely for the inclusion of certain traditions in it (Goldziher, 2004:

38 38 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 II, 274). Against this background, the fact that al-hakim is, unlike al-dhahabi, absent from both the aforementioned enumerations of leading experts and illustrious critics of hadith can be taken as an indication that Gülen is indeed well acquainted with the works which he discusses, and that the over twenty traditions out of the Mustadrak which Gülen includes in 2005c, 2004a and 2005a are not among those decried by al-dhahabi. In order to demonstrate the breadth of the Sunna, Gülen chooses to point to a piece of hadith literature of a more recent date than all the previously mentioned works and highlights the exact number of traditions contained in the Kanz al- Ummal of the Indian Ali al-mutaqqi al-hindi (d. 1556), without naming its author (2005: 388). Although neither the latter, who also commented on a major work of Shadhili Sufism 48 (Schimmel 1985: ), nor his collection appear elsewhere in Gülen s works, it is noteworthy that it represents one of his top ten sources in his analytical biography of Muhammad (2005c), and was likewise used for 2005a and 2004a. All the specific references to hadith scholars discussed so far are exclusively derived from 2005c. We may conclude that Gülen, despite showing himself to be strikingly well acquainted with the development and content of hadith literature, uses their works mainly as a tool for argumentation, which he feels free to pursue, thanks to their efforts in establishing an authentic Sunna devoid of fabrications (2005c: ). 49 Otherwise, as can be inferred from their absence in the bulk of analysed works, Gülen does not feel compelled to allude to any individual characters of this field (apart from their role as collectors of an individual tradition), but rather to the concept of Sunna itself and the inspirations derived from it (2005c: ; 2004a: 40, 76, 86). Al-Suyuti and Other Multi-faceted Scholars of Tafsir, Historiography and Kalam Another scholar with a special place in Gülen s writings is the Egyptian Jalal al-din al-suyuti (d. 1505), a commanding figure in the Sunni tradition (Brown,2007b: 36), probably the last of its kind, and additionally one of its most prolific writers, who rose above mere compilation work in a variety of fields such as tafsir, history, hadith, law and linguistics. That Gülen also especially holds the breadth of his scholarship in high regard is evident from his remarks about al-suyuti, which are, unlike in al-ghazali s case, not merely concerned with his achievements in one discipline. Thus, the former is presented as last link in an exemplary chain of ongoing hadith criticism stretching over three centuries from Ibn al-jawzi (d. 1200) to al-suyuti s al-la ali al-masnu a fi Ahadith al-mawdu a ( The Artificial Pearls among the Unreliable Hadiths ) (2005c: 347; cf n. 49 above), and is further listed among the tradition s most famous memorizers of (2005c: 345) and leading commentators on the Qur an (2005c: 303). Moreover, he reproduces al-suyuti s view that all sciences and branches of knowledge are grounded in the

39 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition 39 Qur an (2005a: 229). His extraordinary literary output is honored by Gülen by including him in his quartet of the most prolific Muslim authors (2005c: 359). Although passing in silence over al-suyuti s overly complacent claims to the rank of mujaddid (Goldziher, 1967:57-58), Gülen nevertheless puts trust in his alleged meetings with the prophet (2005c: 25, 346). We can now turn to the field of Qur anic commentary. In a joint reference, Gülen lists those whom he presumably considers to be the most eminent in this field. Alongside al-suyuti 50 we find here al-tabari (d. 923), 51 Fakhr al-din al-razi (d. 1209), Ibn Kathir (d. 1373) and two modern commentators, the Turkish Muhammad Hamdi Yazır (d. 1942), 52 and, surprisingly, Sayyid Qutb (d. 1966). Al- Tabari is never alluded to in his capacity as an historian, but the above-mentioned report of his assessment of Ibn Hanbal might derive from his famous history (al-tabari 1979), which also serves as a source for Gülen (in 2005c and 2004a), though by far not to the same extent as Ibn Kathir s history of Islam, 53 entitled al-bidaya wa l-nihaya ( The Beginning and the End ), which in fact ranks in eighth position among Gülen s sources in 2005c. 54 Fakhr al-din al-razi, who also wrote on theology, philosophy, ethics and usul al-fiqh (sources of law), 55 is, after Ibn Hajar, al-tabari and al-suyuti, the fourth author highlighted as incredibly prolific (2005c: 359). He is further invoked regarding his view on a linguistic problem posed by a Qur anic verse (2005c: 146). 56 Although never mentioned in the works in question, it is evident that Gülen similarly holds the al-jami fi Ahkam al-qur an ( The Comprehensive One Regarding the Regulations of the Qur an ) of the Andalusian al-qurtubi (d. 1272) 57 in high esteem, as it is comparably frequently cited (in 2005c and 2005d). It is noteworthy that neither the once-dominant tafsir of Ottoman times, the Kashshaf ( Discoverer ) of Jar Allah al-zamakhshari (d. 1144), nor its successor, Anwar al-tanzil ( Lights of Revelation ), a bowdlerized version of the former by al-baydawi (d. 1286), are ever mentioned or used by Gülen. This is perhaps due to al-zamakhshari s attachment to the Mu tazilite school of theology, 58 of which Gülen is highly critical (see below). The inclusion of Sayyid Qutb may seem startling to an observer who regards the radical thinker of the Muslim Brotherhood and Gülen as two barely reconcilable figures. In this respect, it has to be emphasized that Qutb s Fi Zilal al- Qur an ( In the Shadow of the Qur an ) is slightly less activist in character than his Ma alim fi l-tariq ( Signposts, also often translated as Milestones ), which came to be an inspiration as well as a bone of contention for subsequent generations of Islamists and Salafist thinkers. Although Gülen obviously does not share Qutb s view (most clearly expressed in Signposts ) that the lifestyles of contemporary Muslims and many of the institutions of modern society are akin to those of the pre-islamic era (jahiliyya) to the same extent, Qutb s socio-political and conceptbased rather than verse-based approach to exegesis, seeking to provide a new perspective on the relevance of the Qur an to today s Muslims (Saeed, 2006: 30), was apparently not lost on Gülen, who, like Nursi, has at least the latter agenda in common with Qutb. 59 More specifically, the notion of jahiliyya (cehalet in Turk-

40 40 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 ish), understood as ignorance, resonates in both Gülen s and Nursi s thinking on education (Agai, 2004: ). Scholars of scholastic theology (kalam) are not particularly well-represented in Gülen s works, though not completely absent either. Sunnism, although always encompassing currents shunning or rejecting the field of kalam altogether (especially, though not exclusively, the Hanbalite school), came to recognize two theological schools which were formerly opponents as equally orthodox (Madelung, 1985; Rudolph, 1997: 1-12). One is the comparably well-studied Ash arite school, the other is that named after Abu l-mansur al-maturidi (d. 944), which was always connected to (Eastern) Hanafism, 60 and thus prevailed, at least nominally, 61 among the Ottomans and Mughals. The therefore expected subtle support of Gülen for this school is detectable though not explicitly voiced. Indeed, Gülen introduces the two schools as equals and without preference when he discusses the question whether belief in God s existence necessitates revelation or not (2005b: ), an issue of marked difference between the two schools, as the question is generally positively answered by Ash arism but negatively by the Maturidiyya. However, unlike al-maturidi, al-ash ari (d. 941) is not even mentioned by name in this instance nor elsewhere. When presenting eminent theologians, referred to as heroes of reasoning and intelligence (2005d: 26), Gülen lists al-maturidi, al- Taftazani (d. 1390), al-jurjani (d. 1413) and al-dawwani (d. 1501), all of whom are, with the exception of al-maturidi, famous for their commentaries on both Ash ari and Maturidi and also independent creeds and kalam works, 62 which were all used in Ottoman and Mughal education, but are themselves not specifically associated with a particular school. Scholars of Philosophy, Medicine and the Natural Sciences In this category we find thirteen scholars in the works in question, with al- Biruni (d. 1048), the great Andalusian physician al-zahrawi (d. 1009) and the philosopher Ibn Sina (d. 1037) as the most frequently mentioned (five, four and four times respectively). The former, well-known for his history of India 63 as well as for his treatment of Indian philosophical and religious thinking (a common interest with Gülen), is highlighted by the author as one of the greatest scholars of medieval Islam (2005c: 305). The list of mentioned medieval scholars of the natural sciences also features the mathematicians Ibn Haytham (d. 1038) and al-khwarizmi (the earliest tangible Arab authority in arithmetic and geometry, d. 846), the physicist al-khazini and the astronomers Ibn Shatir and Ulugh Beg (d. 1449). 64 The reason for their appearances in Gülen s works is obvious, given his and Nursi s emphasis on both reconciling Islam with science and (re-)embedding the latter in the former. Here Gülen s argumentation is strongly bolstered in the light of such illustrious historical precedents, which have, however, tended to be forgotten or at least neglected in Muslim discourse. It is therefore only natural that he also stresses the influence on Western thought of a figure such as Ibn

41 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition 41 Haytham (2005c: 305), who was probably the greatest experimental scientist in Muslim history, even informing philosophical and theological works by al-razi and al-iji (van Ess, 1966: 175). Incidentally, when the rector of Cairo s al-azhar eventually had to concede to calls for the inclusion of modern subjects in the university s curriculum in 1888, a text of Ibn Haytham was selected for the field of mathematics (Dodge, 1974: 133), a choice which would have most certainly not been approved by the educationally modern-oriented Gülen, notwithstanding his admiration for the medieval scientist. The inclusion of the major Muslim philosophers Ibn Sina, al-farabi (d. 950), al-kindi (d. 873), Ibn Rushd (d. 1198) and Ibn Miskawayh (d. 1030) 65 clearly shows that Gülen is not considering the philosophers and their Neo-Platonic (or in Ibn Rushd s case Aristotelian) views about the eternity of the world or incorporeal resurrection as unbelief, the standard view in kalam circles and naturally likewise among kalam and philosophy critics, but rather regards their thinking as a valuable contribution to Islam s diverse heritage, even though he clearly expresses reservations concerning some of their views (2005d: 138). Accordingly, he remarks that a truly belief-based state would be even better than al-farabi s city (2005a: 135), relating to the latter s work Ara Ahl al-madinat al-fadila ( Opinions of the People of the Virtuous City ). The National Hero Mehmed Akif Ersoy and Other Turkish Scholars Apart from Emre and Nursi, Gülen also alludes to, quotes and includes poetry from a number of other Turkish scholars of different periods and fields. Among this group the number of reproduced verses and quotations is disproportionately high, which is certainly due to the fact that their literature was composed in Gülen s mother tongue. Among those more often mentioned we find the Mevlevi Sufi Ghalib Dede (d. 1799), one of the last great classical Turkish poets (Schimmel, 1985: 460), the previously mentioned Muhammad Hamdi Yazır, whose marvelous Qur anic commentary is praised by Gülen as he presents a short biography of this scholar (2005d: 71-72) and Ibrahim Hakkı Erzurumlu (d. 1780). The latter was the author of a notable handbook of mystical knowledge (Marifetname) which, due to its encompassing approach of integrating disciplines such as (then remarkably state-of-the-art) astronomy as well as geography, mathematics and other disciplines into its expositions, fits well with the ideas later expressed by both Nursi and Gülen. As the most important of these three scholars in the surveyed works, this saint [ ] and scholar (2005c: 126) is quoted on prophecy (2005c: 23, 126) and on the uniqueness of God (2005b: 5-6). However, the outstanding character in this category is the poet, Turkish national hero and composer of the national anthem Mehmed Akif Ersoy, who is in fact mentioned just as often as al-ghazali and Abu Hanifa. Akif s role in Gülen s ethical-religious discourse is far from merely symbolic. Maxims contained in his religious poetry are quoted in connection with Gülen s notion of the ideal human (2004a:

42 42 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 115, 127), 66 the deficiencies of life without faith (2004a: 137) and of materialism (2004a: 152), and the capacity of just and believing humans to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles (2004a: 187). Even so, Akif is indeed likewise of great symbolical importance for a Turkish intellectual and religious scholar such as Gülen, as he is the epitome of the pious nationalist, unanimously valued even among Kemalists, standing out in a Kemalist frame. It is in this light that one has to measure the relevance of a quotation from Akif to the effect that nations without spirituality have no chance of survival in the long run (2005d: 99). Accordingly, Akif is presented as an archetypical son of [the] Turkish nation, who lived in piety like the companions of the prophet and walked to the Hereafter completely destitute of any worldly possessions (2005d: 71), which furthermore locates him close to Sufi austerity. Subjects of Gülen s Criticism As will be shown below, instances in which Gülen expresses critical opinions regarding individual Muslim scholars or groups and their thinking are likewise revealing concerning his views of Islamic doctrine as well as at times reflecting remarkably nuanced views. A case in point is the Mu tazilite school of kalam, most notorious for its doctrine of the created-ness of the Qur an which has come to be unanimously regarded as heretic by Sunnite orthodoxy, which in earnest consolidated itself in the wake of Mu tazilite decline in the ninth century. Gülen dismisses the school not as heretic but as plainly heterodox (2005c: 391). However, his critique of the Mu tazlite scholar al-jahiz (d. 868) deals exclusively with his opposed standpoint concerning the authenticity of a specific prophetic tradition, and al-jahiz is here mentioned together with the scholar Ibn Abi l-dunya (d. 894), who held the same view as the former but is described by Gülen in positive terms. Eventually Gülen concludes that neither al-jahiz nor the latter were specialists in hadith, and that their doubts concerning the otherwise widely accepted tradition are therefore negligible (2005: 391). In a similar manner, and again without personally attacking the scholars in question, Gülen criticizes and seeks to deconstruct claims made by the Shiite historians al-ya qubi (d. 898) and Abu Ja far al-iskafi, that (in Sunnism) highly-regarded transmitters of hadith were fabricating traditions at the behest of the Umayyads (2005c: ). 67 Another criticized group are the Hurufis, who concerned themselves with theories of the symbolism of letters and influenced certain Sufi (most notably the Turkish Bektashiyya and Persian Nuqtawiyya) and (early) Shiite currents (Schimmel 1985: ; Daftary 2004: 72ff., ; Arjomand 1981: 8-9). Gülen refers to the Hurufis as extreme (2005d: 41), and rightfully connects their ideas to Shiite extremist (ghulat) circles, which he, however, characterizes as falling outside Islam (2005b: 238). As Alawites and Druzes as well as the Turkish Alevis could easily be counted among Shiite ghulat, we might assume that Gülen s explicit support for dialogue with and full acceptance of the Alevis in Turkey (Ünal

43 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition 43 & Williams 2000: 68-69) is thus rather a matter of inter-religious than intra- Islamic dialogue and harmony. Moreover, it is of significance that Gülen does not at all categorically reject the thinking of figures connected with the Hurufis and implicated groups. Actually, he even includes a poem (2004a: 18) by Nesimi (d. 1417), the greatest Hurufi poet. However, Gülen s nuanced approach towards figures whom he highly regards while not fully endorsing all aspects of their thinking is best demonstrated with regard to the defunct, overtly literalist Zahiri school of law. In the surveyed works, they are alluded to only in one sole instance, when Gülen laments that those Muslims who emphasize violence ignore the essence of the Qur an but read it instead in the manner of the Zahiris (for example, by focusing only on its outward literal meaning) (2004a: 72). Elsewhere, he specifies his view of the Zahiris and mentions them as negative examples of a dogmatism otherwise not found in Islam (2004b: 108). He further notes that their thinking has lived on and influenced a number of acclaimed personalities and scholars, including notable Hanbalis such as Ibn Taymiyya and his (Shafi i) students al-dhahabi and Ibn Kathir, and eventually also inspired the emergence of Wahhabism (2004b: ). 68 As shown above, the two last mentioned scholars are important and revered figures in the fields of hadith, historiography and Qur anic commentary for Gülen. Even so, he does not hesitate to voice his rejection of what he regards as their literalist-dogmatist trait, which he apparently perceives as irreconcilable with his own ideals. Conclusion From the foregoing discussion, it becomes evident that Gülen indeed displays a remarkable breadth of scholarship encompassing all fields of Islamic knowledge from the earliest up to modern times. Especially in Sufi and hadith literature, the depth of his scholarship is striking. In many ways, he shows himself to be both a devoted adherent of Islamic mysticism and its ideals and a highly traditional Turkish Sunni scholar. This includes his explicit reliance on the Hanafi school of law (and especially its Central Asian figures such as al-sarakhsi), his nominal preference for Maturidi kalam (likewise of Central Asian origin) and his views regarding the Sunna and the Mu tazilites. However, his thinking on education, inter-religious dialogue and especially the projected symbiosis of science and Islam strongly resonating in the former, is distinctively modern and clearly rooted in Nursi s discourse, albeit by no means free from historical precedents. In parallel with Nursi, Gülen too, albeit inclusive towards most currents of Sufism, appears to be mostly connected to the Naqshbandi-Mujaddidi-Khalidi tradition as molded over the centuries in Central Asia, India and Turkey, with its emphasis on balancing the esoteric inner world of Islam and its exoteric counterpart, the realm of ritual practice and law. The significance of Rumi to Gülen should not be interpreted as an counter-argument in this respect, as studying the Mathnawi

44 44 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 and cooperation with the Mevleviyya, which was from the start (although its foundation was laid by a foreigner) always an exclusively Turkish affair, characterized the brotherhood s Anatolian branches ever since (Weismann, 2007: 46, 76-77). Similarly, Ibn Arabi always held a prominent position in most Naqshbandi circles, and the brotherhood s overt reliance on the latter s and Rumi s works is even considered to have been a hindrance for its spread among Arab peoples (La Gall, 2005: 93-94). As (apart from the Qur an) recourse to mystical thinking (including that of Nursi) and hadith stand out as both major inspirations and principal tools in argumentation, and the capacities of reason are similarly stressed, one might be reminded of Shah Wali Allah pursuing the synthesis of aql (reason), naql (report, for example, Qur an, Sunna and consensus [ijma ]) and ma rifa (mystical knowledge) (Metcalf, 1982: 43) in Delhi two centuries prior, when faced with an earlier form of globalization, namely encroaching British colonialism. Displays of Islam s diversity are frequent and clearly intended in Gülen s works, effectively blurring the boundaries between at times severely differing views of different schools of thought and disciplines, such as Sufism, kalam, philosophy and traditional as well as modern currents more or less rejecting all three of the foregoing. As far as the notion of Anatolian Islam is concerned, we may again point out the relevance of the local historically evolved Hanafi-Maturidi- Mevlevi-Naqshbandi nexus. To this has to be added the relative historical absence of staunch Hanbalites, anti-ibn Arabi polemicists and later revivalist movements influenced by Neo-Hanbalism, which all shaped Islamic discourse in the Arab world, and in South and even Southeast Asia. Similarly, the unique case of the inclusion of a Sufi tafsir in highest level official madrasa curricula 69 is also telling regarding the Ottoman intellectual atmosphere which surely informed Anatolian Islam. Of greater importance for Gülen s discourse are, however, certainly the reforming missions of the Khalidiyya, 70 Nursi and the Nurcus in late Ottoman and republican times, and the figure of Akif as predecessor as a bridge between secular-nationalist and religiously minded Turkey. What lies at the root of Gülen s references to past authorities and the notion of Anatolian Islam is a desire to display both continuity, of similar importance for all religions, and the lack thereof, where a return to better past ways (such as the height of Islamic civilization with its mastery of both the sciences and the religious realm, and the projected tolerance of Ottoman times) is recommended. Generally, Gülen s clear attachment to traditional Turkish concepts of Islam combined with his espousal and purveyance of moderate progressive ideas, perhaps otherwise not reflected on by the traditional mainstream, appear to be the pillars of his mass appeal in Turkey and elsewhere.

45 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition 45 NOTES 1 The included books are Towards the Lost Paradise (1996), Toward a Global Civilization of Love & Tolerance (2004a), The Essentials of the Islamic Faith (2005a), Questions and Answers about Islam 1 (2005b), An Analysis of the Prophet s Life: The Messenger of God Muhammad (2005c), and Statue of our Souls: Revival in Islamic Thought and Activism (2005d). 2 Key Concepts in the Practice of Sufism. Emerald Hills of the Heart, 3vols. ( ). 3 Actually a collection of essays, articles, letters and speeches from a twenty year period ( ). 4 The so-called Masa il (Questions) style in Arabic and Islamic literature in general has been and still is employed in a variety of fields from law to philosophy. Here the author had to rely on the German translation of Gülen s work entitled Fragen an den Islam (Questions to Islam). 5 In line with Weismann s approach the present author refrains from using the inappropriate and misleading term order as equivalent for the Arabic tariqa (literally way ) (Weismann 2007: 9-10). On the Mevlevi brotherhood see Trimingham 1971: On the establishment and structure of this cemaat and the second notable such community, the Süleymancı cemaat, see Agai 2004: The exact ratio is 38 to 19 instances, while counting longer sections devoted to Nursi, inexistent in Rumi s case, only once. 8 The third character referred to in this context is the Khalwatiyya Sufi Niyazi al-misri (d. 1697), another representative of Turkish mystical poetry and commentator of several of Emre s poems (Schimmel 1985: , ). On the Khalwatiyya brotherhood see Trimingham 1971: Hilya is indeed a technical term denoting the genre of elaborating on the merits of the prophet or saintly figures. 10 For a chronology and brief description of his works on law, kalam, philosophy, logic, Sufism and other topics see Hourani The author himself describes this work as belonging to the field of kalam in his Jawahir al- Qur an (Jewels of the Qur an) (Frank 1994: 28). 12 Characterized as those, who combined in themselves the enlightenment of sages, the knowledge of religious scholars, and the spirituality of great saints (2005c: 304). 13 On the hadith-based origin and the historical development of the concept of mujaddid as well as for an enumeration of scholars regarded as such see Goldziher 1967: Siyalkuti s fame rests mostly on his endeavors as a glossator. His gloss on the commentary of al-taftazani (see below for this figure) on the creed of Najm al-din al-nasafi (d. 1142) was also used in Ottoman schooling (İzgi 1997: 96, 169) and went into print in Istanbul early on. 15 Hence the name of the Mujaddidi branch of the Naqshbandiyya. 16 Gülen frequently employs this sobriquet when referring to Nursi. 17 On the construction of Umar II. as mujaddid and the likening of the Abbasid al-mutawakkil (d. 861) to this role and persona, as a consequence to the latter s lifting of the Mu tazilite inquisition (mihna), see El-Hibri 1999: 108, Intriguingly, the status of mujaddid of al-shafi i (eponym of the Shafi ite school of law) seems to be implicitly questioned, if not rejected, by Gülen, as he merely remarks, that the former is regarded, and elsewhere regarded by some as such (2005c: 303, 359), without making an effort at confirmation. 18 It is unclear, whether the places Baghdad and Istanbul are here intended to be connected with al-ghazali and Said Nursi or rather with rulers highly esteemed by Gülen such as the Abbasid caliph Harun al-rashid and the Ottoman sultans Mehmet II., Selim I. and Süleyman I. (2005c: 301). 19 Ahmad al-yasawi (d. 1166), originating from modern-day Uzbekistan and eponym of the Yasawiyya brotherhood is also of importance for the notion of Anatolian, or in this case rather Turkish Islam. The Yasawiyya established itself initially especially among the Turkic peoples in the Central Asian steppe, and later the Turkish Bektashiyya branched of from it (Weismann 2006:

46 46 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n ; Trimingham 1971: 68-69; 80-83). Al-Yasawi s Hikam (Wise Maxims) represents the first work of mystical thought to have been laid down in Turki (Eastern Turkish), and he is therefore considered the first great exponent of Turkic mystical literature and a main figure in the formative period of Turkish Islamic tradition (Schimmel 1985: 463; Trimingham 1971: 58). 20 Sirhindi expressed markedly negative attitudes towards Sikhs and Jews in his letters and, more importantly, actively lobbied among Mughal officials to keep Hindus out of government. His treatment of Hindus in his correspondence with other Sufis was however rather mild and he began to express more conciliatory statements about them later in his life, as can be inferred from his chronologically collected letters. See Friedman 2000: For controversies centering around Ibn Arabi s teachings and persona in the Arab world see Knysh 1999, for the Indian subcontinent Rizvi 1965 & 1980: 60-62, for the Malay-Indonesian world see Azra For example among leading saints (2005c: 303) and spiritual masters (1996: 83). 23 The text misnames this book Musamarat al-abrar (Nightly Conversations of the Dutiful). Both the terms abrar and ahyar (the dutiful and chosen ones) refer to specific categories of an hierarchical structure of Muslim saints (Trimingham 1971: 164). 24 Hence his remark that narrowness has crept into the lodges (2004a: 186). 25 Especially Rifa iyya and Badawiyya are known for the excessive rituals of the former (including snake- and scorpion-charming) and practices strongly influenced by local Egyptian, partly pre-islamic, traditions prevalent among the latter. See Trimingham 1971: 37-40, 45, 79-80; Schimmel 1985: For example the Egyptian Shadhili shaykh Abd al-wahhab al-sha rani (d. 1565) attacked both orders for contravening Islamic law (Trimingham 1971: 223). 26 A more detailed treatment of the relationship of Gülen and Anatolian Islam with Naqshbandi tradition is to be found in Bruckmayr 2011 & forthcoming. 27 Al-Nawa i is moreover considered the virtual founder of the Chaghatay Turkish literature (Weismann 2006: 33; Trimingham 1971: 94). 28 Admittedly, al-junayd and Ma ruf al-karkhi are main figures in the silsilas (spiritual chains) of Islamic mysticism, both appearing in the earliest preserved silsila in the Fihrist (Index) of Ibn al-nadim (d. 995) (Stewart 2007: 381), and are thus far from being exclusively Naqshbandi figures. Yet Gülen s explicit allusion to the Naqshbandiyya spiritual chain seems to support the present author s point. Actually, the Naqshbandi lineage encompasses three different chains of transmission (Weismann 2007: 22-25).Oe of them starts with Abu Bakr (d. 634), the first of the rightly-guided caliphs and grandfather of the mentioned Qasim b. Muhammad. 29 Al-Busiri was affiliated with the Shadhiliyya. 30 A similar, yet more cautious statement appears earlier in the same work, stating that he is perhaps the greatest Muslim jurist, and still shines like a sun in the sky of Islamic jurisprudence (2005c: 348). 31 The trend towards an equal treatment of the schools of law by the ruling elites in the Arab world is already evident in the cautiously accommodating politics towards all madhahib by the Ayyubids and Zangids, even though being Shafi i in the former and Hanafi in the latter case was still most advantageous (Talmon-Heller 2005), and in the 1233 foundation of the first multi-madhhab madrasa in Baghdad (Ephrat 2005: 87). The cause was then championed by the Mamluk sultan Baybars (r ), who appointed a grand qadi (judge) for all the schools of law at the expense of the formerly exclusive officeholder, the Shafi ite grand qadi, which still incurred the wrath of the great scholar al-suyuti (d. 1505) two centuries later (Geoffroy 1997: 914). 32 That the Ottoman state did not provide for training of legal scholars of any other school of law, is best exemplified by the different curricula of Ottoman schools preserved from the 16th to early 19th centuries. For these see İzgi 1997: ; Ahmad & Filipovic 2004: (regarding law , ); Demir 2005: On the molding of official Ottoman Hanafism and its relationship with the other madhahib after the conquest of Arab lands under Selim I. see Peters 2005.

47 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition Regarding the Ottoman empire see the sources mentioned in the foregoing note, for the Indian case see Sikand 2005: Another directly mentioned Hanafite work on fiqh is the commentary of al-tahtawi (2005b: 185), meaning in fact the latter s supercommentary (Hashiya) on al-haskafi s Durr al- Mukhtar (The Chosen Pearls). 35 The Jariri school is listed by Ibn al-nadim in his Fihrist (written in the late 980s), but appears to have vanished less than a century later, as it is absent from the work Tabaqat al-fuqaha (Classes of Legal Scholars) of Abu Ishaq al-shirazi (d. 1083) (Stewart 2005: 373). 36 On the formation and spread of the schools of law see Melchert 1997; Tsafrir 2004; Halm Although, al-taftazani also wrote on Shafi ite fiqh, and was thus at times mislabeled as such, he indeed adhered to the Hanafite school. See Madelung 2000: 89. The only reference concerning fiqh dealing with a scholar other than the four Imams or Hanafites is an implicit allusion to the Shafi ite Muhyi l-din al-nawawi (d. 1277). Thus, the Minhaj of the Shafi ites (2005b: 185) certainly refers to the Minhaj al-talibin (The Open Way of the Seekers) of the latter. 38 Being the collections of al-bukhari (d. 870), Muslim (d. 874), Abu Dawud (d. 883), al-tirmidhi (d. 892), Ibn Maja (d. 886) and al-nasa i (d. 915). Musnad is a technical term originally denoting collections arranged according to the names of the final transmitter of a hadith and not according to its subject. For the classification and denomination of the different types of traditional hadith collections see Saeed 2006: 36. If a certain hadith is listed as being found in more than one collection (which is more often than not the case) it was counted for each. However, no double counts were made for hadiths appearing in one collection more than once under different topics/chapters. 39 Sunan collections are devoted to legal hadith and arranged according to the standard legal chapters. 40 Historically, the Hanafi school long proved itself particularly reluctant to accord canonicity to the Sahihayn. See Brown 2007a: The mihna persisted and even intensified under al-wathiq (r ), but was no longer actively concerned with Ibn Hanbal. See further El-Hibri 1999: Ottoman curricula featured both his commentary on al-bukhari s Sahih, entitled Fath al-bari (The Grant of the Creator) (Ahmed & Filipovic 2004: 200), and more frequently his Nuzhat al-nazar fi tawdih Nukhbat al-fikar as a standard work of usul al-hadith (sources of hadith) (İzgi 1997: 169, 173; Demir 2005: 72). Both works are not used as sources by Gülen, who instead endorses three other books by the author. 43 A critical re-evaluation of certain traditions of the Musnad responding to an earlier effort by Ibn al-jawzi. 44 Famous for his commentary of Malik s Muwatta, entitled al-tamhid li-ma fi al-muwatta min al-ma ani wa l-asanid (Facilitation of what is found in the Muwatta concerning contents and chains of transmission). 45 Al- Iraqi also appears in another enumeration of hadith capacities, yet erroneously called Sayf al-din (2005c: 303). His Alfiyya Ibn al-salah, was one of two major works studied in Ottoman schools in the area of usul al-hadith (İzgi 1997: 166, 169, 173; Demir 2005: 72). 46 This concerns statements of early Muslims, which were recorded as such by the earliest sources of hadith predating the canonical collections, such as Malik s Muwatta (and were also relied on even by figures such as Ibn Hanbal in the absence of prophetic hadiths), which are suddenly appearing at later times as prophetic statements in a presumed attempt to bolster their (legal) authority. This state of affairs was not only discussed by modern Western scholarship (Goldziher 2004: II, 1-274; Schacht 1975) but also critically confronted by Muslim scholars contemporaneous with these developments (late 9th and 10th century). Their position, however, came to be marginalized by the Sunnite mainstream. See Brown 2007b. 47 Similarly, Gülen himself does not refrain from citing hadiths with defective chains of transmission, yet informs the reader of such deficiencies while stressing the relevance of their content for

48 48 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 his argument (2005b: 159). 48 The Hikam of Taj al-din b. Ata Allah (d. 1309). 49 Intriguingly, Gülen provides the reader with an example of the long painstaking process of reevaluation of collections of traditions, which runs from Ibn al-jawzi s and later Ibn Hajar s scrutinizing of traditions deemed inauthentic in Ibn Hanbal s Musnad and ends with another review of the same material by the significantly less critical Jalal al-din al-suyuti (see n. 43) and the latter s conclusion, that in fact all of these were authentic. This scheme implicitly leaves the last word on hadith criticism with al-suyuti (d. 1505), whom the critical Moroccan hadith scholar and Sufi Ahmad b. al-siddiq al-ghumari (d. 1960) assesses harshly as having absolutely no grasp of this discipline (Brown 2007: 36). 50 His al-durr al-manthur fi l-tafsir bi l-ma thur (The Dispersed Pearls in Tradition-based Exegesis) as well as his short Tafsir al-jalalayn (Tafsir of the two Jalals a continuation of a work begun by his teacher Jalal al-din al-mahalli [d. 1459]) were studied in Ottoman schools, the former at least after Süleyman s reform (Ahmed & Filipovic 2004: 198), the latter in the 18th century (İzgi 1997: 177). 51 Al-Tabari is also specifically referred to concerning his heavy reliance on the companion and narrator Ibn Abbas (d. 687) in his commentary (2005c: 383). 52 He will be discussed below in the section on Turkish scholars. 53 Explicitly introduced as renowned historian is only Ibn al-athir (d. 1233) (2005c: 364), whose biographical work on the sahaba, Usd al-ghaba (Lions of the Forest), is also mentioned (2005c: 346). 54 Closely followed by Ibn Sa d s (d. 845) biographical dictionary of the first generations of Muslims, al-tabaqat al-kubra (The Great Classes). 55 For a chronology and brief description of most of his works see Shihadeh 2006: What could be taken as another appearance of Fakhr al-din in Gülen s works, appears to be rather a reference to the Kubrawiyya Sufi Najm al-din Daya Razi (d. 1256), as he is mentioned with a number of other Sufis (2005d: 25). The latter is however also connected to the field of Qur anic commentary, as he continued the tafsir of his master Najm al-din Kubra (d. 1220) (Schimmel 1985: ). 57 It was also included in sultan Süleyman s curriculum, where it constituted its only legallyoriented work of Qur anic exegesis (Ahmed & Filipovic 2004: 198, 211). 58 A recent critical re-evaluation of the Kassaf has shown, that it is much less staunchly Mu tazilite and more traditional in character than has been claimed by both medieval Islamic and present-day Western scholarship (see Lane 2006). 59 Gülen further remarked in an interview, that in the 1970s he also read works of the Indian Abu l-a la Mawdudi (d. 1978) (Agai 2004: 143), besides Qutb the most notorious 20th century voice of Islamism coming from outside the ranks of the ulama, whose exegetical work Tafhim al- Qur an (Understanding the Qur an) has a modern approach comparable to that of Qutb. He also had his own educational agenda, which was however markedly different from Gülen s. Mawdudi called for mimicry of Western education in terms of sources of knowledge, educational techniques and scientific facts, yet combined with abstaining from borrowing Western values and instead Islamizing the sciences (see Ahmad 2008; Sikand 2005: 196ff.). On Mawdudi in brief see Saeed 2004: It has to be noted that, even though both Qutb and Mawdudi are unquestionably important figures informing radical Islamic discourse, their thought and influence cannot be reduced to aspects and interpretations drawn on by radical thinkers, as their works are more widely read than is often assumed and are indeed notable works of 20th century tafsir. Moreover, as will be shown below, Gülen does not hesitate to voice explicit criticism about specific aspects of the thought of scholars otherwise highly regarded by him. Such is even the case with Ibn Kathir, of whom he uses four different works as sources. 60 After the foundational phase of the Hanafi school lasting into the 9th century, the following century witnessed the establishment of three distinct intra-madhhab academic networks (mashayikh) based in Iraq, Balkh (present-day Afghanistan) and Bukhara (Uzbekistan), of which the

49 Fethullah Gülen and Islamic Literary Tradition 49 latter became lastingly most influential during the 11th/12th centuries. See Kaya 2005: Some of the Bukhara network s major figures, such as Abu l-mu in al-nasafi (d. 1114), were similarly prominent scholars of Maturidi kalam. See Rudolph Ottoman and Mughal preference for the Maturidiyya is not reflected in their respective curricula, in which just as many Ash arite standard works are included. Yet, it was indeed mostly Ottoman and Mughal scholars which became the guardians of Maturidi heritage, a process in which reverence for the scholars of Central Asian ancestral lands, which were also home to most of the Maturidiyya s original writers, seems to have played a decisive role. See Bruckmayr Al-Taftazani, albeit with al-maqasid fi Ilm al-kalam also producing an original work on kalam, is most famous for his commentary on the Maturidi creed of Najm al-din al-nasafi, al-dawwani for commenting on the Ash ari creed of Adud al-din al-iji (d. 1355), and al-jurjani for his commentaries on kalam works by Nasir al-din al-tusi (d. 1274) and al-iji. Jurjani and Taftazani, who is also quoted by Gülen regarding the question of free will (2005b: 157) as well as referred to elsewhere with other notable figures of various branches of Islamic scholarship (1996: 28-29), were undoubtedly the two major figures of Ottoman schooling (excluding its highest grades), as a variety of their works on rhetoric, logic, kalam, and law were included in the system. See İzgi 1997: ; Demir 2005: The two were and still are similarly prominent in Mughal and many contemporary Indian syllabi. See Malik 1997: The first Ottoman historical works dealing with India still based themselves largely on al- Biruni. See İzgi 1997: Ulugh Beg was the son of the Timurid sultan Shahrukh (d. 1447). On the Timurids of Herat, patrons of important scholars in Gülen s discourse such as al-taftazani, al-jurjani, al-jami and al-nawa i see Manz Ibn Miskawayh, although alluded to with regard to a philosophical question (2004a: 203), was likewise a renowned historian, and is credited with producing the most important universal history in the early period after al-tabari (Daftary 2004: 149). 66 Related to this notion and that of the golden generation (turk. Altın Nesil), which are both to be brought about through Gülen s and the Movement s efforts as well as through those of likelyminded individuals (Agai 2004: ), is also a chapter entitled The Happy Future, which intriguingly starts with a quotation from Akif (1996: 22). 67 It is noteworthy, that Shiite figures, apart from the imam Ja far al-sadiq (an important character in Sufi silsilas) and Zayd b. Ali (mentioned among early hadith collectors [2005c: 314]), are hardly represented in Gülen s works. The exceptions being these two historians, the aforementioned theologian-philosopher al-dawwani, and most notably al-shahrastani (d. 1153), from whom he quotes an alleged saying of Zarathustra (2005a: 156), certainly out of his famous heresiography Kitab al-milal wa l-nihal (The Book of Schools and Sects). Shahrastani was, despite his renown as Ash ari theologian, in fact an Isma ili Shiite (Daftary 2004: ; Tusi 1999: 3; Badakhchani 1999: n. 4). Additionally, Gülen s unfounded charge, that the Orientalist Goldziher based his research about hadith not on works of hadith proper, but solely on books such as Kitab al-hayawan (The Book of Animals, written by al-jahiz) and al-aghani (The Songs), contains an implicit reference to a Zaydi Shiite scholar, as Abu l-faraj al-isfahani (d. 967), the (unmentioned) author of the latter work, was of that persuasion (Cooperson 2000: 87). 68 On the Zahiris see Goldziher 1971, on Wahhabism and its eponym Muhammad b. Abd al- Wahhab see Delong-Bas The work in question is the Sufi tafsir of Kamal al-din al-kashshani (d. 1329), intriguingly an adherent of the Ibn Arabi strand of Sufism, and was commissioned for study under Süleyman (Ahmed & Filipovic 2004: 199, 211). 70 Just as parts of the Ottoman Mujaddidiya had strongly supported the reforms of Selim III. (r ), the Khalidiyya did the same with regard to Mahmud II. (d. 1839). See Weismann 2007: 87ff. and Hourani 1972.

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57 57 Hizmet Studies Review Vol. 1, No. 1, Autumn 2014, Islamic Puritanism as a Source of Economic Development: Contributions of the Gülen Movement SELCUK UYGUR, Selcuk.Uygur@brunel.ac.uk Brunel University London ABSTRACT Over the last two decades, Turkey has been going through significant transformations which might be studied under diverse rubrics. The focus in this paper is on the emergence of a new bourgeoisie which is overwhelmingly religious; its aim is to describe the motives behind the attitudes of religious business people and to discuss the contribution of the Gülen movement. The paper begins by clarifying relevant concepts that appear vague such as Islamic Puritanism and the Islamic work ethic following the particular interpretation by Wilhelm Hennis of Max Weber s familiar Protestant ethic thesis. Rather than looking for mechanical causal relationships, this paper focuses on life goals and ways of living, and discusses the Gülen movement s contribution to the way of living related to economic activities (the movement is considered as a new interpretation of Turksih Islam and strongly influenced by Sufism). Next, the institutional and moral sources enabling an enterprise culture are discussed. This paper considers the transformation in Turkey to be securely founded on the moral sources and suggests that Turkish Islam might be considered as a source enabling a particular type of entrepreneur, and that this type is helpful to Turkey s modernisation project as it anticipates membership of the European Union. Introduction Lately, it has been discussed that religious people in Turkey are in transition. This paper will stress the economic aspect of this transition, focusing particularly on the emergence of religious businessmen, and the contribution of the Gülen movement to this transition. We argue that Turkey s efforts towards economic development can benefit from this transition. In order to support this argument, we intend to explain the phenomenon of religious businessmen using a Weberian approach. In this respect, first, the study evaluates the emergence of religious businessmen in Turkey. Then, Max Weber s Protestant ethic thesis and its different interpretations will be assessed. We shall explain the phenomenon using the distinctive Weberian reading which was made by Wilhelm Hennis. Hennis s interpretation, in terms of the relationship between religion and economic activity,

58 58 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 focuses on how a religion shapes individuals way of living rather than suggesting any causal relationship between religion and economic development. This particular interpretation seems a useful instrument to explain the economic impacts of the Gülen movement. At the same time, this study seeks to clarify probable misunderstandings and concept confusion regarding the use of such terms as Muslim Calvinists and Islamic Puritanism in the relevant literature. The Emergence of Religious Businessmen in Turkey Turkey has been facing a significant transformation in its social structure for two decades. This transformation process might be classified under several subheadings; however, we shall focus in this paper on the emergence of religious businessmen and their economic activities and dynamics. Newly emerging religious business people and SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) owners, and their new entrepreneurship culture, seem quite unique, especially in the Muslim world. This new entrepreneurship culture has been considered as a new attitude concerning worldly activities, particularly in business circles. It is considered as new because religious people were for a long time not interested in conducting economic activities in a rational and modern way. Consequently, the development has been the subject of heated debate in Turkish intellectual and economic circles. The controversy has been particularly intensified after a recent report entitled Islamic Calvinists by the European Stability Initiative (ESI). That report focused on the central Anatolian city of Kayseri, a city known for its conservative and religious leanings. Basically, the report attributed the business boom in Kayseri to the protestant work ethic values of its people (esiweb. org). In turn, terms such as Muslim Calvinists and Islamic puritans have been frequently used by some journalists and academics to describe the business elite of the region. This transformation process has been regarded as a struggle to create an indigenous Muslim ethic (Ozdemir, 2006). This opinion also claims that it is an unique and yet highly compatible step for Turkey s ongoing modernisation project. In this sense, this new development has been argued to be creating a new Turkish bourgeoisie and an enterprise culture in Turkey. Obviously, in the context of this controversy, the concept of enterprise culture gains special importance. According to Keat (1991) and Carr (2000), creating an enterprise culture has two dimensions. First, it requires institutional and structural changes, such as changes on regulations, privatization, encouraging the private business sector and reducing taxes. But these changes are not sufficient in themselves. Creating an enterprise culture also requires moral foundations. As has been seen in the example of the UK, Margaret Thatcher s endeavours covered both institutional changes on the one hand and the moral foundations of the country s enterprise culture on the other. Thatcher frequently stressed the importance of the UK s historical moral values, principally the Protestant ethic, to facilitate creating an enterprise culture. In fact, what is at issue here may be

59 Islamic Puritanism as a Source of Economic Development 59 claimed to be a long-term struggle to modify people s way of thinking and to transform their souls (Roberts, 1992: 15). In short, religion may be argued to be a source of creating a particular type of individual in terms of economic activities and enterprise culture. In this paper, we shall focus on the Gülen movement in Turkey which emerged with flexible ideas to stimulate a patriotic, global and free market orientation with an emphasis on the spiritual and intellectual consciousness of individuals (Yavuz, 2003: 19, 29). Fethullah Gülen is a well-known Islamic scholar in Turkey. His ideas have inspired many people in Turkey to establish educational institutions which integrate modern science, ethics and spirituality. Berberoglu (2000), a Turkish journalist, described him as an opinion leader, and Aras (1998) saw him as «a most likely candidate for religious leader of the new Turkey». As well as educational institutions, he gives special importance to inter-faith dialogue activities in Turkey and all over the world by stressing the significance of the cultural and legal plurality of societies (Unal & Williams 2000). It is claimed that «Gülen s discourse has had and will have major influences on the future shape of Turkey and the region» (Yilmaz 2005: 394). Probably the biggest difference between other Islamic movements and the Gülen movement is that his movement is a civil one, rather than political. As previously mentioned, his main concern could be summarised as ethics and individuals. Considering the institutions and activities of his followers, such as hundreds of schools along with seven universities all over the world, media institutions, inter-faith dialogue centres and college preparation courses, it can be claimed that it is a successful civil initiative. Therefore, this successful movement might be a proper example of how a civil society acquires its autonomy from the state. In other words, the movement plays a crucial role in the empowerment of civil society, which is very important for Turkey s democratization process. As is well-known, the population of Turkey is overwhelmingly Muslim and the state is strictly secular. From the very beginning of the Turkish republic, the state chose strict secularism as the lynchpin of its project of modernization. It can be said that it has been successful to some extent. However, the recent emergence of religious businessmen as a phenomenon has been argued by some to be a possible threat to the secular structure, which has dubbed the phenomenon an attempt by the green or Islamic capital to form an Islamic state, oblivious to the apparent contradiction represented by the combination of capitalist greed and ideological orientation. This contradiction appears to be resolved by an understanding that the Gülen movement uses democracy not out of a normative commitment, but rather instrumentally, as a useful tool for seeking power to establish an Islamic state (Baskan 2005). Yavuz (2003), among others, considered this sort of reading as superficial. In contrast, some studies have shown that the religious people in question are well adapted to the rational way of doing business and show strong Protestant work ethic values (Arslan 2001; Ozdemir 2006). However, in this paper, we are not interested in the work ethic values of the

60 60 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 people in question; whether they are hard workers, or whether they are honest or not. Rather we intend to focus on the dynamics of the emergence of this phenomenon. According to the Weberian reading of society, every social order requires a particular type of individual. In the Turkish context, we propose that Anatolian Islam, in particular the Gülen movement as the typical representation of it, plays a vital role in creating a specific type of individual. However, the role of this new approach is not only in creating followers of a particular movement, but it also shapes a new interpretation of Islam which is more suitable for secular activities, and a more rational way of living. In a sense, it might be considered as combining secular and religious values together. For example, educational institutions inspired by Gülen s ideas are not traditional medrese schools, rather they are secular institutions that meet the needs of the modern world. According to Voll (2003: 243), «it is a new synthesis of elements of the older modern secularism and religion». Therefore, it can be claimed that there is a new generation of religious people growing up within this particular interpretation of the religion. We argue that this new approach, in other words the transition, can also affect the understanding of business and economy. In order to understand the religious businessmen phenomenon in Turkey, we shall draw on a particular interpretation of Weber s Protestant work ethic thesis. The phenomenon will then be evaluated within that particular interpretation. Max Weber s Protestant Ethic Thesis Max Weber s Protestant work ethic thesis has been a widely studied subject for many years by many researchers from a variety of fields. So naturally we can encounter many different interpretations of Weber s study from different perspectives. Most researchers agree about his claim that ascetic Protestantism played a vital role in the formation of modern, rational capitalism (Weber 2001). However, this claim might seem vague in itself, and may need to be elucidated by the question how? For this reason, we face many different interpretations explaining how the Protestant ethic shaped modern capitalism, and under what circumstances it happened. In this respect, it is extremely important that we use a proper interpretation to explore similar developments or changes in different cultural settings, such as the activities of religious businessmen in Turkey. It is a gripping point that Weber stresses: that all of the economically developed countries have already gone through a series of requisite reformations in relation to the Roman Catholic Church (Weber 2001). When we examine ascetic Protestantism, we can easily see that ascetic Protestantism shaped a frugal life style, strongly encouraging people to hard work. Studying Weber s Protestant work ethic (PWE), we encounter two main aspects: one is psychological and the other is sociological. In management and psychology literature, there are plenty of studies regarding the psychological aspect of PWE. This body of literature is mainly about work-related values, attitudes, job satisfaction and so on. In this

61 Islamic Puritanism as a Source of Economic Development 61 respect, the PWE seems to have been converted into a personality dimension separated from its socio-political and religious background which Weber proposed (Niles 1999). In other words, we can assume that the PWE has become secularized, and it can be considered as a work ethic on its own without any religious aspects. Furnham (1990: 32) explained this situation as follows: «so it could be claimed that the PWE is not exclusively Protestant, about only work, nor exclusively concerned with ethics. It may therefore be more accurate to talk about work values and beliefs rather than the PWE itself». Therefore, in a sense, it is understandable that some commentators use such terms as Muslim Calvinists and Islamic Puritans when studying different cultural settings, such as Muslims, in the academic literature. But, of course, this does not suggest any correlation between different religions or social settings. For instance, in an insightful study, Mahmut Arslan (2001) compared the work-ethic values of Protestant British, Catholic Irish and Muslim Turkish managers in terms of PWE. He found that Muslim Turkish managers (specifically selected from the Nur movement), showed higher PWE values than their Protestant and Catholic counterparts (Arslan, 2001). The author explained his findings by the minimisation of Ottoman despotism through democratic reforms and the transformation of traditional Sufism into a kind of entrepreneurial ideology (Arslan 2001: 335). In another important study using a qualitative and hermeneutic perspective, Ozdemir (2006) focused on the members of a religious businessmen association, MUSIAD (Association of Independent Businessmen). She interpreted this phenomenon as an attempt to create an indigenous Muslim ethic compatible with the needs of the modern world (Ozdemir 2006). It is a very commonly-held opinion that the Gülen movement is the largest faith-based movement in Turkey, with a strong influence on the mainstream religious way of living. This paper proposes that Gülen s new interpretation of Islam promotes a particular type of individual, and in so doing, it might assist Turkey s efforts towards economic development. We presume that PWE values such as thrift, hard work and honesty are also important values for secular businessmen in Turkey. It is therefore hard to claim that religion, in particular an Islamic work ethic (if there is such a thing), is the only reason for the emergence of successful religious businessmen. However, doing business in a rational and modern way is a new attitude for religious people in Turkey, and this is what we really need to explain. In this regard, we intend to focus on Hennis s interpretation of Weber on the influence of religion on individuals ways of living in terms of economic activities. Understanding Weber s Main Concern (Hennis s Interpretation) As a starting point, we should be able to distinguish between personal change, social change and social development, since Weber s study concerns the changes made in the social order by individuals particular ways of living. In this respect,

62 62 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 personal changes should be considered within the social context. Therefore, we intend to take individuals within the social order, because every social order requires a particular type of individual (Hennis 2000). However, there is a nuance between social change and social development. According to Schluchter (1981), social changes occur when one social order is transformed into another, but still manages with the same basic social configuration, such as from patrimonialism to sultanism. On the other hand, social development occurs when the basic configuration changes, for instance, the transition from tradition to modernity (Schluchter 1981). The Gülen movement should be considered within the concept of social development because it seems that the main concern of the movement is not to achieve changes in a social order, but in relation to individuals. When examining PWE, Weber s historical problem should be underlined by distinguishing between Western capitalism and Western rationalism. From the very beginning, Weber took capitalism in an historical perspective. He coped with the origin and organizational structure of legal institutions which shaped the development of a specific form of capitalism, which is the modern productionoriented capitalism (Schluchter 1981). According to Weber, the main characteristic of the capitalism of the modern business firm is driven by the separation of business and personal assets and by the balance between risk and responsibility (Weber 2001). These peculiarities of modern capitalist firms differ from the traditional medieval trading companies. He noted that only this differentiation between types of asset made possible the organizational separation of household and enterprise (Weber 2001). On the other hand, according to Weber, rationalism is not limited to the West, like capitalism. He claimed that rationalisation has existed in all civilizations in very different forms with very divergent viewpoints. Therefore, Weber took Western rationalism in its specific manifestation and sought to explore its distinctiveness. In this respect, he tried to explain the historical origin of Western rationalism by considering «who rationalizes which spheres of life in what directions and which historical kinds of social order result therefrom» (Weber 2001). In other words, Weber tried to explain the emergence of a new bourgeois class based on Western rationality by specifically emphasising individuals and their particular ways of living. Obviously, Western capitalism and rationalism are key terms. However, we should go further to understand the spirit of modern capitalism and how it is related to religion, in particular the Calvinist Puritan sect of Protestantism in seventeenth-century Europe. Probably the first things we could notice when we look at Western capitalism as it historically unfolded are legal and commercial transformations such as new types of organizational structure, the development of double-entry bookkeeping or newly emerging mechanical techniques. However, Weber did not accept that capitalism is the only reason for these transformations. He tried to show how the way of life shaped by Calvinist Puritans «based on rational, legal acquisition through individual endeavour and self-discipline revolutionized the European economy» (Lewis, forthcoming). According to Giddens

63 Islamic Puritanism as a Source of Economic Development 63 (2001: xviii), the «emergence of modern capitalism was an outcome of historically specific conjunction of events». Clearly, we could say that Weber s intention is to explain the historical genesis of «the manner of leading one s life» (Hennis 2000), rather than to develop a causal relationship between religion and modern capitalism. Weber explained his real concern as follows: In order that a manner of life so well adapted to the peculiarities of capitalism could be selected at all, i.e. should come to dominate others, it had to originate somewhere, and not in isolated individuals alone, but as a way of life common to whole groups of men. This origin is what really needs explanation. (Weber 2001:20) Hennis (2000) appears to offer a distinct interpretation of Weber in this regard. According to this reading, every social order requires a particular kind of individual. Consequently, Hennis claims that Weber s investigation centres around not a spirit at all, but what he called a habitus. Habitus is a complex concept «referring primarily to the non-discursive aspects of culture that bind individuals to larger groups» (wikipedia.org, 2007), particularly a manner of leading one s life (lebensführung) within the social orders of life, such as family, community and economic activities in life. Weber considered all these as a sphere, which means a particular aspect of life or activity. Hennis explained the ideas behind this term as follows: The sphere which Weber stressed was that of the vocation of acquisitive activity (Erwerbsleben). The puritans had brought the great internal tensions between vocation, life and ethics into a characteristic equilibrium ; for them there was no on the one hand and on the other, theory and practice, they rather conducted lives totally, harnessed, consciously, methodically, at one with their God and themselves presupposing the corresponding Lebensführung. (Hennis, 2000: 17). Similarly, creating an Islamic ethic as a manner of conducting an individual s life is the main objective of Gülen and his close circle. According to Özdalga (2003: 61), his goal is to promote an ethic that is very close to what Max Weber defined as worldly asceticism, «an activist pietism with a tendency toward the rationalisation of social relationships». It is also possible to see noticeable similarities between the activities of the Gülen movement and those of Protestant missionaries. Özdalga (2003: 66) summarized these parallels in the following manner: belief in the individual study of holy scriptures; the urge to live a life of piety and self-sacrifice; the enthusiasm for knowledge in general and

64 64 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 knowledge of the natural sciences in particular; the urge to carry this knowledge to others through various educational projects; an enterprising spirit; the urge to do good deeds (activism); and a strong impulse to break open the borders of one s own national milieu to reach out to other countries and places around the globe. Weber also stated in an earlier debate with Fisher that his «investigations concern only the analysis of the development of an ethical life-style adequate to emergent modern capitalism» (cited in Hennis 2000: 14). It could therefore be concluded that his central interest is the development of modern rational capitalism and how it was most deeply influenced by a particular combination of circumstances (Hennis, 2000). As is clearly seen, there is no direct link between modern rational capitalism and Protestantism. The primary issue here is how a particular kind of belief system determines the lives of individuals who are born into a particular society. With this point in mind, we can talk about the assistance of Protestant asceticism in building the tremendous cosmos of the modern economic order (Hennis 2000). Unlike many other commentators, Hennis (2000) suggested that we must see Weber s starting point first, which is the economic ethics of world religions. In his short life time, Weber tried to look at the world s different religions and their influences on economic activities. He examined, for instance, the religion of China and its effects on economic activities as well as his studies on the Protestant ethic in Western Europe. For him, therefore, Protestantism, especially its Calvinist branch, was just a sample of his argument, rather than his central question or focal point. As a common opinion, Weber s fundamental problem was the question of what is the meaning of rationality? However, according to Hennis (2000), it was just an introduction and does not cover everything; and he has argued that Weber s thesis has been misunderstood for a long time as a causal hypothesis on the origin of capitalism. To see the process of rationalization as Weber s fundamental theme is certainly not incorrect, he suggests; but he also adds that it is misleading to read everything in its terms and see it everywhere (Hennis 2000: 7). Today s prevailing opinion is to focus on the term which Weber frequently used: the «selective affinity» between the Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism. Turner (1974) also argued that Weber was not saying that Calvinism created modern capitalism in his study of the Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism. By contrast, he claimed that one can find many evidences supporting the idea that Calvinism did not create capitalism (Turner 1974). In this respect, some scholars think that it is also possible to interpret Weber s study in an economically determinist way. Aktay (2004) proposed that it is all about the coexistence of the Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism. This simultaneous meeting of the Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism helped the development of modern capitalism. For this reason, Weber might have used the term selective affinity to

65 Islamic Puritanism as a Source of Economic Development 65 explain the relationship between the Protestant ethic and capitalism. Weber offered a clarification by stating: I therefore take no responsibility for the misconceptions upon which in my opinion the foregoing criticism is based. I will, however, try again on occasion of a separate edition of the essays, which for technical publishing reasons cannot be long postponed, to remove each expression which could be misunderstood in terms of derivation (falsely attributed to me) of economic forms from religious motives, and to make it if possible even clearer that it is the spirit of a methodical Lebensführung which should be derived from asceticism in its Protestant transformation and which then stands in a cultural-historical relation of adequacy-equivalence which is in my opinion very important. I am grateful to my critic for this stimulus. (PE II, p.31, cited in Hennis 2000) In a sense, Weber s study might seem similar to Sombart s important book The Genesis of the Capitalism, which first appeared in In that study, Sombart explained material developments as the result of an ethos, for instance, the role of Judaism in the development of capitalism (Sombart 2001). Hennis has argued that «if Weber wished to present something new then it could not be in terms of the significance of Protestantism for the rise of capitalism» (Hennis 2000: 14). Considering the fact that Sombart had already characterised that Protestantism, especially in its Calvinist version, had played an important role in the development of capitalism, Weber s problem must be something quite different (Hennis, 2000). As Weber stated, his whole investigation involved, not a spirit at all, but rather a habitus, in other words, the unfolding of a particular kind of lebensführung within the orders of the world: family, economic life, social community (Weber 2001). Therefore, his only concern is the analysis of the development of an ethical life-style adequate to an emergent modern capitalism, according to Hennis (2000). In other words, he is interested in the emergence and development of a lebensführung which made modern capitalism achievable, stressing the relationship between a specific type of individual and a specific form of social order (Lewis, forthcoming). It can therefore be said that the Calvinist sect was only a sample of Weber s study. In Weber s reading, it provides the moral power and drive of the capitalist entrepreneur, according to Giddens (2001). In the Turkish context, we can claim, at the most, that the Gülen movement supplies a similar moral energy and drive for Turkish entrepreneurs. The perception of religious people towards secular, in particular economic, activities seems to have been transformed into a more rational and modern way by the new interpretation of Islam in Turkey. Arguably, it can be said that this new approach has similar effects on Anatolian society to the effects of the Protestant reformation over Western Europe. It is only because of this theoretical similarity that such terms as Calvinism and Puritanism are sometimes used to describe similar

66 66 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 developments in different cultural settings. In a sense, some aspects of the Gülen movement, with its focus on hard work and a disciplined life motivated by traditional and religious values, make it comparable to Protestantism. We therefore suggest that in the relevant literature, such concepts as Muslim Calvinists and Islamic Puritans should be read in this perspective. Therefore, interpreting these developments as a Protestantisation of Islam would not correctly be reflecting the transition in question, we propose. A New Form of Sufism and Economic Activity The religious sphere, although traditionalist and conservative, has the potential for change and innovation through interaction between its doctrinal dimensions and social reality (Worsley 1969; Ozdemir 2006). The Protestant reformation is a good example of a religion s transformative potential. As is well-known, the Protestant reformation played an important role in creating a particular way of living in Europe. It was that particular way which had an important effect on the emergence of modern rational capitalism. According to Ozdemir (2006), the growing number of religious businessmen in Turkey is a sign of the rebirth of an indigenous Muslim ethic which was suppressed for a long time after the establishment of the Turkish republic. It can also be described as a struggle to create an internal code of ethics for all aspects of local life. As in Calvinism, it is not only related to religious individuals, it also affects many different aspects of the public sphere. In this context, the emergence of religious businessmen could be considered as carriers of a new indigenous ethic. Gole (1997) regarded these businessmen as a newly emerging secondary elite group. Whether they are named a secondary elites or a new bourgeoisie, we propose that they could play a vital role in Turkey s development process. In a sense, some studies (Rodinson 1973; Arslan 2001; Turkdogan 2005) seem to prove that Islamic values and capitalism are not incompatible. However, it is a paradoxical situation as well. It does not explain the underdevelopment of Muslim countries, considering the fact that these values have existed for fourteen centuries. Kuran (1997) suggested that the reason for the underdevelopment of Muslim countries should be sought internally rather than externally. By saying internal reasons, we understand the different perceptions and interpretations of the religion. For a long time, in Turkey among the other Muslim countries, Western civilisation and rational values were seen as non-compatible with Muslim societies. Gülen and his close circle go a step further accepting Western civilisation as a suitable foundation for material life while considering Islamic civilisation suitable for spiritual life (Aras 2000: 39). It is for this reason that this paper focuses on a particular interpretation of Islam in Turkey. Presumably, local and traditional values should shape the understanding of religion. As is well-known, Sufism has had a crucial impact on Turkish understanding of Islam. The spiritual teaching of Sufism can be expressed as «to help to

67 Islamic Puritanism as a Source of Economic Development 67 refine the individual s consciousness so that it may reach the Radiances of Truth, from which one is cut off by ordinary activities of the world» (Shah 1990: 1). The most common motives of Sufism could be summarized by the following terms: tevekkul ( reliance ; putting oneself in God s hands), dunya ( worldliness ) and zikr ( remembrance of God ). However, the perception and the interpretation of these terms have changed over time. Regarding the relationship between Sufi ideas and economic activities, Sabri Ulgener is the first scholar who comes to mind. He is also known as the Turkish Weber. According to Ulgener (1991), the concepts mentioned had separated from their original meaning of otherworldliness. In the early years of the Turkish republic, many Sufi institutions had been closed by Atatürk on the ground that those institutions (tekkes: Dervish schools) were encouraging laziness and indolence and were open to abuse. During the same period, Turkey chose a strict form of secularism for its development and modernization project. Ulgener found understandable the reasons for closing the tekkes down. The misinterpretation of Sufism which defined the late Ottoman tekkes, according to him, was one of the reasons for the economic disintegration of the Ottoman Empire (Ulgener 1991). However, Ulgener (2006) also stressed the necessity of investigating the main concern of Sufi ideas. He claimed that Sufism is not necessarily against worldly activities. The concept of dunya is a key notion in Sufi literature. In many Sufi sayings and poems we can see that a negative meaning is applied to the concept, in terms of leaving everything in the world. In general meaning, Sufis define the concept of world as everything in the world except the love of God. According to Ulgener, this is what people have misunderstood for a long time. He proposed that the meaning of dunya should be sought within individuals intention, rather than within the material dimensions of the world (Ulgener 2006). As Ulgener explained, Sufis consider dunya as nothing other than forgetting devotion to God. In this respect, Sufis claim that none of the usual suspects, such as women, money or a business career, are dunya. Ulgener made his argument stronger by citing some sayings of the prophet: «The world is something that keeps you busy from remembrance of God» and «Work for this world as if you will never die; and work for the other world as if you will die tomorrow» (2006: 64). It can therefore be said that the crucial thing for Sufism is not worldly activity itself, but the intention of the individual. Engaged in work overall, Ulgener s studies show his optimism regarding a regaining of the power of Sufi ideas in an economic sense. In this regard, it can be said that Gülen has also been reinterpreting Sufi teachings within the contemporary framework. The ideas of Ulgener, who is an historian of economics, show high compatibility with those of Gülen. When explaining such Sufi terms as isolation (tecrid) or asceticism (zuhd), Gülen stresses that these terms do not mean that one should leave worldly activities, and he puts great emphasis on rearing Muslim individuals not isolated from the world (Gülen 2004). Unlike political Islamic movements in Turkey, the priority of the Gülen movement is education towards a reconstruction of the daily lives of people in

68 68 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 Turkey (Piricky 1999). Thus it can be claimed that his tenets influence many aspects of daily life, including economy and business. In an interview, Gülen gave us some evidence regarding how this new interpretation of Islam contributes to a more rational way of living in terms of economic activities: Today, our troubles are ignorance, dissension and poverty. The solution for these problems is organizing rich people and learning how to conduct work. Even today, I definitely wish them [Turkish entrepreneurs] who come to see me, to do something [in a business sense] here. And, I ask them: Have you done a proper market analysis? Do you know about your competitors? (Akman 2004: 52) As can be seen, rather than a direct relationship between religion and economic activities, such as Islamic business principles, his contribution very much values the secular premises of business. In this respect, just as Protestantism shaped a capitalist entrepreneurial mentality within the Christian world, Gülen is thought to play a comparable role within the modern Turkish society (Piricky 1999). Therefore, the phenomenon of religious businessmen in Turkey should be explained within the social context which that particular way of living shapes. However, the emergence of religious businessmen in Turkey should not only be applied to the new interpretation of Islam. After the 1980s, Turkey s economic politics changed radically and shifted from a state-oriented economy to a freemarket liberal economy. It can be said that this transformation in economic politics has encouraged the private business sector and facilitated the emergence of an enterprise culture. Historically, the transition both in economics and religion has occurred at the same time period. Aras (2000: 40) summarized this as follows: In the 1990s, however, policies oriented towards greater liberalisation and a shift to export-oriented industrialisation have led to the emergence of new, dynamic, export-oriented, small and medium-sized business, many based in traditionally conservative Anatolian cities. This segment of society has been mobilized by Gülen s movement. The newly emerging export-oriented economic class is likely to challenge the existing economic structure and pressure the state bureaucracy to end the unequal treatment. It might also be said that the economic activities linked to Gülen s movement as well as the educational activities of Gülen s community have become part of an alternative economy. In almost every Anatolian city, Gülen s followers have established local businessmen s associations. In addition to these local institutions, they have also established two national associations: TUSKON (Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists of Turkey), and ISHAD (Business Life Cooperation Associa-

69 Islamic Puritanism as a Source of Economic Development 69 tion). These associations work as NGOs (non-governmental organizations) and aim to provide a suitable atmosphere for gathering members of the Turkish private business sector together and to stress the importance of cooperation and ethics. They arrange business trips all over the world to seek new opportunities for Turkish entrepreneurs. The businessmen in these associations are also financing the educational institutions of the Gülen Movement, considering it as a social (or, in a sense, a religious) responsibility of their own. In this respect, we can claim that religious businessmen in Turkey have started to work in a more rational way which requires full adaptation to the free market and the capitalist system. Purportedly, we can assume that combining traditional values and modernity might assist Turkey s modernisation project. Talal Asad, in his insightful study entitled Genealogies of Religion, noted that tradition and modernity are not entirely different entities, and he claimed that modernity emerges out of tradition (Asad, 1993). In the Turkish context, the Gülen movement seems a new paradigm for acquiring the level of modern developed countries. According to Yilmaz (2005: 400) the movement is generally deemed to be moderate and it can be considered modern in the sense that it espouses a worldview centred around the self-reflexive and politically participant individual s ability to realise personal goals while adhering to a collective identity, and seeks to shape local networks and institutions in relation to global discourses of democracy, human rights, and the market economy. (Yavuz 1999: 195). Conclusion It is a common opinion that the Muslim world is in transition. As previously mentioned, this paper s focal point is the economic aspects of this transition, in particular the case of religious businessmen in Turkey, and the contribution of the Gülen movement to this transition. In evaluating the emergence of religious businessmen in Turkey, we have tried to use a Weberian approach by distinguishing the different interpretations of Weber. In short, this paper proposes two major points. First, we suggest that the phenomenon at issue should be read in the way that, following Hennis, Weber s central concern is all about the conduct/manner of one s life, as opposed to setting up causal relationships between religion and economic activity. We suggest that Gülen s new interpretation of Islam has crucial impacts on mainstream understanding of Islam in Turkish society. In particular, it seems that religious people in Turkey have modified their views towards business activities into a more rational form. Second, we suggest that the new interpretation of Islam with its flexible ideas and its high compatibility with the modern world might come in handy in Turkey s modernization project that the Turkish state has been trying to achieve from the very beginning through an uncompromising secularism inimical to religious sentiments. Additionally, we propose that this new interpretation of Islam which integrates modernity with tradition might set up an example for

70 70 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 other Muslim countries. NOTES 1 For more information and the full text of the report, see php?lang=en&id=117 2 The Nur (Light) movement is an influential Islamic movement based on the works of Said Nursi ( ) in Turkey and all over the world, from which the Gülen movement sprang. «It differs from other Islamic movements in terms of understanding of Islam and its strategy of transforming society by raising individual consciousness.» ( 2007) 3 According to Yousef (2001: 154) «both the Islamic work ethic (IWE) and the Protestant work ethic (PWE) place considerable emphasis on hard work, commitment and dedication to work, work creativity, avoidance of unethical methods of wealth accumulation, cooperation and competitiveness at the work place. However, unlike the PWE, the IWE places more emphasis on intention than on results. For example, Prophet Mohammed stated actions are recorded according to intention, and man will be rewarded or punished accordingly». 4 The German term lebensführung, which is critical in Weber s theory of social stratification, inspires various ideas among English-speaking sociologists, as Abel and Cockerham (1993) pointed out. According to the authors, lebensführung means life conduct or managing one s life; applied to the individual, it refers to the self-direction of one s behaviour, not life style. 5 This was before Weber published his study The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. 6 See Aras (2000); Ozdalga (2003); Yavuz (2003) and the ESI s report on 7 For further information about Gülen s reading of Sufi terms, see Gülen (2004), Key Concepts in the Practice of Sufism, The Light Inc: NJ. REFERENCES Abel, T. and Cockerham, W. C. (1993). Lifestyle or lebensführung? Critical remarks on the mistranslation of Weber s «Class, Status, Party», The Sociological Quarterly, Vol. 34, No. 3, pp Akman, N. (2004) Gurbette Fethullah Gulen, İstanbul, Zaman Kitap. Aras, B. (1998). Turkish Islam s moderate face, Middle East Quarterly, 5(3) Arslan, M. (2001). The work ethic values of Protestant British, Catholic Irish and Muslim Turkish managers, Journal of Business Ethics, 31: Aras, B. and Caha, O. (2000). Fethullah Gulen and his liberal Turkish Islam movement. Middle East Review of International Affairs Journal, online 4(4) Asad, T. (1993). Genealogies of Religion-Disciplines and Reasons of Power in Christianity and Islam, London, The Johns Hopkins University Press. Baskan, F. (2005). The Fethullah Gulen Community: Contribution or Barrier to the Consolidation of Democracy in Turkey? Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 41, No. 6 (November) pp

71 Islamic Puritanism as a Source of Economic Development 71 Berberoglu, E. (2000). Hurriyet (Turkish daily) 10 August Carr, P. (2000). The Age of Enterprise: The Emergence and Evolution of Entrepreneurial Management, Dublin, Blackhall Publishing. Europe Stability Initiative (2005). Islamic Calvinists: Change and Conservatism in Central Anatolia (Berlin/ Istabul, Furnham, A. (1990). The Protestant Work Ethic: The Psychology of Work-Related Beliefs and Behaviours, London, Routledge. Giddens, A. (2001). Introduction in The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, London, Routledge. Gole, N. (1997). Secularism and islamism in Turkey: The making of elites and counter-elites, Middle East Journal, 51(1) Gülen, F. (2004). Key Concepts in the Practice of Sufism, NJ, The Light Inc. Hennis, W. (2000). Max Weber s Central Question, Newbury, Berks, Threshold Press. Keat, R. (1991). Introduction-Starship Britain or universal enterprise, in Russell Keat & Nicholas Abercrombie (edts), Enterprise Culture, London, Routledge. Kuran, T. (1997). Islam and underdevelopment: An old puzzle revisited, Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics, 153, Niles, F. S. (1999). Toward a cross-cultural understanding of work-related beliefs, Human Relations, 52, 7, pp Ozdemir, S. (2006). MUSIAD: Anadolu Sermayesinin Donusumu ve Turk Modernlesmesinin Derinlesmesi (Musiad: The Transformation of Anatolian Capital and the Deepening of Turkish Modernity), Ankara, Vadi. Ozdalga, E. (2003). Secularizing trends in Fethullah Gulen s movement: Impasse or opportunity for further renewal?, Critique: Critical Middle Eastern Studies, 12 (1) pp Piricky, G. (1999). Some observations on new departures in modernist interpretations of Islam in contemporary Turkey: Fethullah Gulen cemaati, Asian and African Studies, 8 (1) pp Roberts, R. H. (1992). Religion and the Enterprise Culture : The British experience in the Thatcher era ( ), Social Compass, 39 (1) pp Rodinson, M. (1973.) Islam and Capitalism, New York, Pantheon Books. Schluchter, W. (1981). The Rise of Western Rationalism: Weber s Developmental History, London, University of California Press. Shah, I. (1990). Sufi Thought and Action, The Octagon Press: London.

72 72 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 Sombart, W. (2001). The Jews and Modern Capitalism, Ontario, Batoche Books, Kitchener. Turkdogan, O. (2005). Islami Degerler Sistemi ve Max Weber, İstanbul, IQ Yayincilik. Turner, B. S. (1974). Weber and Islam: A Critical Study, London, Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd. Unal, A. and A. Williams (2000). Advocate of Dialogue : Fethullah Gülen, Fountain. Ulgener, F. S. (1991). Iktisadi Cozulmenin Ahlak ve Zihniyet Dunyasi, İstanbul, Der Yayinlari. Ulgener, F. S. (2006). Zihniyet ve Din Islam, Tasavvuf ve Cozulme Devri Iktisat Ahlaki, İstanbul, Der Yayinlari. Yilmaz, I. (2003). Ijtihad and tajdid by conduct: the Gulen movement, in H.Yavuz & J. Esposito (Eds) Turkish Islam and the Secular State, New York, Syracuse University Press, pp Voll, John O. (2003). Transcending modernity in the new islamic discourse, in H.Yavuz & J. Esposito (Eds) Turkish Islam and the Secular State, New York, Syracuse University Press. Weber, M. (2001). The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (Translated by T. Parsons) London, Routledge. Worsley, P. (1969). Religion as a category, in R. Rabortson (edt) Sociology of Religion, London, Penguin. Yavuz, H. (1999). Towards an islamic liberalism? The Nurcu movement and Fethullah Gulen, Middle East Journal, v. 53, 4 Autumn: Yavuz, H. (2003). The Gulen Movement: The Turkish puritans, in M. Hakan Yavuz & John L. Esposito (Eds) Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gulen Movement New York, Syracuse University Press, pp Yousef, D.A. (2001). Islamic work ethic: A moderator between organizational commitment and job satisfaction in a cross-cultural context, Personnel Review, 30(2)

73 A Bucket with a Hole 73 Hizmet Studies Review Vol. 1, No. 1, Autumn 2014, A Bucket with a Hole : Hizmet Women and the Pursuit of Personal and Professional Progress Through Sohbetler (Spiritual Conversations) MARGARET J. RAUSCH, mjrausch1@gmail.com University of Kansas ABSTRACT The view that progress can only be achieved through secularization and that, by contrast, religion spreads ignorance, oppression and stagnation prevails among liberal secularists, including adherents of Kemalism, the approach to secularism and nationalism crafted by the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk ( ). By promoting a new approach to language and culture through public education, centered on replacing the old pious Ottoman lifestyle with a secular Western one, Kemalism ultimately fueled the rise of Islamic revival initiatives. Like other men and women of faith who have increasingly questioned this dichotomy since the 1980s, affiliates of Hizmet, a movement inspired by Fethullah Gülen, whose teachings promote self-perfection, compassionate acceptance of others and service to humanity, view faith as a source of guidance and personal growth. To them, what is important is reviving Islam s core message that education advances equality and that social justice fosters individual advancement, global societal reform and progress for humanity. Drawing on fieldwork observations and interviews carried out among young Kansas City-based women affiliates of Hizmet, this article explores the function of sohbetler, weekly gatherings for spiritual reflection, in their pursuit of those goals. It also investigates their understandings of the controversy surrounding the role of faith in society in relation to liberal secularist perspectives on it. It begins with a comparison of the role of language and culture in the formation and promotion of both perspectives and approaches. Introduction The commonly held assumption that secularization constitutes a prerequisite for progress in all areas of society today dominates politics, the media and popular opinion. Religion, by contrast, is often seen by secularists as a source of ignorance, oppression and stagnation, and thus a hindrance to progress. Most

74 74 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 liberal secularists perceive the wearing of head-coverings by Muslim women as an outward sign of their oppression, and the deliberate decision by educated urban women to cover as a political statement against liberal secularism and an effort to expand Islam s influence in social and political realms of the public sphere, while they view the opposite, the conscious choice to uncover, as a victory in the struggle against oppression. By contrast, liberal secularist and feminist scholars have endeavored to document the ways by which women resist, challenge and struggle to eliminate structures and practices that perpetuate oppressive religious ideologies, including Islam. They have demonstrated that ritual and practices to cultivate piety can no longer be perceived as strictly private endeavors with no bearing in other areas of the practitioners lives, but are instead integral to their sense of identity and their approach to other aspects of their every-day lives at home and work, and have repercussions in other spheres of their communities and societies. Highlighting these repercussions, recent studies have revealed the ways by which women practitioners are carving out new niches for themselves by re-signifying or revising existing practices, or creating new ones, as a means to reassess and revise local configurations of gender status, roles and relations, and to renew and enhance their sense of commitment to Islam and to encourage others to follow their example (Raudvere 2003; Torab 2007). They have underscored the ways of women s increased commitment to Islam to open up opportunities to improve their daily life circumstances, enabling them to circumvent oppressive structures and practices and to exercise more control and agency (Deeb 2006; Mahmood 2004). They have shown that the oppression is rooted in local culture and erroneously linked to Islam by extremist interpretations of the foundational texts. The existing scholarly literature on women Hizmet Movement affiliates explores the positive impact of their movement s involvement in the conditions of their daily life, their personal development and their access to educational and career opportunities. Drawing on extensive interviews with three women affiliates employed as teachers at Gülen-inspired schools in Turkey, Elisabeth Özdalga (2003) elaborated the ways in which their personal engagement with the works of Fethullah Gülen and Said Nursi and their involvement in the movement enabled them to define their educational goals and career paths and structure their marital relationships and family life in positive and beneficial ways. Likewise, Anna J. Stephenson (2007) drew on research among women affiliates living in Houston, Texas, to elucidate the positive impact of their study of Gülen s and Nursi s teachings and participation in movement activities in the US on their decisions regarding educational goals, career paths and marital relationships. Similarly, Maria F. Curtis (2005) linked the personal transformations undergone by women affiliates in Austin, Texas, particularly with regard to their sense of identity as Muslims, as members of affiliate communities and as Turks, to the positive personal developments resulting from their immersion experiences while living in ışık evleri, or dormitories built by affiliates in conjunction with high schools and universities in

75 A Bucket with a Hole 75 Turkey, and their participation in sohbetler, spiritual reflection gatherings, in Austin. All three scholars revealed that the women affiliates movement involvement fostered personal life improvements and enhanced access to higher education, career paths and the means to have an impact on their communities and society. By contrast, Bernadette Andrea (2007) explored Gülen s gloss on the rights enjoyed by Ottoman women, underscoring the discrepancy between the early limitations on and late development of women s rights in regions dominated by Jewish and Christian traditions and Muslim women s much more advanced rights, specifically in the context of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu s early eighteenth-century visit to the Ottoman Empire. In her writings, Lady Montagu recorded her surprise at finding that Turkish women s daily life circumstances differed greatly from depictions found in the widely read contemporaneous accounts written by European men. In addition to enjoying property ownership and other rights not available to their European women contemporaries, Ottoman women were highly educated, socially active and dedicated to pursuing charitable endeavors and cultivating personal piety, instead of languishing in ignorance, debauchery and decadence as they were portrayed in male authors travelogues. Furthermore, Andrea explained the potential of the Qur an, recognized and applied historically by Muslims and currently by Gülen and Hizmet movement affiliates, to establish gender equality and guide the cultivation of ethical comportment, underlining the absence of the latter from the generally accepted Christian canon and its application in eighteenth-century European law and daily life. This current article expands the existing scholarship on women affiliates by the role of faith and piety in the process of development and refinement undergone by the women affiliates. The women Hizmet Movement affiliates residing in Kansas City on which this article focuses emphasized the fact that their faith and piety are integral to moving forward, to improving themselves and their lives and to making progress in this process. Faith and piety constitute the main distinguishing feature of their approach, in particular in comparison with liberal secularists in their view. This article investigates these women affiliates understanding of the role of faith and piety in this process, and their perspectives on the controversy surrounding the role of faith and piety in society today. It begins with a brief comparative exploration of the role of language and culture in education as articulated by Gülen and as defined in the formative period and later implementation of approaches to nationalism and secularism. Promoting Nationalism and Self-Perfection: Language and Culture in Education Recent scholarship on religious reform movements has stressed the role of language in cultivating new sensibilities in unison with ethical values and modes of comportment. Similarly, Véronique Bénéï (2008), in her study of the practices

76 76 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 used in public primary schools in Marathi, India, to inculcate nationalist sentiments in pupils, revealed that the combination of language, morality and emotion is effective in achieving this goal because it mimics the aspects of experiences in infancy and early childhood. Bénéï asserted that the mother is key to the child s introduction to ritualized behavior and the first person to satisfy self-preservative needs and sensual desires and to offer a sense of security and trust, which have an enduring impact on later experiences. Her sensory presence, comprising bodily contact and verbal interaction, is vital in constituting the primary sensorium. Equally crucial is her role in language acquisition, which is integral to socializing morality and emotion, since mother-tongue learning, as linguistic anthropologists Garrett and Baquedano-Lopez have asserted, both encodes embodied emotions and forms the basis of moral socialization. Similar linkages of language to morality and emotions have been found in religious and secular movements in various historical and contemporary contexts (Corrigan 2002; Pinto 2005; Reddy 2001). Whereas most nationalist projects identify one language and ethnicity with the nation, as Bénéï reveals, local languages are used to arouse a sense of belonging despite the status of Hindi and English as official languages. This aim of including rather than excluding the languages and ethnicities found throughout India explains its characterization as one of three countries, alongside Indonesia and Senegal, which have succeeded in promoting true democracy (Stepan 2011). As will become clear below, Gülen and movement affiliates, by promoting dialogue, embracing diversity and cultivating the compassionate acceptance of others, strive to resolve interracial, interethnic and interfaith tensions worldwide. Hizmet: a Language and Culture of Compassion for and Service to Humanity Gülen s vision of education focuses on language and culture as integral to self-perfection and global societal reform. Whilst spiritually grounded, its holistic approach and goals comprise multi-level intellectual, emotional and material development. By contrast, in nationalist projects language and culture are employed as means to unify, improve and integrate, but sometimes as tools for envisioning diversity with mistrust and animosity. Education, in Gülen s view, is a life-long process that begins in childhood. Both parents participate in the education of their children through their words and deeds, which reflect their values and principles. Role modeling is an essential component of education during this, but also subsequent phases, as elucidated in the following excerpt: The real teacher[s]... lead and guide the child in his or her life and in the face of all events. [A] child is cast in his or her true mould and attains to the mysteries of personality [I]magination and aspirations, or specific skills, everything acquired must [be]... a guidance to the ways to virtue... to connect happenings

77 A Bucket with a Hole 77 in the outer world to their inner experience.... [As] intermediaries, teachers... provide the link between life and the self... find a way to the heart of the pupil and leave indelible imprints upon his or her mind. Teachers... provide good examples for their pupils and teach them the aims of the sciences... through the refinement of their own minds.... Educating people is the most difficult task in life. In addition to setting a good example, teachers should... know their students well, and address their intellects and their hearts, spirits, and feelings..., not forgetting that each individual is a different world. (Gülen, 2006b) Gülen emphasizes the importance of developing the whole individual and advocates equal participation for women and men as parents and teachers. Education, according to Gülen, continues beyond formal schooling in the form of further development of the self. For men and women affiliates, it entails the individual and communally supported pursuit of self-perfection, through the acquisition of attributes and propensities such as self-supervision (muraqaba), self-scrutiny (muhasaba) and limiting one s relationship to material things (zuhd). It centers on self-renewal through the emulation of advanced-level affiliates and prepares affiliates to offer service to humanity as a means to address global problems linked to widespread animosity and lack of compassion for others, which he understands as arising primarily from excessive materialism. Gülen envisages self-perfection as a means to revitalize compassionate acceptance of others, which is central to true humanism. It empowers spirituality against the carnal self (nafs) instead of shunning the material world. The compassionate acceptance of others, dialogue and a mutually supportive existence are central to discovering true identity. The two essential components, action and thought, are integrally linked to serving and guiding others, as articulated in the following excerpt: [T]he way to true existence is action and thought, and likewise the way to renewal, individual and collective. Action means embracing the whole of creation with full sincerity and resolve expending all one s physical, intellectual and spiritual faculties in guiding the world. As for thought, it is action in one s inner world. Any truly systematic thinking entails seeking answers to all questions arising from the existence of the universe as such. In other words, [it] is the product of a conscious mind relating itself to the whole of creation and seeking the truth in everything through its language. [T]he realization of such noble aims depends on the existence of guides and leaders able to both diagnose our external and inner misery and to be in constant relation with the higher worlds.... Thus, all the institutions of life will be remolded.... Sciences will progress hand-in-hand with religion, and belief and reason com-

78 78 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 bined will yield ever-fresh fruits of their cooperation. In short, the future will witness a new world built in the arms of hope, belief, love, knowledge, and resolve. (Gülen 2006a) Unlike early European Christians, early Muslims, honoring the message of the Qur an, saw no contradiction in combining science and religion, which Gülen underlines in the extract above. Furthermore, he elucidates the interconnection between language and culture and the central role of language in developing thought, at present and progressively, as follows. Language is one of the fundamental dynamics in the composition of a culture. Language is an important tool for humankind in our efforts to better understand the cosmos and events both holistically and analytically. The more richly and colorfully a nation can speak, the more they can think; the more they can think, the broader is the span their speech can reach. Every single society leaves behind what they speak and think today for its validity to be probed, tested and protected by future generations. In this way, a huge reserve of experience and learning are saved from being wasted; the knowledge and ideas of the past are utilized for the benefit of the present; what was right or wrong in the past is compared with the rights and wrongs of today so that we do not tread the same path and suffer from the same errors. This is valid for all nations of the world; the capacity of a language to express a thought is related to the level of development it has achieved, and a thought can become the instrument by which the language is tuned to this level of development. From every aspect, language plays a defining role in the formation of our culture. (Gülen 2008b) This elevation of the interplay between language and culture, and between language and thought, is linked to the interrelationship between reason and spirituality, but also to emotion, whose disavowal was at the core of European Enlightenment thinking. Also emphasized is the humility and honesty which, while essential to acknowledging past mistakes and present flaws and ensuring future advancement, are lacking in many current contexts, particularly in the West. Gülen uses the term nation to encompass all societies and peoples, in their past, present and future forms, defined by their unique languages, which number between 3,000 and 6,000, and refers to the potential service that they can offer others when they develop themselves so as to promote the advancement of humans as a species and family. Elsewhere, Gülen grounds the compassionate acceptance of others (hoşgörü), imprecisely translated into English as tolerance, in the following Qur an verses: If your Sustainer had so willed it, He would have made humankind into a single nation, but they will not cease to be diverse.... And, for this God created them [humankind] and O Humankind! God has created you from a male and female and made you in diverse nations and tribes so that you may come to know one another. Implied here is a self-perfection process comparable to that undertaken by movement affiliates, facilitated by group spiritual reflection and conversations (sohbetler), in which more advanced affiliates serve as

79 A Bucket with a Hole 79 role models and monitor novices progress. While providing no explicit guidelines for sohbetler, Gülen makes clear that his writings offer a new language and culture to be cultivated by a future generation of role models for humanity, whose attributes and tasks are elucidated in his writings. They will put might under the command of right, never discriminate on grounds of colour or race, and unite in their character profound spirituality, wide knowledge, sound thinking, a scientific temperament, and wise activism. Never content with what they already know, they will continuously increase in knowledge knowledge of the self, knowledge of nature, and knowledge of God. They attain true life by applying the attributes and values developed in the self-perfection process. There is a mutually supportive and perfective relation between one s actions and inner life. Attitudes like determination, perseverance, and resolve illuminate one s inner conscience, and the brightness of this inner conscience strengthens one s will power and resolve, stimulating him or her to ever-higher horizons. They will always seek to please the Creator and humanity [...] and enjoy orderliness, harmony, and devotion to duty in their outer worlds. At the same time, they increase the pure light of their inner worlds.... Their intellect can combine... all current knowledge... and thereby obtain new syntheses. They are so modest that they see themselves as just ordinary people. [T]heir altruism has reached such a level that they can forget their own needs and desires for the sake of others happiness. (Gülen 2008a) The attributes and values listed here enable them to confront societal problems globally. Key to their resolution is guiding others, as elaborated in the following excerpt: In order to awaken the people and guide them to truth... they... implant hope in our hearts, enlighten our minds and quicken our souls.... They will visit every corner of the world... and pour out their reviving inspirations into the souls of the dumbstruck people. (Gülen 2006c) As revealed here, affiliates continuously pursue self-perfection in preparation for, but also in the process of, offering service and guidance to others. All three aspects, cultivating self-perfection, guiding others by example, and compassionately accepting and serving all of humanity, are equally accessible to men and women, and both are able to work to resolve societal problems. Most importantly, every action is undertaken to please God. This vision stands in sharp contrast to the concept of progress as it is understood in the Western European philosophical tradition from its emergence until very recently. The enthusiasm with which the tenth- to the fourteenth-century Muslim scholars embraced advanced knowledge of philosophy, medicine and sci-

80 80 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 ence (which they wrote treatises on) alongside their deep religious conviction, was not matched by Europeans experiences of these fields, which came centuries later. After the treatises were translated into Latin and Europeans began to embrace, study and teach these fields in their universities, in some cases using the translations as textbooks, their reaction and approach were entirely different. In fact, their vision of science and rational thought as being incompatible with and contrary to religion led them to distinguish sharply between the body and intellect and between emotion and reason. This dichotomy resonates in projects promoting nationalism created around the globe beginning in the late nineteenth century, including Kemalism, the Turkish version. Kemalism: Turkish Style Nationalism To understand Kemalism, a brief examination of its early twentieth-century origin is warranted. Scholars studying a recently discovered treatise by the British philosopher, physician, influential Enlightenment thinker and Father of Liberalism John Locke (d. 1704) found that it revealed a further dimension of the later effect of this dichotomy on later Western thought (Bauman & Briggs 2003) and argued that in order for humans to become modern, their language had to be purified, so he crafted a tool to strip language of its direct connections to social forms, which he felt was crucial for the further development of rational thought, and ultimately science. In his language purification program, he claimed that only elite, white, educated men were capable of rational thought, relating this capacity to language and placing European men apart from other socio-economic classes, and that all women and all non-europeans were inferior in their intellectual capabilities. This idea later influenced not only other developments in linguistics and language ideology, but also politics and philosophy, giving birth to the idea of white European supremacy, the European mission to colonize and civilize the world, and the ideologies of secularism, which aimed at separating politics from religion, and de-emphasizing the importance of and eventually discrediting the latter, and nationalism, which had as its goal to create a homogeneous populace that spoke the same language in terms of linguistic code, but also felt a strong emotional attachment and allegiance to, and consequently an intense willingness to wage war against non-citizens for the sake of, one s nation. The danger of taking nationalism as an ideology and its promotion as a political agenda emerges to an extreme extent clearly in the historical example of Nazi Germany, where ethnic cleansing was unabashedly carried out in a systematic manner. However, the racist and ethnocentric tendency that is concealed in nationalism had already been articulated in the nineteenth century by the French philosopher and expert on ancient Middle East civilizations and languages Ernst Renan, who was incidentally known for his deep devotion to his native province of Brittany, in a public lecture which was attended by the early Muslim reformer who crafted the original moderate form of Salafism, Jamal al-din al-afghani. The

81 A Bucket with a Hole 81 latter publicly voiced his rejection of Renan s claim that Semites as a race are intellectually incapable of rational thought in a response displaying his intellectual prowess. To this, Renan pointed out that al-afghani s intelligence derived from the fact that he was of Persian, in other words Aryan origin, which he interpreted as further evidence for his theory. Both terms are language-based: Aryan is a designation which, though commonly understood in racist or ethnic terms, was in fact originally coined in reference to speakers of Indo-European languages, and Semite likewise refers to Hebrew and Arabic speakers, but also speakers of Aramaic (Jesus s mother tongue). Paris in particular, but Western Europe in general, in the nineteenth century served as the incubator for the new ideology of nationalism, and Muslims from different regions were present at its inception. Among them were the Young Turks, a late Ottoman political reform group founded in Istanbul, which, while initially embracing the Ottoman tradition of multi-ethnic and multi-religious tolerance, after returning from Europe, expelled all of its non-turkish members. The new ethnocentrism and racism led to pan-turkism, an attempt to unify Turkic peoples in the Ottoman and Russian Empires, and later Turkish support for Germany and then for Hitler during World Wars I and II, as well as aspects of Kemalism, the nationalist ideology and reform program of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, after whom it was named. Featuring radical political, cultural, religious and social reforms designed to distance the new state from its Ottoman past and to promote secularism, democracy, political and social equality for women, state support of the sciences and free education, and a Westernized lifestyle, Kemalism was introduced and implemented during Atatürk s presidency ( ). Central to it was the restriction, control or elimination of Islamic symbols and practices, including replacing Arabic script with the Latin alphabet, removing Arabic and Persian words from Turkish, and outlawing the wearing of Islamic attire in public. This latter restriction encompassed a ban on women s head-coverings, which became particularly problematic in the 1990s, when it forced women who chose to cover to pursue higher education and employment in private firms and institutions or abroad. It was finally lifted in 2008, when practicing Muslims were finally allowed to serve as prime minister and as president. As a result of these repressive policies, Atatürk s model fell short in every category of the framework used to assess democracy as implemented in countries across the globe (Stepan, 2011). In Turkey, in the public schools, pupils begin their day by reciting in unison a pledge of allegiance to their nation. It begins with the words I am a Turk, which immediately excludes those belonging to other ethnic groups, and ends with a pledge to uphold the principles of Kemalism, which emphasizes secularism. Despite these efforts to promote democracy, as elsewhere, it has been replaced by inequity, corruption and violence. Hizmet movement affiliates, like affiliates of other religious and liberal secularist reform initiatives, seek ways to promote dialogue and peace through education. Whilst liberal secularists in Turkey have actively opposed Gülen and the

82 82 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 movement s activities and institutions for decades, ascribing to them the hidden agenda to establish an Islamic state which is oppressive, particularly towards women, scholars studying the impact of women s movement involvement have revealed that it leads to personal and professional progress. Whilst differing drastically in intended outcome, their approaches are comparable. Both seek to revive a forgotten language as the basis for a new culture in which progress, promoted through education, is central. The core differences lie in Kemalism s promotion of secularism and its drive to homogenize and exclude, which contrast starkly with Hizmet s religious orientation and intent to embrace and encourage diversity. The Research Subjects and Techniques The remainder of this article is based on fieldwork conducted during sohbetler, or spiritual gatherings, held weekly in the homes of the women affiliates residing in Kansas City and nearby towns. They comprised fifteen women from Turkey, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan who had been in the US for between one and five years and who ranged in age from twenty to twenty-five. One was an American mother of three, married to a Turk, who, though previously employed as a teacher, was a stay-at-home mother until her youngest child reaches school age. All but two were married. Eight had one or two children. Five were enrolled in undergraduate or graduate studies programs, five were employed as teachers or researchers and five were exclusively stay-at-home mothers. Difference also characterized their knowledge of the teachings and works of Nursi and Gülen and of their movement involvement before coming to the US. The five stay-at-home mothers had limited awareness of Hizmet and little or no direct contact with affiliates prior to marriage. Their awareness stemmed from their husbands who, in four cases, had brought them to the US. The involvement of the fifth young woman, an American convert, began with her acquaintance with and later marriage to a Turkish affiliate. The other ten had read works and actively participated in sohbetler and in Hizmet service and networks in their countries of origin. Two of the women s parents were directly or indirectly involved in affiliate networks and movement activities. At the time of the research, all of them were committed to applying the teachings in their daily lives and were actively participating in movement activities. The field research entailed participatory observation of sohbetler and conducting informal interviews. Open-ended questions were used to elicit responses. Their views are presented progressively from their early responses to final conclusions. Three themes emerged in the initial conversations about the importance of their movement involvement. Articulated as setting higher standards, a bucket with a hole and ablalar as role models, an examination of the themes is followed by a discussion of the distinguishing feature of their path in relation to that of lib-

83 A Bucket with a Hole 83 eral secularists which forms the main body of the article. It concludes with a summary of their ideas for reassessing the controversy surrounding the role of faith in society and resolving the tension among groups bearing different perspectives. Setting Higher Standards Through Education, Dialogue and Hizmet (Service) The first theme mentioned by the women Hizmet movement affiliates in Kansas City when asked about the most important aspects of their involvement was setting higher standards. The women agreed that setting higher standards occurs within three realms, education, service and dialogue, which are interrelated and contribute to the pursuit of higher standards on a number of levels. Education, on one level, encompasses the secular learning program offered in the Gülen-inspired schools established worldwide. Offered to the rest of the community by those affiliates teaching in the schools, it raises the level of knowledge of the pupils. On another level, the schools transmit higher standards in terms of moral values and ethical principles through example modeled by the teachers. All the levels of learning described here correspond to the expectations generally encompassed by educational institutions. The difference in the way the women affiliates perceived their impetus to pursue education at any level was related to their religious commitment. They also viewed it as an opportunity to apply Gülen s teachings in their lives, as one affiliate explained: When I read Gülen s teachings about education, they rang a bell with me since I truly believe in the power of knowledge. Gülen s interpretation of the Prophet Muhammad s (peace be upon him) very first revelation is very unique and gave me a fresh perspective. The first revelation begins: Recite! In the Name of your Sustainer, Who created. He created humankind from an embryo. Recite! For your Sustainer is Most Bountiful, Who taught the use of the pen taught humankind what they did not know. Gülen explains that this command from God is very relevant today and that it illustrates the importance of education. I have applied this concept to my life by embracing books even more than I had before and by targeting my goal of attending medical school. Here, the choice to pursue higher education is tied to Gülen s interpretation of the Qur an verses cited above. Furthermore, just as they viewed every other positive endeavor in their daily lives, the women perceived their pursuit of higher education as a means to seek God s approval, to fulfill His command and to imitate the Prophet Muhammad s example in their daily lives. This affiliate also explained that her choice to pursue higher education and a career path were directly linked to her capacity to serve the community through her future employment, which would expand the opportunities available to her to please God. Thus, education enabled them to raise their standards, intellectually and spiritually.

84 84 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 Hizmet was understood as any action undertaken to assist others. It encompasses the smallest act that responds to the needs of someone encountered at any moment in daily life. It includes performing any task that would benefit others, whether fulfilling requests made by others in one s daily life or offering one s services through the movement s institutions and activities, as described in the following passage: I have participated in a number of events organized by people who share a common vision. These activities included community outreach activities, volunteertutoring of younger students, leading and participating in youth group-like activities, participating in big-sister-like activities, participating in Ramadan dinners with various members of the community, fundraising activities for orphanages and so on. The degree of my participation varied in these activities. In some of them I was responsible for organizing, preparing and leading the activity. In some of them I was simply a participant who attended the event, in particular the Ramadan dinners. Whereas in others I co-shared the responsibility with others for coming up with a plan and for executing what needed to be done. Participating in these activities is very important to me because this is what I believe in. I believe in helping others in any way I can and leaving a positive imprint in this world and in my community. I believe in the importance of interfaith and intercultural dialogue. Performing hizmet opens up opportunities for interaction and dialogue and can result in a learning experience on multiple levels, as emphasized in the following quotation: Being involved in these activities with people who share the same values has changed my life for better because it makes me feel like part of something big and important instead feeling alone and isolated. It is part of human nature at times to feel alone and isolated and as if nobody knows what one is going through, whereas by being actively involved with a community I have realized that we have so much in common with others and that others can benefit from my experiences and how I overcame or dealt with certain issues just as much as I can benefit from theirs. Another benefit of being involved in the activities is that we motivate each other and help each other to sustain our conviction and our dynamics. One last benefit I would like to mention is that no matter how much desire one possesses to do good and carry out certain actions, there are always times when we need help in achieving those goals because they are not a one-person job, thus this is where a few sets of hands, legs and brains come in very handy! As this woman points out, hizmet fosters interaction, dialogue and learning between those offering and those receiving the service, but also among those sharing in the preparatory work for larger service activities. Most importantly, according to the women, hizmet, regardless of the time and energy invested, is offered voluntarily, without any expectation of recompense, monetary or otherwise, and it enables them to please God. Dialogue is the third means for promoting higher standards in one s own life and in society. Dialogue is integral to education or any learning as it enables an exchange of ideas. Dialogue encompasses all levels of communication, whether

85 A Bucket with a Hole 85 embedded in an organized activity or simply between two individuals. It involves a conscious effort to understand the ideas, attitudes and perspectives of others and can lead to a rapprochement between individuals and the groups to which they belong. It eliminates misunderstanding and dissolves tensions that harbor conflict. It opens up space for and channels meaningful interaction. The women emphasized intercultural and interfaith dialogue, but included dialogue between members of different groups residing in the same country, bearing the same cultural background and adhering to the same religion. It falls into the category of hizmet, as it was aimed at improving the lives of others and of society as a whole. Engaging in conscious, reflected dialogue also enables them to set an example and thus constitutes another means to gain God s approval. At the end of their reflection on setting higher standards, the women began to rethink their terminology. They acknowledged that there were no official standards and that their goal was to improve the moral values and ethical principles in society and in their lives. This improvement comprised acts of faith and piety, as expressed here: There is no exact definition of having higher standards. The idea is that we believe that we are in a struggle in this world and we should always try to be a better person. For example, if you are giving charity, try to give more, pray more, be more altruistic and helpful etc. We never think that a certain amount of praying is enough. We should always try to get closer to God by increasing good deeds and decreasing and eventually ceasing to commit bad deeds and considering pleasing God in every aspect of life. They agreed that the word higher was appropriate because it underscores the goal of striving to improve one s own attitudes, expectations, levels of knowledge and awareness and modes of behavior, as well as to encouraging others to do the same. Ultimately, the phrase setting higher standards and the three realms of activity for working towards that goal meant that one can and should constantly reassess one s developing standards by stepping back and scrutinizing one s attitudes, expectations, levels of knowledge and awareness, and modes of behavior regarding every aspect of one s daily existence. It constitutes an important component of the movement s approach as it entails continuous expansion of knowledge, improvement in comportment and personal transformation, all of which are indicative of progress. A Bucket With A Hole : Progress Through Piety Making progress is the second important goal of their mission, according to the women participants. Progress, expressed in simple terms, entails making each day different from the preceding day, learning something new each day and improving their behavior and actions from one day to the next. As one woman affiliate explained, one can understand the meaning of this goal by envisioning

86 86 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 oneself as a bucket with a hole, a bucket in which water can never remain for a long period of time. Stagnant water, she elucidated further, collects impurities and becomes contaminated, whereas water that is regularly replenished, or that flows as in a river, undergoes constant renewal. She was drawing on the following text by Gülen: Stagnant waters become mossy; inactive limbs are subject to over-calcification. By contrast, waterfalls are always clean. Those who always keep their brains active and souls purified will one day see that they have germinated numerous seeds of beauty in themselves and all their efforts have come to fruition. Only ploughed land can be sown; only gardens trimmed and trees pruned yield the best fruit. (Gülen 1985) She related this idea to a story of Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet, which she further explained as follows: Hazrati Ali had very high standards and his knowledge was exceptional. Nonetheless, he said that his knowledge is like a drop of water in an ocean. So how can we say that we are well educated? All of us have something to learn. So our purpose is to learn at least one new thing in each day. The following reference to the image of a waterfall in one of Gülen s book links these two ideas: Those who belittled you, considering you just a drop, never thought that one day you would grow into such a waterfall (Gülen 1992). The emphasis is on growth through learning. It encompasses both knowledge learned by reading or attending an educational institution and knowledge acquired through daily life experiences. Progress is not made through the acquisition of knowledge and experience alone. This acquisition is supported and fostered through spiritual development. Spiritual development consists of increasing the number of prayers and devotional recitations one performs. Furthermore, emphasis is placed more on the progress in one s capacity for behaving in accordance with moral values and ethical principles and the increase in one s devotional observance that results than on the content of the knowledge and experience acquired. One of the women elaborated her views on this process as follows: Daily life is a constant struggle. We believe that human beings have the ability to be even better than angels and at the same time fall to lower than devils. God gave us the ability to separate what is good and bad and let us free in our choice. This world is like an examination, and we are trying to score as high as we can. There is not a certain or set score for passing the examination. We should not try to answer all the questions. In other words, we can never be sure about ourselves, and there is no guarantee of going to heaven even if we are practicing Muslims. Therefore, we always try our best not to stay at any certain level in terms of practicing religion. But of course we can never be perfect. Faith lies between fear and hope. We always hope for forgiveness. In addition to that, we do not know which answer will receive

87 A Bucket with a Hole 87 a higher score. I mean, God may forgive us because of a very small good deed. It is not a mathematical calculation. If you pray a lot but break someone s heart you might be in trouble. Making each day different means trying to improve spiritually by praying, doing good deeds and trying to have a better personality and have good morals. Here, emphasis is placed on the renewal and improvement of one s moral and ethical standards and spirituality, on the mutual support of the actions in the private spiritual and the public everyday realms, and on the individual nature of the process. This progress is measured on an individual level but the outcome and repercussions of individual renewal and improvement have benefits for the individual and for society. Individual progress entails an increase in one s ability to provide more service to society and to be more effective as an example to others through one s comportment. They all agreed, however, that there is no specified set of standards, no way of measuring one s performance or progress. Instead, the process of monitoring one s progress depends on personal scrutiny and judgment, but there is a network of support and assessment to guide and facilitate one s progress, as described in the following comment: The highest standard is to gain the approval of God. Nobody knows if he or she gains or does not gain this approval. And also whoever thinks that he or she is a very good person, that he or she is better than the others and that he or she has gained the approval of God and will enter paradise, he or she will start to fall down immediately. We can say that these standards are not our creation. Our purpose is to follow the way of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his companions. Of course, consultations with those who are spiritually more advanced than we are help us to reach higher standards and to constantly improve ourselves. They guide us to better ways and higher levels in all our thoughts and actions. This response indicates that humility is central to the assessment process and that, whilst the process is individual in nature, assistance can be sought from those who are spiritually more advanced. Seeking assistance especially at early stages in one s spiritual development is highly advisable and beneficial, according to the women. Ablalar, or big sisters, in particular within the context of sohbetler headed by them, most commonly serve to provide this assistance in most cases. Ablalar as Role Models Ten of the women affiliates had participated in regular sohbetler and had progressed under the guidance of ablalar for two or more years. They perceived this experience as enriching and integral to their initial spiritual development. This experience established the firm foundation on which they were now able to build. They learned to monitor their personal development and the balance between their spiritual growth and their capacity to apply the moral values and ethical principles which they acquired in the initial phase of supervised training with

88 88 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 their ablalar. In recounting this initial phase, many of the women emphasized the importance of the role that their ablalar played in their development, as is shown in the following comment: Ablalar try to affect us both by being a role model, a living example, and by persuasion. When you see them around always helping others, you just admire them and want to be like them. Some ablalar have considerable knowledge about Islam, about Gülen s books, and they try to share what they know with us. Generally, this happens during daily sohbetler in lighthouses. Sometimes, they kindly warn you if you make a mistake and try to help you correct your faults. I can tell that the most influential point of ablalar is they they exercise what they tell us, you actually see them living according to their beliefs. Each of the women acknowledged the two-fold nature of the role of the abla, her function as a teacher and as a role model. In their function as teachers, besides actually reading the texts under study in the sohbetler and guiding the discussion of the texts, ablalar monitor the progress of participants by collecting lists of their weekly activities. These lists encompass additional prayers and recitations, but also the hizmet that they have performed. This function encouraged them to improve and increase their activities from week to week and assisted them in learning to eventually monitor their own progress. Most of the women underlined the significance of the abla s function as role model, as articulated in the following comment: Ablalar help their students to improve themselves. They try to motivate them and try to help with their homework for school. They also try to teach them something about religion, if possible. But the most important and beneficial way to learn something from an abla is by observing her. Her attitude and behavior are more effective than what she says. Some women described their deep admiration for their ablalar and their desire to emulate every aspect of their behavior. In addition to the opportunity of learning from ablalar by observing and striving to imitate them, sohbetler provided the possibility of developing a sense of belonging to a group and group support and a nurturing atmosphere, all of which enhance one s capacity for personal and spiritual development, as expressed in this comment: Sohbetler in the US and Turkey are almost the same. We gather and one abla reads from an Islamic book. It could be a book by Gülen, an interpretation of the Qur an or Risale-i-Nur. We discuss whatever we read and try to figure out the implications of reading and ways we can apply those to real life. Sohbetler are interactional. They are not like lectures. Everybody who attends tells what she understood. There is a very nice and harmonious atmosphere in sohbetler. Sometimes we go jogging, eat delicious food after the sohbet and have fun together. When I was in college, during daytime, I was always busy with courses and worldly issues. When I returned home

89 A Bucket with a Hole 89 and attended the sohbetler, the abla kept me focused on the other world, on my responsibilities and on the idea of struggling to be a better person. I felt like I was getting my spiritual food from sohbetler. Most of the women underlined the importance of the nurturing atmosphere and group support, but also the source of friendship and social activities provided by the sohbetler in the initial phase of movement involvement. Sohbetler vary widely in relation the composition of the participants and broader community, as described in the following comment: The different types of groups depend on their situation. Their levels are different. In Turkey these groups are distinct, though not always homogeneous. The distinction is based on the level of knowledge about religion and the Hizmet movement. At beginning level, sohbetler are like meetings with some supplemental social activities. The purpose is to acquire the basics. At intermediate level, sohbetler are more advanced in terms of expectations. In some cases, the group starts to participate in activities organized by the movement. At the advanced level, the group is aware of and committed to the goals of the movement. The affiliates are expected to begin to actively help other people and to eventually serve as ablalar. There are other levels of participation as well. For example, my father is no longer a teacher in a school founded by the movement. He is now a businessman, but he is still involved. He attends sohbet and he tries to find financial support for the movement. My mother is a housewife but is involved socially. She attends sohbet, excursions and conferences and coordinates fundraising activities to finance poor students. This quotation reveals that sohbetler vary widely in structure, content and purpose as well as in the composition of the participants. Thus they are adapted to varying kinds of needs and levels of expectation. Likewise, sohbetler provide the necessary regular contact for perpetuating their efforts in monitoring and enhancing their spiritual development. Being Closer to God : a Guiding Principle and Hindrance to Collaboration The final line of inquiry encompassed the controversial role of faith and piety in Turkish society today, and the tension between practicing Muslims and liberal secularists. I pursued this line of inquiry in my conversations with the participants in the sohbetler by specifically addressing the difference between the activism of women Hizmet affiliates and liberal secularist women active in non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Turkey and the possibility of collaboration between these two types of group. To stimulate their reflection, I described some of my findings. Activists in NGOs, like women affiliates, I pointed out, are working to improve the circumstances of women s lives. In addition to their successful campaign demanding revision of the Turkish penal code to prevent early marriages, oppressive behavior and honor killings, as well as the ensuing side effects such as suicide among teenagers, they have taught the women communication skills and

90 90 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 ways to improve their relationships with their parents, spouses and children, and to demand their own rights and the rights of their daughters to pursue secondary and higher education and to seek employment. In spite of their obvious commitment to women s education, their responses to my inquiries regarding the fact they were not working for lifting the headscarf ban were similar. Although the headscarf ban excludes women from pursuing higher education or working in fields that would otherwise be open to them, forcing them to study and/or work abroad, none of the NGOs were supporting efforts to have it revoked. Whilst some activists asserted that this was due to limitations in their resources and that joining the struggle to lift the ban was not a current priority, most felt that the ban hindered only women wearing headscarves as part of a political agenda which aims to establish an Islamic state and to force all women to wear headscarves, as has occurred in Iran. Their reactions to my findings and to my inquiry into what distinguishes affiliates from NGO activists who also strive to assist women in improving their lives and into the potential for collaboration between the two groups included the following comments: This is a tough issue. Both devout and less devout women can seek progress. They can be very successful and influential members in the society as long as they have the motivation to do so. The difference is that devout Muslim ladies pursue higher education and seek to be active members of the society not just for this world. For example, I want to be a professor, but this is not only for showing people how smart I am and for gaining a reputation. I want to serve God through my job by serving as a good example to my students and by changing people s minds through my publications. Hopefully, if I can become a professor one day, my real purpose would be in the other world, not this one. We should use worldly opportunities and our positions as a tool to achieve and promote higher standards in terms of spirituality and being closer to God. The idea is to serve God by serving society and to do whatever you do for the sake of God, for becoming closer to God. This response emphasizes the difference in motivation, whereas the following quotation raises the issue of bias both on the part of liberal secularists and movement affiliates. The speaker focuses in particular on the idea that head-coverings constitute a significant hindrance: I think they could work together and it might be a good idea. The problem is that some of the organizations are secular. They see religion as an obstacle to modernity and the progress of women whereas women movement affiliates get strength from religion. For some secular women, the criterion for modernity is taking off the scarf and wearing less clothing, therefore they do not even want women with headscarves to have education and high status in society. It depends on which organizations are being considered. This prejudice does not hold true for all organizations. But please note that sometimes there is bias on both sides. For example, some religious women think that those secular women spoil family structure. In fact, I think the situation is getting better. There is less tension and more respect between secular and practicing women. Once they have a chance to interact, they realize

91 A Bucket with a Hole 91 that they have a lot in common and there is no point in looking at each other as if they are enemies. In her conclusion, she described a trend toward improvement in relations between the two groups. Another affiliate elucidated the complexities of both views as follows: I think it is most honest to view this issue from the perspective that practicing Islam does make a difference. What some scholars are trying to say is that practicing Muslims face the same challenges as non-practicing ones. They too deal with temper tantrums or teenage issues. They too have problems in their financial, family and business lives and so on. However, what is overlooked is the difference in response to these issues. Of course, we are all human. We have similar human tendencies, whether positive or negative. However, the way a practicing believer responds to these challenges and to the blessings of this life is significantly different. For example, when a non-believer accomplishes a great success or is blessed with a child, it is very easy for that person to become arrogant and conceited, whereas when a believer faces the same situation, the first inclination is to give thanks to God immediately. The same is true for hardships. It may be difficult for a non-practicing person to deal with problems since they may question the reasons behind them and become outraged with the facts. Whereas, for a believer, there are so many consolations for even the tiniest problem that it would require me to write a few pages just on this topic. Some of those consolations are: there are worse things than what we are challenged with; we still have many more blessings than some people; in the realms of the global world and destiny, there are so many justifications for the existence of certain problems; this may be just a small reminder to us that we are going astray and that God is warning us while we are still in this world so that we can correct our ways and repent before its too late; and if nothing else, with a proper response, this can be a way for some of our sins to be erased. These responses demonstrate the centrality of faith in defining their own approaches to life and to resolving important problems in today s society in particular. They recognized the differences and difficulties, but asserted that they would welcome opportunity and felt that they would benefit from cooperating with liberal secular women activists. Conclusion Drawing on fieldwork observations and on interviews carried out among women affiliates during sohbetler, gatherings for spiritual reflection and conversation, this article juxtaposes the Hizmet movement and the Turkish nationalist project, which it presents as alternative approaches to promoting equality, justice and ultimately progress. Their juxtaposition highlights similarities in their use of education to develop and promote a language that can serve to cultivate values and attitudes central to their perspectives and underlines the link that this language forges with moral sensibilities, which enables their success. Finally, it points out a crucial difference between them: the Turkish nationalist project s tendency to homogenize and to disregard diversity and the movement affiliates conscious

92 92 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 efforts to compassionately accept and offer service to every human being regardless of ethnicity, religion and political perspective, which, in their view, fosters their personal and professional progress. More importantly, however, it derives from the Qur an and therefore renders their actions one means to achieve their ultimate objective of pleasing God. REFERENCES Andrea, B. (2007). Women and their rights: Fethullah Gülen s gloss on Lady Montagu s Embassy to the Ottoman empire, In R. A. Hunt and Y. A. Aslandogan (eds.) Muslim Citizens of the Globalized World. Contributions of the Gülen Movement, Somerset: The Light, Inc., pp Bauman, R. and Charles L. Briggs (2003). Voices of Modernity: Language Ideologies and the Politics of Inequality, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. Bénéï, V. (2008). Schooling Passions. Nation, History, and Language in Contemporary Western India, Stanford: Stanford University Press. Corrigan, J. (2002). Business of the Heart: Religion and Emotion in the Nineteenth Century, Berkeley: University of California Press. Curtis, M. F. (2005). The women s side of the coin: The Gülen Movement in America, a new Turkish American community taking root, a paper presented at the conference: Islam in the Contemporary World: The Fethullah Gülen Movement in Thought and Practice, November 12-13, Rice University, Houston, TX, available at: en.fgulen. com/conference-papers/the-fethullah-gulen-movement-i/2136-the-womens-side-of-the-coin-the-gulen-movement-in-america-anew-turkish-american-community-taking-root.html. Deeb, L. (2006). An Enchanted Modern. Gender and Public Piety in Shi i Lebanon, Princeton: Princeton University Press. Garrett, P. and Patricia Baquedano-Lopez (2002). Language socialization: Reproduction and continuity, transformation and change, Annual Review of Anthropology, (31): Gülen, F. (1985). Towards the lost paradise, Sızıntı, n.74. Gülen, F. (1992). Truth Through Colors, Izmir: Nil. Gülen, F. (2006a). Action and Thought, available at ( Gülen, F. (2006b). Our education system, (

93 A Bucket with a Hole 93 Gülen, F. (2006c). The awaited generation, available at net/love-and-tolerance/towards-the-lost-paradise/123-the-awaited-generation. Gülen, F. (2008a). Balancing the spiritual and the physical, com/about-fethullah-gulen/as-a-teacher/809-the-balance-between-the-physicaland-the-spiritual. Gülen, F. (2008b). Language and thought, The Fountain, January - February, Issue 61 Mahmood, S. (2005). Politics of Piety. The Islamic Revival and the Feminist Subject, Princeton: Princeton University Press. Özdalga, E. (2003). Following in the footsteps of Fethullah Gülen. Three women teachers tell their stories, In M. H. Yavuz and J. L. Esposito (eds.) Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement, New York: Syracuse University Press, pp Pinto, P. (2005). Bodily mediations: self, values and experience in Syrian sufism, In Johann Heiss (ed.) Veränderung und Stabilität: Normen und Werte in Islamischen Gesellschaften, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Raudvere, C. (2003). The Book and the Roses. Sufi Women, Visibility and Zikr in Contemporary Istanbul, Istanbul: Swedish Research Institute. Reddy, W. (2001). Navigation of Feeling: A Framework for the History of Emotions, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Stepan, A. (2011). The multiple secularisms of modern democratic and nondemocratic regimes In C. Calhoun, M. Juergenmeyer and J. VanAntwerpen (eds.) Rethinking Secularism. New York: Oxford University Press. Stephenson, Anna J. (2007). Leaving footprints in Houston: Answers to questions on women and the Gülen movement, In R. A. Hunt and Y. A. Aslandogan (eds.) Muslim Citizens of the Globalized World. Contributions of the Gülen Movement, Somerset: The Light, Inc., pp Torab, A. (2006). Performing Islam: Gender and Ritual in Iran, Leiden: E. J. Brill.

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95 Forum-Debate 95 Forum-Debate Tamsil : The inadvertent overspill of internalization 1 Özcan Keles, Ozcan.keles@dialoguesociety.org Dialogue Society I was once the warden of a student hostel at which my younger brother was also a resident. One evening he asked my permission to go out for a while. I asked him where he intended to go. He said, Home. I asked him if he intended to change his intention along the way. Looking down, slightly embarrassed but mainly annoyed that I had caught him out, he replied in the affirmative. By planting the intention of going home on top of his intention to later revise that intention, he thought he would escape both lying and getting caught; he was mistaken on both counts. Intention is not everything, but it is something and something that matters at that. In Islam, actions are judged according to their intentions (hadith). In law, actus reus (guilty action) and mens rea (guilty mind/intent) must, bar some exceptions, co-exist in the same time and space for the crime to occur. This issue of intention relates to a recently published book on Fetullah Gülen and the Hizmet movement, The House of Service: The Gülen Movement and Islam s Third Way (OUP, 2014), by David Tittensor. The central argument of the book is that Gülen and the Hizmet movement teach and practice, tamsil (defined by the author as show[ing] piety through actions page 132); that it appears that Hizmet s tamsil was adopted from World Vision s lifestyle evangelism practice (defined by the author as convey[ing] the Christian ethic through actions page 146) where religion is sufficiently muted to mask their real intent, which is to gain adherents (pages 148-9). Tittensor argues that this softer, or less aggressive approach is designed to make both organizations more palatable to a global audience, and mask the actual missionary work that is done on the ground (page 173). One of the problems with this argument is that it mismatches terms and practices within and among each other. In Islam, tamsil and tabligh are considered two forms of irshad, that is guiding others. Tabligh is a mode of guidance that invites people to Islam by word or action. Tamsil, on the other hand, is a mode of guidance that unintentionally ensues from the thorough internalization of Islamic values and teachings in one s life. It is the inadvertent overspill of genuine practice that has the power to show, guide or represent because it is not done with such intentions but simply to live one s life in accordance with the teachings to which one subscribes. If one undertakes an act to show or guide, it is no longer tamsil as it is no longer inadvertent and * This debate paper was originally published in TodaysZaman, available at com/blog/ozcan-keles/tamsil-the-inadvertent-overspill-of-internalization_ html

96 96 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 unintended. Simply put, tamsil is the outcome, not the intent. With intention to show, I am either engaged in tabligh (presenting Islam) through action or am being hypocritical. I am engaged in tabligh-through-action if the action I undertake is not at odds with my usual behavior and habit. If it is, then my action coupled with my intention to show amounts to hypocrisy even if I am genuinely trying to guide in that particular instance. Being conscious of what one is doing also risks bringing oneself (that is one s ego) into the act of doing. Our egotistical presence in our acts tarnishes the value of the act. Gülen says, Where you are [your ego], He is not; where you are not [your ego], He is. In the Naqshibandi Sufi order there are four steps to reaching spiritual enlightenment forget [forsake] the world, forget the [rewards of] the afterlife, forget your ego, forget [all these acts of] forgetting, lest being conscious of them risks making one proud. So forgetting, or in the case of tamsil, not being aware of or intending to show or guide from the outset is key. Understood in these terms, tamsil cannot be equated with lifestyle evangelism, far less a strategy adopted by Hizmet from the World Vision to avoid detection to missionize as argued on both counts by Tittensor. As Tittensor accepts, Hizmet is not seeking to convert non-muslims, but what is more, tamsil as defined above and in Gülen s teachings is not a practice that can be undertaken with the intent of preaching, converting, showing or guiding as is clearly the case with lifestyle evangelism as defined and described by Tittensor. There are too many fundamental differences in the theory (intent) and practice (action) of Hizmet s tamsil and World Vision s evangelism to be useful without these clearly being set out for the benefit of the reader, which they are not. I did not intend to undertake a fully-fledged review of Tittensor s book; I am merely sharing one critique that I kept finding myself scribbling on the book s page margins. That said, I m sure Tittensor did not intend to blur the lines between tamsil and tabligh, either, and certainly did not intend to elicit, for what it s worth, this critique. But while intentions are something, they are not in fact everything. And in Islam, although our actions are to be judged by our intentions, if certain outcomes of our actions are foreseeable, we are responsible for them too. Now, with the intention to guide, that last sentence would amount to a tabligh!

97 Book Review and Notes 97 BOOK REVIEWS The Muslim World and Politics in Transition: Creative Contributions of the Gülen Movement; G. Barton, P. Weller, İ. Yılmaz; edts.; 2013; London: Bloomsbury; xix pp., ISBN: This volume brings together thirteen different pieces, papers originally presented at different conferences on the Gülen movement between 2009 and As the editors indicate, the papers in this book were selected in order to explore the contributions of the Gülen movement across the Muslim world. Through the Arab spring, now become an Arab winter, democratic developments and new transitions have emerged for Muslims and are attracting increasing scholarly attention. In this book, the different chapters discuss how the Gülen movement has positioned itself and has sought to contribute within those societies in which Islam forms a major cultural, political and economical reference. The chapters touch on a number of key issues which will imply major changes in the ways in which Muslims are concerned in this process and on the changing nature of the role of Islam and of Muslims in public life. The editors talk about the difficulty of the term Muslim world and the aim of the book is to look at different countries where Muslims constitute the majority of their populations. A wide range of issues such as democracy, secularism, multiculturalism and interfaith dialogue in the context of globalization are analysed in the different works in this collection of articles. One of the key themes throughout this book is the role of those Muslims in the public sphere who are active in the movement and how these people interpret Islam in their everyday lives. The democratic transition that Muslim-dominated societies continue to witness is highly important in demonstrating this public role of civil society in relation to the state. The book consists of three parts. In the first of these, Greg Barton s chapter explores the origins of the movement and its expansion during the 2000s. This chapter also briefly compares the Gülen movement with other Islamic movements. The first part contains two other chapters. The second chapter discusses the non-aggressive nature of the Hizmet movement and the authors analyse how the movement puts into practice collective action with moral performance. The third contribution in the first part examines the particular case of the Abant Platform and looks at one of the most important public initiatives of the movement as an empowerment of civil society vis-à-vis the state. The second part contains four chapters. The first is an attempt to analyse the transformation of Turkish Islamism to non-islamism and examines the sociocultural factors that have influenced the political transition and the evolution of political Islamism in Turkey. It argues that the new elites, especially those coming from the Gülen movement, have a significant influence on the AKP. The next chapter discusses the extent to which Islam and liberalism are compatible and can coexist. This chapter focuses on how liberalism offers new opportunities to Islamic movements and also

98 98 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 how Islamic communities find outlets and opportunities for their liberal ideas in their wider environment. In parallel with the first chapter of this second part, the third chapter looks at Gülen s influence on the moderation of political Islam in Turkey and proposes that the Gülen movement forms a new alternative conception of Turkish culture by bringing together religion and business in the context of globalization. The final chapter of this part explores the ways in which the Gülen movement supports the Turkish application for membership of the European Union. The third and in some ways the most interesting part of the book opens with a chapter which draws on the debate on political reform and Islamic values by giving the example of consultation which is very compatible with democracy. In line with this chapter, the final chapter in this part examines how the human rights discourse fits within Gülen s teaching, giving the example of freedom of belief. In the second chapter, the author looks at the movement s interest for the Arab world. Hira magazine, which is published in Arabic with a leading article by Fethullah Gülen, brings out the intellectual outlook of the Gülen movement. This is the only article which focuses on Arabic-speaking geography. Another chapter examines Central Asia s Hizmet schools and discusses and compares the role of the schools between Turkey and the Central Asian countries. A further chapter looks at the educational side of the movement in South Africa, where Muslims are a minority; the author analyses the moral ethos of the schools which Muslims are spreading. Finally, one of the chapters in this part of the book analyses the activities of the Gülen movement in Indonesia and discusses the concept of civil Islam. Despite being overly repetitious at times, this collection of wide-ranging chapters offers some theoretical and case studies of civil Islam, the role of Muslims in public life and alternative perspectives on Islamist politics. However, apart from a few chapters, the book does not focus on the Muslim world, even though this is itself a problematic term. The reader wants more a critical examination of the Gülen movement s influence in Muslimmajority countries. ERKAN TOĞUŞLU KU Leuven (Belgium) An Islam of Her Own: Reconsidering Religion and Secularism in Women s Islamic Movements; Sherine Hafez. New York; London: New York University Press, 2011; 191 pages. ISBN In An Islam of Her Own: Reconsidering Religion and Secularism in Women s Islamic Movements, Sherine Hafez examines the desires and subjecthood of activist Islamic women of the Egyptian al-hilal movement. She conducted six years of fieldwork with this private voluntary organization run by women for women in and around Cairo. Established in the 1990 s, al-hilal is part of a broader movement of Islamic activism in the Egyptian capital. Through the years, it has reached tens of thousands of women from different educational and socio-economic backgrounds. It is aimed

99 Book Review and Notes 99 at social reform projects to decrease poverty and pursue a more Islamic transformation of society. They organize day care for poor working women, children s art projects, lessons in fiqh and shari a, charity bazaars, literacy classes, and they hold a charity project in a rural city nearby Cairo (described in Chapter 7). During her period of fieldwork, Hafez observed how these active women were simultaneously driven by desires mediated by Islamic religious and secular principles. She sees a constant negotiation of different Islamic, nationalistic and secularist discourses in their own understanding of themselves and the world around them. Her main research question is which processes shape, shift, incite, and produce the desires and subjectivities of women in Islamic movements? (5) Or, in other words, what are the geographies of desire (13) that underlie subject formation and how do these women articulate these desires? In answering these questions, Hafez insists on dispensing the modernist dichotomies of Islam versus secularism, traditional versus modern. She explains that this normative approach considers Islamic female activists as unitary ethical subjects, who are either approached as pious subjects who belong to a traditional ideology that denies them the rationality and freedom accorded to modern secular subjects or as feminist subjects whose empowerment is contingent on their success in adapting their religious agenda to a liberal secularist one (8). In the second chapter of the book, she gives a thorough theoretical overview of the epistemological evolution of these dichotomies in classical works of Durkheim, Weber, Malinowski, Geertz and Asad. Towards the end of the chapter, she looks into the discourses used by two contemporary scholars, John Esposito and Mark Juergensmeyer, and the structures of power that underlie the conceptual tools with which they approach Islam. This theoretical treatment gives important insights for current scholars of religion who are forced to think selfreflexively about their own position in relation with the discourses described. Because Hafez wants to take the discussion of desires beyond the duality of religious versus secular, she chooses to approach desires in a Deleuzian way as the rhizomatic wants and needs that underlie the constantly becoming subject formation (5). Desires are continuously being created by cultural and social experiences, historical traditions, state agendas, and individual negotiations (4). In the third chapter she elaborates on the different historical processes that led to the mutual embeddedness of secularism and religion in Egypt. She highlights the Egyptian period of modern state building ( ); nationalism, reform, and Egyptian liberalism ( ); independence and nation building ( ); and the period of infitah ( an open door ) after the 1970s. Through this historical approach, Hafez contextualizes the specific place of Islamic activism in current day Egypt, and how it negotiates between different, historically rooted, social spheres and tendencies. In the following chapters Hafez gives an ethnographic description of al-hilal s activities and members. In chapter four she explores their focus on education, changes in almo amalat (social behav-

100 100 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 ior) and the members emphasis on selftransformation through their relations and activities with al-hilal. Especially the concept of tajdid al-niyya is important in these processes, since it designates a constantly repeated self-reflexive consultation on whether or not one has performed certain actions with the right intention (niyya), which is to have God somewhere in mind in the context of Islamic activism or during daily life routines. In the fifth chapter Hafez highlights key individuals in order to examine certain nuances in their desires and subjectivities on a more personal level. In their accounts, Hafez distinguishes between secular liberal values instilled by the modern nation-state, and typical Islamic values and tradition. Although these activists themselves present their subjectivities as a consistent and homogenous unified whole, according to Hafez, their accounts in fact reflect inconsistencies, disruptions, and ambiguities that are linked to modernizing projects, in which the concomitant processes of secularism and Islamization shape and inform their desires (77). By relating these women s desires to the historical processes of either secularism and/or Islam, or the mutual relationship between both throughout historical evolutions, I wonder in what way Hafez eventually escapes the dichotomy she s trying to avoid? Struggling with this question, she acknowledges likewise that it s not naturally given which accounts refer to secular or rather religiously informed desires, since they often seem to be inherent in both traditions (98, 115). This may raise questions on the interrelationship between both discourses, as well as on the historical development of Egypt s modern secular values that are clearly not as extrinsic to religion as is often thought. Despite these remarks, in chapter six, that handles al-hilal s project in a city outside Cairo, Hafez perspicuously demonstrates how the liberal modern-state context was met by these Islamic activists in their project to help fund poor women, and how these encounters created new rhizometic desires. This chapter most explicitly illustrates how desiring subjects may be formed, and will continue to be formed, negotiated and adapted as new processes or discourses cross these women s lives. Anyone who s interested in understanding such apparent contradictory observations as Islamic activism in a modern, secular nation-state, should read this second book of Sherine Hafez. This equally counts for anyone who s studying gender issues in relation with Islamic revivalism, and wonders which place women actively take up in these developments. Mieke Groeninck KU Leuven (Belgium)

101 Book Review and Notes 101 BOOK NOTES Islam in Europe: Public Spaces and Civic Networks; Spyros A. Sofos and Roza Tsagarousianou; Palgrave Macmillan; 224 pages 2013 European Islam constitutes a veritable laboratory of identity, marked by polyphony, convergence and contestation. Muslims in Europe are looking for sources of inspiration, tradition and authority; they are developing meanings and repertoires of collective action that allow them to root themselves in societies that are often ambivalent about their presence in their midst while maintaining and developing their own distinctive values and voices. This book is intended to shed light to processes of Muslim identity construction in contemporary Europe, examining in some detail aspects of the complex way in which European Muslims relate to each other, construct and populate spaces they call home and create spaces of dialogue and debate. Finding Mecca in America: How Islam is Becoming an American Religion; Mücahit Bilici, Chicago University Press, 272 pages 2012 The events of 9/11 had a profound impact on American society, but they had an even more lasting effect on Muslims living in the United States. Once practically invisible, they suddenly found themselves overexposed. By describing how Islam in America began as a strange cultural object and is gradually sinking into familiarity, Finding Mecca in America illuminates the growing relationship between Islam and American culture as Muslims find a homeland in America. Rich in ethnographic detail, the book is an up-close account of how Islam takes its American shape. In this book, Mucahit Bilici traces American Muslims progress from outsiders to natives and from immigrants to citizens. Drawing on the philosophies of Simmel and Heidegger, Bilici develops a novel sociological approach and offers insights into the civil rights activities of Muslim Americans, their increasing efforts at interfaith dialogue, and the recent phenomenon of Muslim ethnic comedy. Theoretically sophisticated, Finding Mecca in America is both a portrait of American Islam and a groundbreaking study of what it means to feel at home. Delicate Debates on Islam: Policymaker and Academic Speaking with Each Other; Jan Michel Otto and Hannah Mason (edts); Amsterdam University Press, 100 pages 2011 In this important volume, a broad range of scholars and policymakers, including former NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and Dutch politician and former mayor of Amsterdam Job Cohen, have come together to explore how politicians and scholars in the West approach Islam. Many Western countries, including the US and the Netherlands, have seen an increasing polarization of opinion in the past decade, with some public figures and members of the mainstream media embracing stereotypes in lieu of a real understanding about Islam as a religion and a culture. This wide-ranging collection also touches on sensitive issues such as human rights violations and the position of women in Islam, and it furthers the conversation about the West s relationship with Islam, by creating a more subtle and sophisticated depiction of the religion and its adherents.

102 102 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 The Emancipation of Europe s Muslims: The State s Role in Minority Integration; Jonathan Laurence; Princeton University Press ; 392 pages 2012 The Emancipation of Europe s Muslims traces how governments across Western Europe have responded to the growing presence of Muslim immigrants in their countries over the past fifty years. Drawing on hundreds of in-depth interviews with government officials and religious leaders in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Morocco, and Turkey, Jonathan Laurence challenges the widespread notion that Europe s Muslim minorities represent a threat to liberal democracy. He documents how European governments in the 1970s and 1980s excluded Islam from domestic institutions, instead inviting foreign powers like Saudi Arabia, Algeria, and Turkey to oversee the practice of Islam among immigrants in European host societies. But since the 1990s, amid rising integration problems and fears about terrorism, governments have aggressively stepped up efforts to reach out to their Muslim communities and incorporate them into the institutional, political, and cultural fabrics of European democracy. The Emancipation of Europe s Muslims places these efforts--particularly the government-led creation of Islamic councils--within a broader theoretical context and gleans insights from government interactions with groups such as trade unions and Jewish communities at previous critical junctures in European state-building. By examining how statemosque relations in Europe are linked to the ongoing struggle for religious and political authority in the Muslim-majority world, Laurence sheds light on the geopolitical implications of a religious minority s transition from outsiders to citizens. This book offers a much-needed reassessment that foresees the continuing integration of Muslims into European civil society and politics in the coming decades. Islam and Public Controversy in Europe, Nilüfer Göle (edt); Ashgate; 286 pages 2014 The public visibility of Islam is becoming increasingly controversial throughout European countries. With case studies drawn from France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK, this book examines a range of public issues, including mosque construction, ritual slaughter, Sharia councils and burqa bans, addressing the question of Islamic difference in public life outside the confines of established normative discourses that privilege freedom of religion, minority rights or multiculturalism. Acknowledging the creative role of dissent, it explores the manner in which public controversies unsettle the religious-secular divide and reshape European norms in the domains of aesthetics, individual freedom, animal rights and law. Developing an innovative conceptual framework and elaborating the notion of controversy as a methodological tool, Islam and Public Controversy in Europe draws our attention to the processes of interaction, confrontation and mutual transformation, thereby opening up a new horizon for rethinking difference and pluralism in Europe. As such, it will appeal to scholars across the social sciences with interests in religion, integration, cultural difference and the public sphere.

103 Book Review and Notes 103

104 104 Hizmet Studies Review v.1 n.1 Call for Conributors Hizmet Studies Review Issue : 2 (Spring 2015) The second issue of the journal (Spring 2015) will examine the concept of dialogue and tolerance of the Movement, dialogue intercultural activities in the Movement. Articles on the following questions are particularly welcome: What are Gülen s motivations for dialogue; theology or pragmatism? Does he develop a theology of dialogue? Does it entail converting others to Islam? Does it have anything to do with countering negative stereotyping of Islam? Are their limits to this dialogue? If so, what? Is dialogue solely restricted to dialogue organisations within the Movement? How are Gülen-inspired dialogue organisations evolving? What input do dialogue organisations have on the Movement? Has the Movements dialogue efforts achieved tangible outcomes to date? Which groups are opposed to dialogue and why? Is this a form of tajdid (renewal)? How is dialogue transforming the Movement? How far can Gülen s dialogue-theology/practice influence the wider society where Hizmet participants live? Finding solutions to common problems. What role has dialogue to play? Further Reading Sleap, F. & O. Sener (2014). Gülen on Dialogue, London, Centre for Hizmet Studies. Kurucan, A. & M. K. Erol (2012). Dialogue in Islam, Qur an Sunnah History, London, Dialogue Society. Yavuz, M. H. (2013). Toward an Islamic Enlightenment : The Gülen Movement, New York, Oxford University Press, Chapter 8, pp Vainovski-Mihai, I. (2010). The Limits of Otherness in Fethullah Gülen s Dialogic Methodology for Interfaith Encounters in Islam and Peacebuilding : Gülen Movement Initiatives (John L. Esposito and İhsan Yılmaz edts), New York, Blue Dome Press. Kayaoğlu, T. (2010). Preachers of Dialogue : Internatinoal Relations and Interfaith Theology in Islam and Peacebuilding : Gülen Movement Initiatives (John L. Esposito and İhsan Yılmaz edts), New York, Blue Dome Press. Pratt, D. (2010). Islamic Prospects for Interreligious Dialogue : The Voice of Fethullah Gülen in Islam and Peacebuilding : Gülen Movement Initiatives (John L. Esposito and İhsan Yılmaz edts), New York, Blue Dome Press. Gülen, F. (2009). Toward A Global Civilization of Love and Tolerance, New Jersey, Tughra Books.

105 105 Weller, P. (2005) Fethullah Gülen, Religions, Globalization and Dialogue in Muslim Citizens of the Globalized World: Contributions of the Gülen Movement, Robert A. Hunt and Yüksel A. Aslandoğan (edts), The Light, Inc. & IID Press. Kurtz, Lester R. (2005) Gulen s Paradox: Combining Commitment and Tolerance, The Muslim World, Vol 95, pp The envisioned time frame for submissions is as following: deadline for call for abstracts (about 750 words) decision on abstracts full paper submission review process, feedback to authors resubmission Please send your abstract by no later than November 15 th 2014 to: Erkan Toguslu, erkan.toguslu@soc.kuleuven.be. For details regarding submissions please visit:

106 Modern Islamic Thinking and Activism: Dynamics in the West and in the Middle East E. Toğuşlu and J. Leman, edts.; 2013; Leuven, Leuven University Press. Modern Islamic Thinking and Activism presents a series of scholarly papers in relation to Islamic thinking, activism, and politics in both the West and the Middle East. The reader will apprehend that Islam is not the monolithic religion so often depicted in the media or (earlier) in the academic world. The Islamic world is more than a uniform civilization with a set of petrified religious prescriptions and an outdated view on political and social organization. The contributions show the dynamics of Islam at work in different geographical and social contexts. By treating the working of Islamic thinking and of Islamic activism on a practical level, Modern Islamic Thinking and Activism includes innovative research and fills a significant gap in existing work.

107 Instructions for Authors Technical guidelines - Manuscripts are accepted in English and in French. Any consistent spelling and punctuation styles may be used. Long quotations should be indented without quotation marks. - Articles should be words in length, unless they are Research Notes, which should be no longer than 3000 words. - References should follow the MLA style (MLA Handbook). - Manuscripts should be compiled in the following order: title page; abstract; main text; acknowledgements; references; appendices (as appropriate); table(s) with caption(s) (on individual pages); figure caption(s) (as a list). No text should appear in the header or footer. - Abstracts of words are required for all manuscripts submitted. - Articles should be typed on one side of paper, double-spaced with ample margins, and bear the title of the contribution. - Articles need to be ready for peer review. Therefore, there should not be any indication in the text or references, which identifies the author(s). - Tables and figures need to be on separate sheets, not included as part of the main text. Captions should be gathered together and typed out on a separate sheet. Tables should be numbered by Roman numerals and figures by Arabic numerals. The approximate position of tables and figures should be indicated in the manuscript. Captions should include keys to symbols. Tables should be provided in an editable format (ideally using Word table tool). They should not be inserted picture files. - Name(s) of the author(s) and contact details (postal and addresses) should appear on a separate cover sheet. Ensure that the full postal address, name, and contact of the author who will check proofs and receive correspondence are on the front cover sheet. Please note that the address of the corresponding author will normally be displayed in the article PDF (depending on the journal style) and the online article. - An electronic version of the article should be sent to the Editor as an attachment. - All correspondence regarding submissions should be sent to: Dr. Erkan Toğuşlu, Editor, Hizmet Studies Review, Parkstraat 45, 3000 Leuven, KU Leuven, e.mail: erkan.toguslu@soc.kuleuven.be - Section headings should be concise. - Please supply a short biographical note (max 150 words) for each author. - Please note that submissions that do not confirm to these guidelines will be returned to the author for correction and will not progress to peer review. Research Articles; may be anywhere from 5,000 words to 8,000 words in length. Research Notes; the journal publishes research notes of between 2,000 words to 3,500 words. These are shorter than major articles and are restricted to straightforward presentation of initial research results. Research notes are submitted in the same way as research articles, although authors should indicate whether their work is intended as a research article or note. Forum-Debate-Commentaries, no more than 1,500 words that further substantive discussion of significant topics that may be appeared in the journal, may be published at the editor-in-chiefis discretion. Presentation and Submission Protocol - Authors are expected to have checked their own papers for spelling and grammar before submission; authors whose first language is not English are advised to engage assistance. Authors should remember that they are writing for an international audience and explain local concepts adequately. - Papers submitted to HSR for publication should not be under review with another journal or editior of a collection of essays and should not have been published elsewhere. - Authors must sign a transfer of copyright form before publication. - Authors will be kept informed regarding the process of their submission. References should follow the Modern Language Association (MLA) system. They should be indicated in the typescript by giving the author s name followed by any relevant page number (Charles ) or if there is more than one author with the same name, add the first initial (T. Charles 15; B. Charles 43). The references sholud be listed in full alphabetically at the end of the paper in the following standart form: Proofs will be sent to authors if there is sufficient time to do so. They should be corrected and returned to the editor within 48 hours. Major alterations to the text cannot be accepted.

108 Hizmet Studies Review Hizmet Studies Review (HSR) is a scholarly peer-reviewed international journal on the Hizmet Movement. It provides interdisciplinary forum for critical research and reflection upon the development of Fethullah Gülen s ideas and Gülen Movement (Hizmet movement). Its aim is to publish research and analysis that discuss Fethullah Gülen s ideas, views and intellectual legacy and Hizmet Movement s wider social, cultural and educational activities. The HSR publishes peer-reviewed articles, review essays and the journal aims to keep readers informed with commentaries, practical notes and reviews of recently published books-articles on Hizmet Movement. We welcome theoretical papers; the case studies and fieldworks; particularly critical thoughts that are neither hagiographic nor prejudiced but are well researched and aim to study the subject matter. We welcome contributions from all disciplines. HSR welcomes work covering a range of topics, and invites articles, reviews, critiques on Hizmet Movement and Gülen. This includes contributions dealing with but not restricted to: - Research on and analysis of Fethullah Gülen s writings - Gülen s place in Islamic tradition - Gülen s views on a broad topics (education, dialogue, charity, citizenship, politics, science, Sufism) - Hizmet movement s nature and characteristics - Comparisons with other religious-philosophical figures and movements - Countering violence and terror - Muslim integration in the West - The role of women in public life and in the movement - Charity activities - The resolution of social, ethnic, and religious conflict HSR appears biannually in Autumn and Spring. HSR is edited at the KU Leuven in Belgium, at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Gülen Chair for Intercultural Studies. ISSN: