Fethullah Gülen

{{Short description|Turkish scholar, theologian and dissident (1941–2024)}} {{pp-extended|small=yes}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}} {{Infobox philosopher |image = Fethullah Gülen.webp |caption = Gülen in 2012 |name = Fethullah Gülen |birth_name = Muhammed Fethullah Gülen |birth_date = {{birth date|1941|04|27|df=y}} |birth_place = Pasinler, Erzurum, Turkey |death_date = {{death date and age|2024|10|20|1941|04|27|df=y}} |death_place = Pennsylvania, U.S. |resting_place = Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.  |alma_mater = |occupation = {{flatlist| * Scholar * author * preacher }} |known_for = Gülen movement |signature = Fethullah Gulen signature.svg |website = {{URL|fgulen.com}} |school_tradition = Hanafi<ref>Erol Nazim Gulay, ''The Theological thought of Fethullah Gulen: Reconciling Science and Islam'' (St Antony's College Oxford University May 2007). p. 57</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Duderija |first1=Adis |title=Maqasid al-Shari'a and Contemporary Reformist Muslim Thought: An Examination |date=2014 |publisher=Springer |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q12oBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT145 |quote=Still, Gulen repeatedly states that he propagates neither tajdīd, nor ijtihād, nor reform and that he is just a follower of Islam, simply a Muslim. He is very careful about divorcing himself from any reformist, political, or Islamist discourse. Gulen's conscious dislike of using Islam as a discursive political instrument, which was a distinct trait in Nursi as well, indicates an ethicalized approach to Islam from a spiritual perspective. |isbn=9781137319418}}</ref> |main_interests = {{Ubl | Islamic thought | Moderate Anatolian Sufism<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.the-american-interest.com/2019/12/03/its-not-us-its-him/ |title=It's Not Us—It's Him|date=3 December 2019}}</ref> }} | module = {{Infobox writer | embed = yes | genre =  | subject = {{Blist | Moderate Islam | Turkish politics | Anti-communism | Neo-Ottomanism | Universal education | Interfaith dialogue among people of the Book (''Ahl al-kitab'') and by extension all peoples<ref>{{cite web |url=https://davidbcapes.com/articles/not-so-brief-articles/reclaiming-tolerance-a-j-conyers-and-fethullah-gulen/ |title=Reclaiming Tolerance: A. J. Conyers and Fethullah Gülen |first=Matt |last=Horne |date=24 January 2013}}</ref> | Peace-building <ref>{{cite web |last1=Ihsan |first1=Yilmaz |last2=L. |first2=Esposito |url=https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2677923 |title=Islam and Peacebuilding: Gülen Movement Initiatives |date=2010 |ssrn=2677923 |accessdate=31 October 2025 }}</ref> }} | movement = Nurcu | notablework = The Essentials of the Islamic Faith | awards = 2015 Gandhi King Ikeda Award for Peace<ref>{{cite web |url=https://theatlanticinstitute.org/atlanta/gandhi-king-ikeda-award-peace-ceremony |title=Gandhi King Ikeda Award for Peace Ceremony |last=jgibbs |date=23 April 2015 |publisher=The Atlantic Institute |access-date=18 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180418225404/https://theatlanticinstitute.org/atlanta/gandhi-king-ikeda-award-peace-ceremony |archive-date=18 April 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://rumiforum.org/fethullah-gulen-awarded-the-2015-gandhi-king-ikeda-peace-award/ |title=Fethullah Gulen Awarded the 2015 Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award |publisher=Rumi Forum |date=18 May 2015}}</ref> }} }}

'''Muhammed Fethullah Gülen''' (27 April 1941 – 20 October 2024) was a Turkish Muslim scholar, preacher, and leader of the Gülen movement,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/turkeys-recep-tayyip-erdogan-turns-on-former-brother-in-arms-fethullah-gulen-1469058504 |title=Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan Turns on Former Brother-in-Arms Fethullah Gulen |first=Emre |last=Peker |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |date=21 July 2016}}</ref><ref name="nytimes.com">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/05/world/europe/turkey-erdogan-fethullah-gulen.html |title=Turkey Issues a Warrant for Fethullah Gulen, Cleric Accused in Coup |first=Ceylan |last=Yeginsu |date=4 August 2016 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref> which as of 2010 had 8-10 million of followers globally and had established a network of over 2,000 STEM focused schools in more than 150 countries.<ref name="NYT-15-7-2016">{{cite news |title=More Coverage: Coup Attempt in Turkey |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/live/turkey-coup-erdogan/who-is/ |access-date=16 May 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=15 July 2016}}</ref><ref name="Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh p 38" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Research Center |first=Pew |date=2010-09-15 |title=Gülen Movement |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2010/09/15/muslim-networks-and-movements-in-western-europe-gulen-movement/ |access-date=2025-12-06 |website=Pew Research Center |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":4" /> Gülen was an influential neo-Ottomanist,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://rlp.hds.harvard.edu/faq/fethullah-g%C3%BClen |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327090655/https://rlp.hds.harvard.edu/faq/fethullah-g%C3%BClen |url-status=dead |archive-date=27 March 2019 |title=Fethullah Gülen |publisher=Harvard}}</ref> Anatolian panethnicist,{{clarify|date=October 2024}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Yılmaz |first=İhsan |title=Beyond Post-Islamism: Transformation of Turkish Islamism Toward 'Civil Islam' and Its Potential Influence in the Muslim World |pages=260–261}}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{cite news |url=http://www.forbes.com/business/2008/01/18/turkey-islam-gulen-cx_0121oxford |title=Gulen Inspires Muslims Worldwide |website=Forbes}}{{dead link|date=January 2022|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Islamic poet, writer,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://en.fgulen.com/gulens-works |title=Gülen's Works |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site |access-date=24 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140911020221/http://en.fgulen.com/gulens-works |archive-date=11 September 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> social critic, and activist–dissident developing a Nursian theological perspective<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/25/world/middleeast/turkey-feels-sway-of-fethullah-gulen-a-reclusive-cleric.html |title=Turkey Feels Sway of Fethullah Gulen, a Reclusive Cleric |last1=Bilefsky |first1=Dan |date=24 April 2012 |last2=Arsu |first2=Sebnem |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |access-date=8 March 2016}}</ref> that embraces democratic modernity.<ref name="auto1" /> Gülen was a local state imam from 1959 to 1981<ref>{{cite web |title=Progressive Islamic Thought, Civil Society and the Gülen Movement in the National Context: Parallels with Indonesia |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site |url=https://fgulen.com/en/gulen-movement/conference-papers/the-fethullah-gulen-movement-i/25569-progressive-islamic-thought-civil-society-and-the-gulen-movement-in-the-national-context-parallels-with-indonesia}}</ref><ref name="Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh p 26">Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh, ''The Gülen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam'', p 84. {{ISBN|1402098944}}</ref> and he was a citizen of Turkey until his denaturalization by the Turkish government in 2017.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.turkishminute.com/2017/06/05/turkey-to-revoke-citizenship-of-130-abroad-including-gulen-hdp-deputies/ |title=Turkey to revoke citizenship of 130 abroad including Gülen, HDP deputies |website=Turkish Minute |date=5 June 2017}}</ref> Over the years, Gülen became a centrist political figure in Turkey prior to his being there as a fugitive. From 21 March 1999 until his death on 20 October 2024, Gülen lived in self-exile in the United States near Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania.<ref name=":8">{{cite news |url=https://www.poconorecord.com/photogallery/PR/20100416/PHOTOS1013/416009999/PH/1 |title=Photos: Muslim retreat center in Saylorsburg |website=Pocono Record |access-date=17 December 2018}}</ref><ref name=":9">{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-turkey-gulen-20140120-story.html |title=From his Pa. compound, Fethullah Gulen shakes up Turkey |date=20 January 2014 |work=Los Angeles Times}}</ref><ref name=":10">{{cite news |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/fethullah-gulens-pennsylvania-home-2013-12 |title=Fethullah Gulen's Pennsylvania Home |author=Adam Taylor |date=18 December 2013 |work=Business Insider}}</ref> Gülen's body was buried inside the Chestnut Retreat Center in Pennsylvania, where he had been residing for the last 25 years.<ref name="Associated Press" >{{cite news|url=https://apnews.com/article/fethullah-gulen-turkey-dead-funeral-burial-69336b5a23988b0c2c350a4799ff6c51 |title=Thousands mourn Fethullah Gülen, a Turkish spiritual leader who died in the US |publisher=Associated Press |date=25 October 2024 |accessdate=26 October 2024}}</ref> 15,000 attended his funeral in a stadium in New Jersey.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |last=Adely |first=Hannan |title=Thousands attended this funeral at Skylands stadium. Why did the death resonate so deeply? |url=https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/2024/10/29/gulen-funeral-at-skylands-baseball-stadium/75901581007/ |access-date=2025-11-21 |website=North Jersey Media Group |language=en-US}}</ref>

Gülen said his social criticisms are focused upon individuals' faith and morality and a lesser extent toward political ends,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36855846 |title=Turkey coup: What is Gulen movement and what does it want? |publisher=BBC News |date=21 July 2016}}</ref> and self described as rejecting an Islamist political philosophy, advocating instead for full participation within professions, society, and political life by religious and secular individuals who profess high moral or ethical principles and who wholly support secular rule, within Muslim-majority countries and elsewhere.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gulenmovement.com/is-fethullah-gulen-an-islamist.html |title=Is Fethullah Gülen an Islamist? |date=15 May 2012 |website=Gulen Movement}}</ref> Gülen was described in the English-language media as an imam "who promoted a tolerant Islam which emphasises altruism, hard work, and education" and as "one of the world's most important Muslim figures".<ref name="economist10808408" /><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-13503361 |title=Profile: Fethullah Gulen's Hizmet movement |newspaper=BBC News |date=18 December 2013}}</ref> He encouraged his followers to establish secular schools, charities, interest-free banks, and organizations across all areas of society. In 2016, when Erdoğan government began openly targeting the movement, they seized assets worth over $12 billion, including 1,043 private schools, 1,229 charities and foundations, 19 trade unions, 15 universities, and 35 medical institutions linked to the movement.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Gareth |date=23 July 2016 |title=Turkey's Erdogan signs first decree under state of emergency |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/world/turkey-s-erdogan-signs-first-decree-under-state-of-emergency-idUSKCN1030D1/ |access-date=10 October 2025 |website=Reuters}}</ref> Total number of schools opened by Gulen followers globally exceeded 2000 by the same year. <ref>{{Cite news |date=2014-01-21 |title=Map of Gülen's 2,000 educational enterprises in 160 countries |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304757004579332870328602110 |access-date=2025-12-20 |work=Wall Street Journal |language=en-US |issn=0099-9660}}</ref>

In 2003, a number of Gülen movement participants allied with Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's right wing Justice and Development Party (AKP), providing the AKP political and sorely-needed administrative support.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2013/10/turkeys-gulen-movement-between-social-activism-and-politics?lang=en|title=Turkey's Gülen Movement: Between Social Activism and Politics|first1=Bayram|last1=Balci|website=Carnegie Endowment for International Peace |date=24 October 2013 }}</ref><ref name="telegraph.co.uk">{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/turkey/11397876/A-parallel-state-within-Turkey-How-the-countrys-democracy-came-under-attack-from-two-mens-rivalry.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/turkey/11397876/A-parallel-state-within-Turkey-How-the-countrys-democracy-came-under-attack-from-two-mens-rivalry.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=A parallel state within Turkey? How the country's democracy came under attack from two men's rivalry|first=Raziye|last=Akkoc|date=24 February 2015|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{cite news|last=Birnbaum |first=Michael |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/erdogan-offers-concessions-to-turkeys-protesters/2013/06/14/9a87fff6-d4bf-11e2-a73e-826d299ff459_story.html |title=In Turkey protests, splits in Erdogan's base |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=14 June 2013 |access-date=21 September 2017}}</ref> According to some research, the cooperation between AKP and the Gulen movement was a shallow, tactical alliance that got stronger in 2007 due to perceived threats of a coup, which both groups believed would harm their interests.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Big Split: the Differences That Led Erdogan and the Gulen Movement to Part Ways |url=https://turkeyanalyst.org/publications/turkey-analyst-articles/item/296-the-big-split-the-differences-that-led-erdogan-and-the-gulen-movement-to-part-ways.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com |access-date=2025-11-14 |website=turkeyanalyst.org |language=en}}</ref>{{AI-retrieved source|date=March 2026|checked=no}} This political alliance worked together to weaken left-of-center Kemalist factions, but fractured in 2011. In 2013 Gulen criticized Erdogan's harsh response to the Gezi Park protestors.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Turkey's Gülen Movement: Between Social Activism and Politics |url=https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2013/10/turkeys-gulen-movement-between-social-activism-and-politics?lang=en |access-date=2025-11-27 |website=Carnegie Endowment for International Peace | date=24 October 2013 |language=en}}</ref> Later in the year a major corruption scandal erupted which led to resignation of 4 ministers from Erdogan cabinet. Turkish prosecutors accused Gülen of attempts to overthrow the government by allegedly directing politically motivated corruption investigations by Gülen-linked investigators then in the judiciary,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fpri.org/article/2016/09/damaging-democracy-u-s-fethullah-gulen-turkeys-upheaval/|title=Damaging Democracy: The U.S., Fethullah Gülen, and Turkey's Upheaval |publisher=Foreign Policy Research Institute}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=The Gulen movement: a self-exiled imam challenges Turkey's Erdoğan |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2013/1229/The-Gulen-movement-a-self-exiled-imam-challenges-Turkey-s-Erdogan |newspaper=The Christian Science Monitor |date=29 December 2013 |access-date=31 December 2013}}</ref> who wiretapped the executive office of the Turkish president .<ref name="nytimes.com"/> The leaked conversation between Erdogan and his son, which triggered the corruption scandal was viewed by 3 million people in 24 hours on YouTube.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Solovieva |first=Daria |date=2014-02-25 |title=Leaked Calls Land Turkish PM in Corruption Scandal |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/leaked-calls-land-turkish-pm-in-corruption-scandal/ |access-date=2025-11-14 |website=VICE |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=AA |date=2013-12-25 |title=Üç bakan istifa etti |url=https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/uc-bakan-istifa-etti-25438044 |access-date=2025-11-14 |website=www.hurriyet.com.tr |language=tr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2013-12-25 |title=Corruption Scandal Is Edging Near Turkish Premier (Published 2013) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/26/world/europe/turkish-cabinet-members-resign.html?pagewanted=1&_r=0&hp |access-date=2025-11-14 |language=en}}</ref> Erdogan later accused Gülen to be the mastermind of the 2016 Turkish coup attempt,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Access Restricted |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/08/02/erdogan-accuses-west-of-writing-the-script-for-turkey-coup/ |access-date=2025-12-19 |website=www.telegraph.co.uk |date=2 August 2016 }}</ref> Gülen denied the accusations, and called for an international commission to investigate it, saying he'd accept its findings if found guilty.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Shalal |first=Andrea |date=September 23, 2016 |title=Turkish cleric calls for international body to examine coup charges |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/world/turkish-cleric-calls-for-international-body-to-examine-coup-charges-idUSKCN11T2C4/ |access-date= |website=Reuters}}</ref>

A Turkish criminal court issued an arrest warrant for Gülen in 2016,<ref>{{cite news|title=Istanbul court issues new arrest warrant for Gulen|url=http://aa.com.tr/en/turkey/istanbul-court-issues-new-arrest-warrant-for-gulen/407559|publisher=Anadolu Agency|access-date=29 January 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Turkish Court accepts prosecutors request of arrest warrant for Fethullah Gülen|url=http://www.dailysabah.com/investigations/2014/12/19/the-court-issues-an-arrest-warrant-for-fethullah-gulen|work=Daily Sabah|date=19 December 2014|access-date=29 January 2016}}</ref> and Turkey demanded his extradition from the United States.<ref name="trtworld.com">{{cite news |title=Gulen faces life in prison on coup attempt charges |url=http://www.trtworld.com/turkey/gulen-faces-life-in-prison-on-coup-attempt-charges-8742 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160203235245/http://www.trtworld.com/turkey/gulen-faces-life-in-prison-on-coup-attempt-charges-8742 |archive-date=3 February 2016 |access-date=29 January 2016 |website=TRT World |language=tr-TR}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Turkey to demand extradition of Fethullah Gulen from US|url=http://www.trtworld.com/turkey/turkey-to-demand-extradition-of-fethullah-gulen-from-us-27389|work=TRT World|access-date=29 January 2016|language=tr-TR|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160203232053/http://www.trtworld.com/turkey/turkey-to-demand-extradition-of-fethullah-gulen-from-us-27389|archive-date=3 February 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Turkish prosecutors seek life sentence for Fetullah Gulen|url=http://aa.com.tr/en/turkey/turkish-prosecutors-seek-life-sentence-for-fetullah-gulen/396307 |publisher=Anadolu Agency |access-date=29 January 2016}}</ref> U.S. government officials did not believe he was associated with any terrorist activity, and requested evidence to be provided by the Turkish government to substantiate the allegations in the warrant requesting extradition, frequently rejecting Turkish calls for his extradition.<ref name="aktif">{{cite web|url=http://www.aktifhaber.com/prof-dr-henri-barkeyden-gulen-hareketi-ile-ilgili-carpici-aciklama-1316990h.htm|title=Prof. Dr. Henri Barkey: Nobody in Wash, DC believes that Gulen is terrorist|work=aktif haber|date=9 March 2016|access-date=10 March 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310102045/http://www.aktifhaber.com/prof-dr-henri-barkeyden-gulen-hareketi-ile-ilgili-carpici-aciklama-1316990h.htm|archive-date=10 March 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://medyascope.tv/2016/03/09/henri-barkey-ile-soylesi-washington-gulen-cemaatine-nasil-bakiyor/|title=How does Washington view Gulen group|work=medyascope.tv|date=9 March 2016|access-date=10 March 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.trtworld.com/in-depth/turkey-challenged-by-terror-in-2015-17588|title=Turkey challenged by terror in 2015|work=TRT World|language=tr-TR|access-date=7 April 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310112222/http://www.trtworld.com/in-depth/turkey-challenged-by-terror-in-2015-17588|archive-date=10 March 2016}}</ref>

Gülen was designated as a terrorist leader in Turkey<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-gulen-idUSKCN0YM167|title=Turkey officially designates Gulen religious group as terrorists|date=31 May 2016 |publisher=Reuters}}</ref> and Pakistan{{Primary source inline|date=December 2025}}, and some politically aligned organisations like the OIC<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.dailysabah.com/war-on-terror/2016/10/19/organization-of-islamic-cooperation-declares-feto-a-terrorist-group|title=Organization of Islamic Cooperation declares FETÖ a terrorist group|website=DailySabah|date=19 October 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161019-oic-lists-gulen-network-as-terror-group/|title=OIC lists Gulen network as 'terror group'|date=19 October 2016}}</ref> and GCC.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161014-gcc-declare-feto-a-terrorist-organisation/|title=GCC declare Gulen group a 'terrorist organisation'|date=14 October 2016}}</ref> However, neither Gulen nor the Gulen movement is recognized as a terrorist organization by the European Union,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tulay Karadeniz and Tuvan Gumrukcu |title=EU says needs concrete evidence from Turkey to deem Gulen network as terrorist |url=https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-eu-turkey-security/eu-says-needs-concrete-evidence-from-turkey-to-deem-gulen-network-as-terrorist-idUKKBN1DU0DV |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171130065542/https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-eu-turkey-security/eu-says-needs-concrete-evidence-from-turkey-to-deem-gulen-network-as-terrorist-idUKKBN1DU0DV |archive-date=2017-11-30 |access-date=2025-10-28 |work=U.K. |language=en-GB}}</ref> the United States, the United Kingdom,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Repression or recovery? UK's relations with Turkey - Committees - UK Parliament |url=https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/78/foreign-affairs-committee/news/103430/uk-relations-with-turkey-report-published-16-17/ |access-date=2025-10-28 |website=committees.parliament.uk |language=en}}</ref> Canada,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Government |first=Canadian |title=Responses to Information Request |url=https://www.irb-cisr.gc.ca/en/country-information/rir/Pages/index.aspx?doc=459001 |access-date=27 October 2025 |website=Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada}}</ref> Australia and New Zealand due to lack of credible evidence. Between 2016 and 2024 an estimated 3,000,000 citizens of Turkey were tried for terrorism charges and 511,000 arrested for alleged links to the Gülen movement. <ref>{{Cite web |title=Die Gülen-Bewegung im Exil: Wiederbelebung in der Diaspora |url=https://www.giga-hamburg.de/de/publikationen/giga-focus/die-guelen-bewegung-im-exil-wiederbelebung-in-der-diaspora |access-date=2025-12-19 |website=www.giga-hamburg.de |language=de-DE}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-11-21 |title=Her 6 kişiden sadece 1'i suçlu bulundu: 2016-2024 arasında 3 milyon kişiye 'terörist' suçlaması yapıldı |url=https://aktifhaber.com/genel/her-6-kisiden-sadece-1i-suclu-bulundu-2016-2024-arasinda-3-milyon-kisiye-terorist-suclamasi-yapildi.html |access-date=2025-12-19 |website=Aktifhaber |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Biography==

Muhammed Fethullah Gülen<ref name="auto">{{cite news|url=http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780195390155/obo-9780195390155-0106.xml|title=Muhammed Fethullah Gülen – Islamic Studies – Oxford Bibliographies – obo|access-date=15 January 2017}}</ref> was born in the village of Korucuk, near Erzurum,<ref name="renisl">{{cite book|last=Valkenberg|first=Pim|title=Renewing Islam by Service|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GtACCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA72|year=2015|publisher=CUA Press|isbn=978-0-8132-2755-9|page=72}}</ref><ref name="Çelik2010">{{cite book|last=Çelik|first=Gürkan|title=The Gülen Movement: Building Social Cohesion Through Dialogue and Education|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=74NNy-ypzO0C&pg=PA42|year=2010|publisher=Eburon Uitgeverij B.V.|isbn=978-90-5972-369-6|page=42}}</ref> to Ramiz and Refia Gülen,<ref>{{cite book|last=Marty|first=Martin E.|author-link=Martin E. Marty|title=Hizmet Means Service: Perspectives on an Alternative Path within Islam|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sMdRCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA19|year=2015|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-96074-9|page=19}}</ref> There is some dispute over his date of birth. According to some accounts, usually older ones, he was born on 10 November 1938, while others state his birth was on 27 April 1941.<ref name="renisl" /><ref name="begend">{{cite book|last=Wagner|first=Walter H.|title=Beginnings and Endings|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qHe6BwAAQBAJ&pg=PT11|year=2015|publisher=Işık Yayıncılık Ticaret|isbn=978-1-935295-70-9|page=11}}</ref> State documents support the 1941 date,<ref name="renisl" /><ref name="begend" /> which is now the accepted date,<ref name="renisl" /><ref name="begend" /> used on Gülen's English website.<ref name="renisl" /> (Some commentators note that 10 November 1938 was the date of the death of the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and suggest that the date was chosen for its political significance.<ref name="renisl" /><ref name="Haynes2013">{{cite book|last=Haynes|first=Jeffrey|title=Religion and Democratizations|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=efHbAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA189|year=2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-317-98646-1|page=189}}</ref> An alternative explanation for the discrepancy offered by one of Gülen's close students, and biographer, was that his parents waited three years to register his birth.)<ref name="hengul">{{cite book|last=Hendrick|first=Joshua D.|title=Gülen: The Ambiguous Politics of Market Islam in Turkey and the World|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-nwTCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA70|year=2014|publisher=NYU Press|isbn=978-1-4798-0046-9|pages=70–1}}</ref>

Gülen's father was an imam.<ref name="gulmov23">{{cite book|last=Ebaugh|first=Helen Rose|author-link=Helen Rose Ebaugh|title=The Gülen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MWEePOkKpkoC&pg=PA23|year=2009|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=978-1-4020-9894-9|page=23}}</ref> His mother taught the Qur'an in their village, despite such informal religious instruction being banned by the Kemalist government.<ref name="Ebaugh2009">{{cite book|last=Ebaugh|first=Helen Rose|author-link=Helen Rose Ebaugh|title=The Gülen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MWEePOkKpkoC&pg=PA24|year=2009|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=978-1-4020-9894-9|page=24}}</ref> Gülen's secular formal education ended when his family moved to another village.<ref name="gulmov23" /><ref>{{cite book|last=Marty|first=Martin E.|author-link=Martin E. Marty|title=Hizmet Means Service: Perspectives on an Alternative Path within Islam|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sMdRCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA20+|year=2015|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-96074-9|page=20}}</ref> He took part in Islamic education in some Erzurum madrasas<ref name="fg_edu">{{cite web |url=https://fgulen.com/en/fethullah-gulens-life/about-fethullah-gulen/biography/24652-years-of-education |title=Gulen-Years of Education |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site |access-date=8 December 2014}}</ref> and was influenced by the ideas of Kurdish scholar Said Nursi.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://ijh.cgpublisher.com/product/pub.26/prod.1529 |title=The Gulen Movement: Communicating Modernization, Tolerance, and Dialogue in the Islamic World. |work=The International Journal of the Humanities |volume=6 |issue=12 |pages=67–78 |publisher=International Journal of the Humanities Publisher |access-date=24 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140815051811/http://ijh.cgpublisher.com/product/pub.26/prod.1529 |archive-date=15 August 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> He gave his first sermon as a licensed state preacher in 1958, when he was in his teens.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.gulenmovement.com/fethullah-gulen/who-is-fethullah-gulen|title=Who is Fethullah Gülen – His Life|website=Gulen Movement}}</ref>

Gülen was appointed an assistant imam at Üç Şerefeli Mosque in Edirne, 6 August 1959, and thus joined in the Turkish civil service where he served<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://fgulen.com/tr/fethullah-gulen-hayat-kronolojisi/107-fgulen-com-turkce/hayati/hayat-kronolojisi/3502-fgulen-com-1941-1959-Hayat-Kronolojisi|title=1941–1959 Hayat Kronolojisi |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site}}</ref> until he retired from formal preaching duties in 1981.

While Gülen was teaching at the Kestanepazari Qur'anic School in İzmir in March 1971, the Turkish military seized control of the government in an attempt to quell domestic political violence. During its aftermath, Gülen was arrested for organizing a clandestine religious group based on his teachings and was imprisoned for seven months.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://fgulen.com/en/home/1341-fgulen-com-english/conference-papers/contributions-of-the-gulen-movement/25811-the-influence-of-the-gulen-movement-in-the-emergence-of-a-turkish-cultural-third-way|title=The Influence of the Gülen Movement in the Emergence of a Turkish Cultural Third Way |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site}}</ref>

Gülen's influence in civil society and number of followers grew steadily during the 1980s and 1990s.<ref name="DW-6-4-2018">{{cite news |last1=Sanderson |first1=Sertan |title=Fethullah Gulen: the man behind the myth |url=https://www.dw.com/en/from-ally-to-scapegoat-fethullah-gulen-the-man-behind-the-myth/a-37055485 |access-date=16 May 2024 |publisher=Deutsche Welle |date=6 April 2018}}</ref> From 1988 to 1991 he gave a series of sermons in popular mosques of major cities. He stressed importance of studying Science together with Islam, following Nursi's vision.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Gülen Movement: a modern expression of Turkish Islam – Interview with Hakan Yavuz – Religioscope |url=https://english.religion.info/2004/07/21/the-gulen-movement-a-modern-expression-of-turkish-islam-interview-with-hakan-yavuz/?utm_source=chatgpt.com |access-date=2025-12-06 |website=english.religion.info}}</ref>{{AI-retrieved source|date=March 2026|checked=no}} He encouraged his followers to establish STEM-focused schools, forming a global educational network of 2,000 schools across 160 countries by 2014.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2014-01-21 |title=Map of Gülen's 2,000 educational enterprises in 160 countries |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304757004579332870328602110 |access-date=2025-12-06 |work=Wall Street Journal |language=en-US |issn=0099-9660}}</ref> In 1994, he helped found the Journalists and Writers Foundation, which started dialogue among Muslims, secularists, traditionalists, atheists, Christians, leftists and modernists to discuss and debate common positions on key contemporary issues.<ref>{{Cite web |title=GYV |url=http://www.gyv.org.tr/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160717184412/http://www.gyv.org.tr/ |archive-date=2016-07-17 |access-date=2025-11-16 |website=www.gyv.org.tr}}</ref> He was later given the title of honorary president by the foundation.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://gyv.org.tr/Hakkimizda/Detay/19/About%20the%20Foundation |title=About the Journalists and Writers Foundation |access-date=1 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160627164935/http://gyv.org.tr/Hakkimizda/Detay/19/About%20the%20Foundation |archive-date=27 June 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> He avoided getting involved in politics and reportedly avoided making any comments about the forced closures of the Islamist Welfare Party in 1998<ref name="biu.ac.il">{{Cite web|url=https://www.biu.ac.il/SOC/besa/meria/journal/2000/issue4/jv4n4a4.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041212092651/https://www.biu.ac.il/SOC/besa/meria/journal/2000/issue4/jv4n4a4.html|url-status=dead|title=Biu.ac.il|archive-date=12 December 2004}}</ref> or the Virtue Party in 2001,<ref name="eupjournals.com">{{cite web |url=https://www.eupjournals.com/book/978-0-7486-1837-8 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130122161713/http://www.eupjournals.com/book/978-0-7486-1837-8 |url-status=dead |archive-date=22 January 2013 |title=Clement M. Henry, Rodney Wilson, The politics of Islamic Finance, Edinburgh University Press (2004), p 236 |work=Eupjournals.com |date=2004 |access-date=24 August 2014}}</ref> or meeting with the leaders of political Islamist parties,<ref name="eupjournals.com" /> although he did meet with some other politicians from both the left and the right like Turgut Özal,<ref>{{Cite web |title=What Future For the Fethullah Gülen Movement in Central Asia and the Caucasus? |url=https://carnegieendowment.org/posts/2014/07/what-future-for-the-fethullah-gulen-movement-in-central-asia-and-the-caucasus?lang=en |access-date=2025-10-26 |website=Carnegie Endowment for International Peace | date=2 July 2014 |language=en}}</ref> Tansu Çiller, Bülent Ecevit.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Başbakanlık, Bülent Ecevit- Fethullah Gülen görüşmesinin içeriğine dair bilgi ve belge bulamadı |url=https://t24.com.tr/haber/basbakanlik-bulent-ecevit-fethullah-gulen-gorusmesinin-icerigine-dair-bilgi-ve-belge-bulamadi,385410 |access-date=2025-10-26 |website=T24 |language=Turkish}}</ref>

===Coming to the United States=== In March 1999, Gülen relocated to the United States for medical treatment,<ref name="60min2012" /> and remained there until his death.<ref name="DW-6-4-2018"/> According to the Kemalist Turkish law of the time, intending to ensure modernity and secularism, non-state sanctioned religious endeavors were outlawed and Gülen was under investigation for subverting the government,<ref name="DW-6-4-2018"/> especially over remarks (aired after he immigrated to U.S.) which seemed to favor an Islamic state.<ref name="dw.com">{{cite news |url=https://www.dw.com/en/from-ally-to-scapegoat-fethullah-gulen-the-man-behind-the-myth/a-37055485|title=From ally to scapegoat: Fethullah Gulen, the man behind the myth |date=6 April 2018 |publisher=Deutsche Welle}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/374649.stm|publisher=BBC News|title=Turkish investigation into Islamic sect expanded|date=21 June 1999|access-date=2 May 2010}}</ref> In June 1999, after Gülen had left Turkey, videotapes were sent to some Turkish television stations with recordings of Gülen saying,

{{blockquote|The existing system is still in power. Our friends who have positions in legislative and administrative bodies should learn its details and be vigilant all the time so that they can transform it and be more fruitful on behalf of Islam in order to carry out a nationwide restoration. However, they should wait until the conditions become more favorable. In other words, they should not come out too early.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.eupjournals.com/book/978-0-7486-1837-8 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130122161713/http://www.eupjournals.com/book/978-0-7486-1837-8 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2013-01-22 |title=Clement M. Henry, Rodney Wilson, ''The Politics of Islamic Finance'', (Edinburgh University Press 2004), p. 236 |publisher=Eupjournals.com |date=2004 |access-date=24 August 2014}}</ref>}}

Gülen was tried ''in absentia'' in 2000, and found guilty of conspiring to embed his supporters into the Turkish civil service in important governmental offices to overthrow the government.<ref name="DW-6-4-2018"/> Gülen said his remarks were taken out of context,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://en.fgulen.com/content/view/973/14/ |title=Gülen's answers to claims made based on the video tapes taken from some of his recorded speeches |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site |date=24 September 2001 |access-date=24 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310075824/http://en.fgulen.com/content/view/973/14 |archive-date=10 March 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and his supporters raised questions about the authenticity of the tape,<ref>Dogan Koc, ''Strategic Defamation of Fethullah Gülen: English Vs. Turkish'', p. 24. {{ISBN|0761859306}}</ref> which he said had been "manipulated".

Gülen's conviction was reversed in 2008 under the new Justice and Development Party (AKP) government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan,<ref name="60min2012"/><ref name="autogenerated1">{{Cite web|url=https://wwrn.org/article.php?idd=21432|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927235413/https://wwrn.org/article.php?idd=21432|url-status=dead|title=Wwrn.org|archive-date=27 September 2007}}</ref> a move that signaled cooperation between Erdoğan's AKP (whose Islamist ideas were becoming increasingly popular),<ref name="DW-6-4-2018"/> and Gülen's movement (whose media, banking and educational network in Turkey and elsewhere was becoming increasingly powerful).<ref name="DW-6-4-2018"/>

Gülen applied for a "green card", i.e. permanent residence in the United States in 2002.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/17/turkeys-thirty-year-coup|title=Turkey's Thirty-Year Coup|first=Dexter|last=Filkins|magazine=The New Yorker}}</ref> After 11 September 2001, the U.S. increased its scrutiny of its domestic Islamic religious groups. Objecting to Gulen's residency application were the FBI, the State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security. Gülen first based his claim to residency on his being an alien of extraordinary ability as an education activist; the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services rejected it. Lawyers representing the Secretary of Homeland Security argued that Gülen has no degree or training in the field of education and questioned laudatory opinions about Gülen, cited by his lawyers, that had been expressed by scholars at academics conferences funded by Gulenist foundations. CIA National Intelligence Council former vice chairman Graham E. Fuller, former CIA official George Fidas and former US Ambassador to Turkey Morton Abramowitz wrote endorsement letters for Gülen's green card application in 2008.<ref>see Joshua D. Hendrick: Gülen: The Ambiguous Politics of Market Islam in Turkey and the World. New York University Press, 2013, 58–62.</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-nwTCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA61|title=Gülen: The Ambiguous Politics of Market Islam in Turkey and the World|last=Hendrick|first=Joshua D.|date=22 October 2014|publisher=NYU Press|isbn=9781479800469|pages=61|language=en}}</ref> The court ruled against the USCIS and in Gülen's favor, granting Gülen his green card.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/17/turkeys-thirty-year-coup |title=Turkey's Thirty-Year Coup |magazine=The New Yorker |access-date=7 September 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/20/world/europe/fethullah-gulen-erdogan-extradition.html|title=Turkey Pursues Cleric Living in U.S., Blamed as Coup Mastermind|last1=Arango|first1=Tim|date=19 July 2016|last2=Hubbard|first2=Ben|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=7 January 2017}}</ref>

With the advent of Erdoğanist Turkey in the 2000s, structural impediments to Muslims' participation in civil life were gradually lifted. Many of those educated in institutions sponsored by participants in civil-society endeavors that Gülen had inspired ended up as members of the Turkey's judiciary, its governmental apparatus, and its military. While Gulen's movement had consistently maintained that it stayed above politics, in the 2011 election its print and broadcast media suddenly came out in support of Erdogan and his party, leading to another big AKP victory.<ref name="DW-6-4-2018"/> In 2012, Erdoğan called on Gülen to return to Turkey, but Gülen did not take up the invitation.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-06-16 |title=Gülen followers glad over PM's return call - Türkiye News |url=https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/gulen-followers-glad-over-pms-return-call-23317 |access-date=2025-12-06 |website=Hürriyet Daily News |language=en}}</ref> But as Turkey's secular state was dismantled, tension grew between Erdogan and Gulen beginning with Erdogan's closing down of Gulen's network of university prep schools.<ref name="DW-6-4-2018"/>

In the period just prior to the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt, Erdoğanism changed in its perception of Gülenism from that of sometimes ally to a dangerous rival, attempting to construct a parallel state structure. On 19 December 2014, a Turkish court issued an arrest warrant for Gülen after over 20 journalists working for media outlets thought to be sympathetic to the Gülen movement were arrested. Gülen was accused of establishing and running an "armed terrorist group".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-30552148|title=Turkey issues Fethullah Gulen arrest warrant|publisher=BBC News|date=19 December 2014|access-date=19 December 2014}}</ref>

In a 2015 interview, Hikmet Çetinkaya—a veteran secularist journalist for Cumhuriyet newspaper and a long-time critic of Gülen—stated that he had been investigating the movement for 40 years and had faced 170 lawsuits filed by Gülen. However, he noted that he had never described Gülen or the movement as a terrorist organization and maintained that he would not do so, as he is someone to defend human rights, justice and democracy.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Haber3 |date=2015-10-31 |title=Hayat nelere kadir! |url=https://www.haber3.com/medya/hayat-nelere-kadir-haberi-4824832 |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=Haber3 |language=tr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Hikmet Çetinkaya - Expression Interrupted |url=https://www.expressioninterrupted.com/hikmet-cetinkaya/ |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=www.expressioninterrupted.com}}</ref>

Before and after the attempted putsch, Gülenists became the greatest portion of those caught up in the massive 2016–present purges in Turkey.<ref name="dw.com"/> Since the 2016 coup attempt, authorities tried over 3 million Turkish citizens for terrorism charges, arrested at least 511,000,<ref>{{Cite web |last=SCF |date=2022-12-13 |title=More than 2 million terrorism investigations launched in Turkey following failed coup: official data |url=https://stockholmcf.org/more-than-2-million-terrorism-investigations-launched-in-turkey-following-failed-coup-official-data/ |access-date=2025-10-26 |website=Stockholm Center for Freedom |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-11-21 |title=Her 6 kişiden sadece 1'i suçlu bulundu: 2016-2024 arasında 3 milyon kişiye 'terörist' suçlaması yapıldı |url=https://aktifhaber.com/genel/her-6-kisiden-sadece-1i-suclu-bulundu-2016-2024-arasinda-3-milyon-kisiye-terorist-suclamasi-yapildi.html |access-date=2025-11-26 |website=Aktifhaber |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Turkey |url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/turkey/ |publisher=United States Department of State}}</ref> and shut down entire network of schools, universities, hospitals, charities, and businesses allegedly associated with the Gülen movement in Turkey.<ref name="DW-6-4-2018"/>

===Later life and death=== Gülen had resided at the Hizmet movement-affiliated Chestnut Retreat Center, a 25-acre wooded estate in the Poconos (within Ross Township, Monroe County, Pennsylvania, near Saylorsburg).<ref name="poconorecord.com">{{cite news|url=https://www.poconorecord.com/news/20200825/chestnut-retreat-center-offers-look-inside-their-saylorsburg-facility-and-its-mission|title=Chestnut Retreat Center offers a look inside their Saylorsburg facility and its mission |work=Pocono Record}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-nws-fetullah-gulen-compound-investigation-20181003-story.html|title=Guard at Fethullah Gulen's compound in Poconos fires warning shot to scare away intruder, prompting police response|first1=Christina |last1=Tatu |first2=John |last2=Misinco |website=The Morning Call |date=3 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/fethullah-gulen-golden-generation/27952822.html|title=Turkey Blog: Turning Away From Gulen's 'Golden Generation'|publisher=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty|date=29 August 2016 |last1=Djavadi |first1=Abbas}}</ref> About thirty people used to live and work on the estate, owned by the Golden Generation Foundation.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/news/coup_plotter_or_moderate_religious_leader_yle_meets_turkeys_most_wanted_man/10149005|title=Coup plotter or moderate religious leader? Yle meets Turkey's most wanted man|website=Yle Uutiset |date=8 April 2018}}</ref> Never married, Gülen's own living quarters and study were within a pair of small rooms, whose rent he paid out of his publishing royalties and which contained a mattress on the floor, prayer mat, desk, bookshelves, and treadmill, within one of the estate's several structures, among which is a hall used as a mosque.<ref name="poconorecord.com"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.commentarymagazine.com/foreign-policy/middle-east/reconsidering-fethullah-gulen/ |title=Reconsidering Fethullah Gülen |magazine=Commentary |date=20 May 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/17/turkeys-thirty-year-coup |title=Turkey's Thirty-Year Coup |magazine=The New Yorker |access-date=18 October 2017}}</ref> Gülen was reported to be in ill health in his last years. In 2017, reports identified four candidates to succeed Gulen, if necessary, in leadership of the Hizmet movement: Mehmet Ali Şengül, Cevdet Türkyolu, Osman Şimşek and Ahmet Kurucan.<ref name="hurriyetdailynews1">{{cite news|url=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/followers-discuss-who-will-replace-gulen.aspx?pageID=238&nID=104881&NewsCatID=341|title=Followers discuss who will replace Gülen – Local|date=13 September 2011|work=Hürriyet Daily News |access-date=18 October 2017}}</ref>thumb|Gülen’s grave in the compound where he lived during the last 25 years of his life.Gülen died at a hospital in Pennsylvania on 20 October 2024, at the age of 83.<ref name="q236">{{cite news |last=Tharoor |first=Ishaan |title=Fethullah Gulen, Muslim cleric and target of Turkey's Erdogan, dies at 83 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=21 October 2024 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2024/10/21/fethullah-gulen-muslim-cleric-turkey-dead/ |access-date=21 October 2024}}</ref> He was being treated for heart and kidney failure at the time of his death.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/21/world/europe/fethullah-gulen-dead.html|title=Fethullah Gulen, Turkish Cleric and Erdogan Rival, Dies at 83|work=The New York Times|date=21 October 2024|accessdate=21 October 2024}}</ref> Due to the political situation in Turkey, he was buried on the grounds of the Chestnut Retreat Center, contrary to his wish to be interred in İzmir.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20241021-erdogan-rival-gulen-dies-in-exile-at-83 |title=Erdogan rival Gulen dies in exile at 83 |publisher=France 24 |date=21 October 2024|accessdate=21 October 2024}}</ref><ref name="Associated Press" /> 15,000 attended his funeral held in a stadium in New Jersey on 24 October 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rubinkam |first=Michael |date=2024-10-24 |title=Thousands mourn Fethullah Gülen, a Turkish spiritual leader who died in the US |url=https://apnews.com/article/fethullah-gulen-turkey-dead-funeral-burial-69336b5a23988b0c2c350a4799ff6c51 |access-date=2025-12-20 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":6" /> His funeral prayer was led by Suat Yildirim who was not considered as a successor of him.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-10-24 |title=Fethullah Gülen için New Jersey'de tören, Pennsylvania'da defin |url=https://www.voaturkce.com/a/fethullah-gulen-icin-new-jerseyde-toren-pennsylvaniada-defin/7838111.html |access-date=2025-12-20 |website=VOA Türkçe |language=tr}}</ref> On 7 November 2024 Alliance for Shared Values, a NY based Hizmet movement non-profit stated its commitment to "consultative decision‑making, localisation, pluralism, and the continuation of its core values, including education, dialogue, and humanitarian aid".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-07-15 |title=What to Know About the Gulen Movement |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/gulen-movement-turkey-erdogan/3420811.html |access-date=2025-12-20 |website=Voice of America |language=en}}</ref>

Kazim Gulecyuz, editor-in-chief of the Turkish newspaper Yeni Asya, a newspaper owned by another Nur Movement, was arrested on charges of "terrorist propaganda" after sharing a condolence message on Twitter following Gülen’s death.<ref>{{Cite web |last=BAYRAK |first=ESRİL |date=2025-03-05 |title=Yeni Asya editor-in-chief Kazım Güleçyüz sentenced to prison |url=https://www.mlsaturkey.com/en/yeni-asya-editor-in-chief-kazim-gulecyuz-sentenced-to-prison |access-date=2025-12-20 |website=www.mlsaturkey.com |language=en-gb}}</ref>

==Influence in Turkish society and politics==

The Gülen movement, also known as ''Hizmet'' ('Service') or ''Cemaat'' (pronounced ''Jamaat'' and meaning 'Community'), has millions of followers, as well as many more abroad. Beyond the schools established by Gülen's followers, many Gülenists held positions of power in Turkey's police forces and judiciary.<ref name="BBC">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-13503361|title=Profile: Fethullah Gulen's Hizmet movement|publisher=BBC News|access-date=22 December 2013}}</ref><ref name="NYtimes2-27-2014-envelope" /> Turkish and foreign analysts believe Gülen also has sympathizers in the Turkish parliament and that his movement controlled the widely read Islamic conservative ''Zaman'' newspaper, over 1000 schools and 15 universities, the private Bank Asya bank, the Samanyolu TV television station, and many other media and business organizations, including the Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON).<ref name="Dan Bilefsky and Sebnem Arsu">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/25/world/middleeast/turkey-feels-sway-of-fethullah-gulen-a-reclusive-cleric.html|title=Turkey Feels Sway of Reclusive Cleric in the U.S.|author=Dan Bilefsky |author2=Sebnem Arsu|date=24 April 2012|work=The New York Times|access-date=22 December 2013}}</ref> All have been shut down following the coup attempt. In March 2011, the Turkish government arrested the investigative journalist Ahmet Şık and seized and banned his book ''The Imam's Army'', the culmination of Şık's investigation into Gülen and the Gülen movement.<ref>[http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/Default.aspx?pageID=238&nID=6901&NewsCatID=341 "Banned book goes on sale in Istanbul book fair"]. ''Hurriyet Daily News'', 16 November 2011.</ref>

Gülen taught a Hanafi version of Islam, deriving from Sunni Muslim scholar Said Nursi's teachings. Gülen stated that he believes in science, interfaith dialogue among the People of the Book, and multi-party democracy.<ref name="economist10808408">{{cite news |title=How far they have travelled|url=https://www.economist.com/international/2008/03/06/how-far-they-have-travelled|newspaper=The Economist|access-date=2 May 2012|date=6 March 2008}}</ref> He initiated such dialogue with the Vatican<ref name="Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh p 38">Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh, The Gülen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam, p 90. {{ISBN|1402098944}}</ref> and some Jewish organizations.<ref name="Toward a Global Civilization">{{Cite book|author=Fethullah Gulen|title=Toward a Global Civilization of Love and Tolerance |publisher=Tughra Books|date=2010|isbn=978-1932099683}}</ref>

The Gülen movement's constituent local entities function independently from each other, existing, in the aggregate, as leaderless activist entities. "I really don't know 0.1% of the people in this movement", Gülen said. "I haven't done much. I have just spoken out on what I believe. Because it [Gülen's teachings] made sense, people grasped it themselves." "I opened one school to see if people liked it. So they created more schools."<ref>{{cite news |last=Fabricius |first=Peter |date=19 May 2018 |title=Turkey: Exiled cleric Gulen explains why he thinks Erdogan has branded him a terrorist |url=https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2018-05-19-84605/ |website=Daily Maverick}}</ref> The movement includes some theological staff as imams or spiritual counselors, although their identities are kept confidential due to such positions being illegal in Turkey. This has led some observers to argue that the movement includes a clandestine aspect.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.ecfr.eu/publications/summary/the_good_the_bad_and_the_gulenists7131 |title=The good, the bad and the Gülenists |date=23 September 2016 |publisher=European Council on Foreign Relations}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The Turkish Coup Attempt: The Gülen Movement vs. the State |publisher=Middle East Policy Council |url=https://www.mepc.org/journal/turkish-coup-attempt-gulen-movement-vs-state |date=30 November 2016}}</ref>

===1970s, 1980s and 1990s=== Gülen opened an ''ışık evler'' or "light houses" (students' hostel offering scholarships for poorer scholars<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.gulenmovement.com/select-biography-fethullah-gulen.html|title=A select biography of Fethullah Gülen|date=20 July 2017|website=Gulen Movement}}</ref>) in 1976, with there being informal ''sohbet''s (Quranic discussions) available there for the students as well. Gülen encouraged like-minded individuals to follow suit, which became the genesis of the Gülen movement.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.conservativedailynews.com/2019/02/us-turkey-relations-from-a-new-right-perspective/|title=US-Turkey Relations From a New Right Perspective |work=Conservative Daily News|date=14 February 2019}}</ref>

During the political violence in Turkey between the right and left in the 1970s, Gülen "invited people to practice tolerance and forgiveness."<ref name="Balcip80">{{cite book|title=The Gülen Hizmet Movement: Circumspect Activism in Faith-Based Reform|editor=Christopher L. Miller|publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing|year=2013|isbn=9781443845076|chapter=Islam and Democracy in the Thought of Nursi and Gulen|author=Tamer Balci|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TLQwBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA82|page=82}}</ref> Following the 1980 Turkish coup d'état, in which the military targeted communists, Gülen gave his "explicit assent" to the coup,<ref name="Balcip80" /> saying:

{{blockquote|I want to also add that the architects of the coup also took some positive administrative decisions. They shook society to renew itself once again. They defeated the Communist movement which recruited some misguided youth who wanted Turkey to be under Soviet influence. They intentionally or unintentionally prevented our country from entering into quagmire and into a long bloody struggle. Moreover, they gave opportunities to some decent children of our homeland to serve our nation.<ref name="Yavuz39">M. Hakan Yavuz, ''Toward an Islamic Enlightenment: The Gülen Movement'' (Oxford University Press, 2013), p. 39.</ref>}}

Following the political violence of the preceding years, Gülen expected that the coup would reestablish stability and lead to a subsequent restoration of democracy. Gülen's assent to the coup later prompted criticism from Turkish liberals.<ref name="Balcip80" />

Despite Gülen's support for the coup, the military authorities issued an arrest warrant against him, which was revoked by a "state security court" in 1986.<ref name="Yavuz39" />

In the 1980s and 1990s under Turgut Özal, Gülen and his movement benefited from social and political reforms, managing "to turn his traditional and geographically confined faith movement into a nationwide educational and cultural phenomenon" that "attempted to bring 'religious' perspectives into the public sphere on social and cultural issues."<ref name="Yavuz3940">M. Hakan Yavuz, ''Toward an Islamic Enlightenment: The Gülen Movement'' (Oxford University Press, 2013), pp. 39–40.</ref>

In the 1980s, the movement launched its daily newspaper, Zaman and established STEM focused schools in Turkey.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Habertürk |title=100 soruda Fethullah Gülen ve Hareketi |url=https://www.haberturk.com/polemik/haber/515415-100-soruda-fethullah-gulen-ve-hareketi |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=Habertürk |language=tr}}</ref>

The 1990s marked a period of rapid domestic and international growth for the Gülen movement. Domestically, Gülen affiliated schools gained prestige as their students secured Turkey’s first-ever medals at the International Science Olympiads; notably, Salih Adem’s historic gold in Physics earned him a cover feature in the prominent science magazine Bilim ve Teknik.<ref>{{Cite web |title=IPhO: Türkiye - Individual Results |url=https://ipho-unofficial.org/countries/TUR/individual |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=ipho-unofficial.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=A |first=C. |date=2020-03-06 |title=Were the Hizmet Movement schools successful? |url=https://boldmedya.com/2020/03/06/were-the-hizmet-movement-schools-successful/ |access-date=2025-12-22 |website=BoldMedya |language=en-US}}</ref> During the same years the movement began its global expansion, establishing a network of international schools across Central Asia after the collapse of the Soviet Union and various parts of the world.<ref name=":7" /> This era also saw the movement diversify its influence by launching various media outlets like Samanyolu TV, Burc FM and founding financial institutions, notably Bank Asya.<ref name="Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh p 26" />

The growth of the Gülen movement sparked opposition from both Kemalists, who perceived the movement as threatening to undermine secularism, and from more radical Islamists who viewed the movement as "accommodating" and "pro-American".<ref name="Yavuz394041">M. Hakan Yavuz, ''Toward an Islamic Enlightenment: The Gülen Movement'' (Oxford University Press, 2013), pp. 40–41.</ref>

=== 2000s and 2010s === Sharing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's ambition to empower religious individuals in civil life previously disenfranchised in secular Turkey, in 2003 a number of Gülen movement participants pivoted from the Turkish political center to become the junior partner with the newly ruling Erdoğan-led and center-right Justice and Development Party (AKP), providing the party political and sorely-needed administrative support.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="telegraph.co.uk" /><ref name=":2" /> This political alliance worked together to weaken left-of-center Kemalist factions in the judiciary, military, and police. It internally fractured in 2011, which became common knowledge by the time of the corruption investigations of highly placed members of Turkey's ruling party in 2013.<ref name="telegraph.co.uk" /><ref name=":0">{{cite news |title=Turkey challenged by terror in 2015 |url=http://www.trtworld.com/in-depth/turkey-challenged-by-terror-in-2015-17588 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160203060054/http://www.trtworld.com/in-depth/turkey-challenged-by-terror-in-2015-17588 |archive-date=3 February 2016 |access-date=28 January 2016 |website=TRT World |language=tr-TR}}</ref><ref name="trtworld.com" /><ref name="Journal-28Dec2013">{{cite news |date=28 December 2013 |title=Turkey: Erdogan faces new protests over corruption scandal |newspaper=Digital Journal |url=http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/erdogan-faces-new-protests-over-corruption-scandal/article/364759 |access-date=31 December 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=17 December 2013 |title=İstanbul'da yolsuzluk ve rüşvet operasyonu |url=http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/ekonomi/25378685.asp}}</ref>

==== Ergenekon Trials ==== {{Main|Ergenekon (allegation)}}

In 2005, a man affiliated with the Gülen movement approached U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Eric S. Edelman during a party in Istanbul and handed him an envelope containing a document supposedly detailing plans for an imminent coup against the government by the Turkish military.{{citation needed|date=November 2025}} However, the documents were soon found to be forgeries.<ref name="NYtimes2-27-2014-envelope">{{cite news |title=Turkish Leader Disowns Trials That Helped Him Tame Military |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/27/world/europe/turkish-leader-disowns-trials-that-helped-him-tame-military.html?hpw&rref=world |last=Arango |first=Tim |date=26 February 2014 |access-date=27 February 2014 |newspaper=The New York Times |quote=In 2005, years before the trials, a man affiliated with the Gulen movement approached Eric S. Edelman, then the American ambassador, at a party in Istanbul and handed him an envelope containing a handwritten document that supposedly laid out a plan for an imminent coup. But as Mr. Edelman recounted, he gave the documents to his colleagues and they were determined to be forgeries.}}</ref> Gülen affiliates state that the movement is "civic" in nature and that it does not have political aspirations.<ref name="Dan Bilefsky and Sebnem Arsu" /> However, he was accused of being the mastermind behind the Ergenekon trials by secularists, who see the trial's objective as weakening of Turkish military. Those who publicly said that the trial was a sham were subject to harassment by ''Zaman'', some examples being Dani Rodrik<ref name="Balyoz Davası ve Gerçekler, Rodrik and Dogan's personal blog">{{cite web|url=https://balyozdavasivegercekler.com/2012/05/21/why-do-we-accuse-the-gulen-movement/|title=Why do we accuse the Gülen movement?|date=21 May 2012}}</ref> and İlhan Cihaner.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://t24.com.tr/haber/cihaner-intikam-hisleri-icinde-degilim-cemaat-silahli-teror-orgutu-degil-suc-orgutu-olabilir,281462 |title=İlhan Cihaner: İntikam hisleri içinde değilim; cemaat silahlı terör örgütü değil, suç örgütü olabilir – Gündem |publisher=T24 |access-date=7 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170907075340/http://t24.com.tr/haber/cihaner-intikam-hisleri-icinde-degilim-cemaat-silahli-teror-orgutu-degil-suc-orgutu-olabilir,281462 |archive-date=7 September 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== Split with Erdoğan ==== thumb|Erdoğan in 2010

Despite Gülen's and his followers' statements that the organization is non-political in nature, analysts believed that a number of corruption-related arrests made against allies of Erdoğan reflect a growing political power struggle between Gülen and Erdoğan.<ref name="BBC" /><ref name="NYtimes2-27-2014-influence">{{cite news |title=Turkish Leader Disowns Trials That Helped Him Tame Military |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/27/world/europe/turkish-leader-disowns-trials-that-helped-him-tame-military.html?hpw&rref=world |last=Arango |first=Tim |date=26 February 2014 |access-date=27 February 2014 |newspaper=The New York Times |quote=Whether the corruption charges are justified or not – there has been plenty of leaked evidence, especially wiretapped conversations, that appears incriminating – the corruption probe has laid bare the influence of the Gulen movement within the Turkish state, which had largely been suspected but hard to prove.}}</ref> These arrests led to the 2013 corruption scandal in Turkey, which the ruling AKP's supporters (along with Erdoğan himself) and the opposition parties alike have said were choreographed by Gülen after Erdoğan's government came to the decision early in December 2013 to shut down many of his movement's private pre-university schools in Turkey.<ref name="BBC-27Jan">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25909139 |title=Turkey's Fethullah Gulen denies corruption probe links |date=27 January 2014 |access-date=4 February 2014 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref> During this period, police officers leaked a phone conversation between Erdoğan and his son—in which Erdoğan instructed his son to hide large sums of money—triggering a major public uproar and drawing three million views on YouTube within 24 hours. <ref name=":5" />

The Erdoğan government has said that the corruption investigation and comments by Gülen are the long term political agenda of Gülen's movement to infiltrate security, intelligence, and justice institutions of the Turkish state, a charge almost identical to the charges against Gülen by the Chief Prosecutor of Turkey in his trial in 2000 before Erdoğan's party had come into power.<ref name="Dan Bilefsky and Sebnem Arsu" /> Gülen had previously been tried ''in absentia'' in 2000, and acquitted of these charges in 2008 under Erdoğan's AKP government.<ref name="60min2012" /><ref name="autogenerated1" />

In emailed comments to ''The Wall Street Journal'' in January 2014, Gülen said that "Turkish people... are upset that in the last two years democratic progress is now being reversed", but he denied being part of a plot to unseat the government.<ref name="WSJ">{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304027204579332670740491570|title=From His Refuge in the Poconos, Reclusive Imam Fethullah Gulen Roils Turkey|author=Joe Parkinson |author2=Ayla Albayrak|date=20 January 2014|work=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=22 January 2014}}</ref> Later, in January 2014 in an interview with BBC World, Gülen said "If I were to say anything to people I may say people should vote for those who are respectful to democracy, rule of law, who get on well with people. Telling or encouraging people to vote for a party would be an insult to peoples' intellect. Everybody very clearly sees what is going on."<ref name="BBCIntGulen">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25885817 |title=Fethullah Gulen: Powerful but reclusive Turkish cleric |publisher=BBC News |date=27 January 2014 |access-date=5 February 2014 |author=Tim Franks}}</ref>

On 28 October 2015, Ministry of Interior placed Gülen in the red category of the "most wanted terrorists list". The Ministry announced that a monetary reward of up to 10 million Turkish liras will be given to Gülen in this category.<ref>{{cite news |title=Gülen, PKK leaders remain on Turkey's 'most wanted' list |url=https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/gulen-pkk-leaders-remain-on-turkeys-most-wanted-list-92515 |access-date=14 December 2015 |website=Hürriyet Daily News|date=14 December 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Turkey issues list of most 'wanted' terrorists |url=https://www.aa.com.tr/en/turkey/turkey-issues-list-of-most-wanted-terrorists/457286 |access-date=28 October 2015 |publisher=Anadolu Agency}}</ref>

According to some commentators, Gülen is to Erdoğan what Trotsky was to Stalin.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.neweurope.eu/article/fethullah-gulen-turkeys-trotsky/ |title=Is Fethullah Gulen Turkey's own Trotsky? |date=20 July 2016 |newspaper=New Europe |access-date=21 July 2016 |archive-date=30 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201230160358/https://www.neweurope.eu/article/fethullah-gulen-turkeys-trotsky/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> Ben Cohen of the Jewish News Syndicate wrote: "Rather like Leon Trotsky, the founder of the Soviet Red Army who was hounded and chased out of the USSR by Joseph Stalin, Gülen has become an all-encompassing explanation for the existential threats, as Erdogan perceives them, that are currently plaguing Turkey. Stalin saw the influence of 'Trotskyite counter-revolutionaries' everywhere, and brutally purged every element of the Soviet apparatus. Erdogan is now doing much the same with the 'Gülenist terrorists.{{'"}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.algemeiner.com/2016/07/21/turkey-after-the-failed-coup-fascism/ |title=Turkey After the Failed Coup: Fascism |date=21 July 2016 |work=The Algemeiner Journal}}</ref>

===2016 coup attempt, Extradition request, U.S.–Turkey tensions=== {{see also|2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt|Turkish government–Gülen movement conflict|Purges in Turkey (2016–present)}} thumb|right|Fethullah Gülen in 2016 Immeditaly during the coup attempt on 15 July 2016, Erdogan stated that the coup attempt had been organized by Gülen and/or his movement.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Worland |first=Justin |title=What to Know About the Group President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Is Blaming for Turkey's Attempted Coup |url=https://time.com/4408855/turkey-coup-fethullah-gulen-gulenist-movement/ |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250215124932/https://time.com/4408855/turkey-coup-fethullah-gulen-gulenist-movement/ |archive-date=2025-02-15 |access-date=2025-12-06 |magazine=TIME |language=en}}</ref> Turkish prime minister Binali Yıldırım in late July 2016 told ''The Guardian'': "Of course, since the leader of this terrorist organisation is residing in the United States, there are question marks in the minds of the people whether there is any U.S. involvement or backing. So America from this point on should really think how they will continue to cooperate with Turkey, which is a strategic ally for them in the region and world."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/26/turkish-pm-coup-suspects-testimony-points-to-gulens-involvement |title=Turkish PM: coup suspects' testimony points to Gülen's involvement |work=The Guardian |date=26 July 2016}}</ref> Gülen, who denied any involvement in the coup attempt and denounced it,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/16/fethullah-gulen-turkey-coup-erdogan|title=Fetullah Gülen: Turkey coup may have been 'staged' by Erdoğan government|newspaper=The Guardian|author=Amana Fontanella-Khan|date=16 July 2016|access-date=2 August 2016}}</ref> has in turn accused Erdoğan of "turning a failed putsch into a slow-motion coup of his own against constitutional government."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/gulen-accuses-edrogan-of-slow-motion-coup-in-turkey/3435542.html |title=Gulen Accuses Erdogan of 'Slow-Motion Coup' in Turkey |publisher=Voice of America |date=26 July 2016}}</ref>

On 19 July, an official request had been sent to the U.S. for the extradition of Fethullah Gülen.<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.nordicmonitor.com/2019/05/turkish-prosecutor-falsely-named-morton-i-abramowitz-as-former-cia-director/|title=Turkish prosecutor falsely claimed Morton I. Abramowitz was former CIA director|date=22 May 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/07/19/turkey-extradition-gulen-united-states/87284860/ |title=Turkey demands extradition of cleric Fethullah Gulen from U.S.|work=USA Today |date=19 July 2016}}</ref><ref>[https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2016/07/19/daily-press-briefing-press-secretary-josh-earnest-7192016 Daily Press Briefing by the Press Secretary Josh Earnest, 7/19/2016] The White House website.</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/turkish-premier-demands-u-s-help-with-gulen-1469555265 |title=Turkish Premier Demands U.S. Help With Gulen |work=The Wall Street Journal|date=26 July 2016}}</ref> On 23 July 2016, Turkey formally submitted a formal extradition request accompanied by certain documents as supporting evidence.<ref name="auto2" /><ref>{{cite news|url=http://in.reuters.com/article/turkey-security-extradition-idINKCN10G017|title=U.S. says evaluating new Turkish documents on alleged coup leader |publisher=Reuters|date=5 August 2016|access-date=10 August 2016|archive-date=16 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190516191645/https://in.reuters.com/article/turkey-security-extradition-idINKCN10G017|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dw.com/en/turkey-submits-documents-to-us-seeking-gulen-extradition/a-19450530|title=Turkey submits documents to US seeking Gulen extradition |date=5 August 2016|publisher=Deutsche Welle}}</ref> On 26 July, Gülen told ''The New York Times'': "Turkey’s president is blackmailing the United States by threatening to curb his country’s support for the international coalition against the Islamic State. His goal: to ensure my extradition, despite a lack of credible evidence and virtually no prospect for a fair trial. The temptation to give Mr. Erdogan whatever he wants is understandable. But the United States must resist it."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/26/opinion/fethullah-gulen-i-condemn-all-threats-to-turkeys-democracy.html|title=Fethullah Gulen: I Condemn All Threats to Turkey's Democracy|date=26 July 2016|newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref> Senior U.S. officials said this evidence pertained to certain pre-coup alleged subversive activities.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/turkish-evidence-for-gulen-extradition-pre-dates-coup-attempt/2016/08/19/390cb0ec-6656-11e6-be4e-23fc4d4d12b4_story.html|title=Turkish evidence for Gulen extradition pre-dates coup attempt|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> U.S. officials said they saw no terror links and repeatedly asked Turkey for evidence, rejecting its extradition requests. <ref name="aktif" />

On 19 September, Turkish government officials met with retired US Army Lt. General Mike Flynn, former CIA Director James Woolsey, and others to discuss legal and potentially illegal ways such as enforced disappearance for removing Gülen from the US.<ref>{{cite news|author=James V. Grimaldi, Dion Nissenbaum and Margaret Coker|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/ex-cia-director-mike-flynn-and-turkish-officials-discussed-removal-of-erdogan-foe-from-u-s-1490380426|title=Ex-CIA Director: Mike Flynn and Turkish Officials Discussed Removal of Erdogan Foe From U.S.|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=24 March 2017|access-date=24 March 2017}}</ref> In March 2017, Flynn registered as a foreign agent for his 2016 lobbying work on behalf of the government of Turkey.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://bigstory.ap.org/article/former-trump-security-adviser-flynn-admits-turkey-lobbying|title=Former Trump aide Flynn says lobbying may have helped Turkey|work=The Big Story|access-date=9 March 2017|language=en-US}}</ref>

Rudy Giuliani privately urged Donald Trump in 2017 to extradite Gülen.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/giuliani-pressed-trump-to-eject-muslim-cleric-from-us-a-top-priority-of-turkish-president-former-officials-say/2019/10/15/bf43d1ec-ef68-11e9-b648-76bcf86eb67e_story.html|title=Giuliani pressed Trump to eject Muslim cleric from U.S., a top priority of Turkish president, former officials say|first1=Carol D.|last1=Leonnig|first2=Ellen|last2=Nakashima|first3=Josh|last3=Dawsey|first4=Tom |last4=Hamburger|date=15 October 2019|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref>

All Hizmet's schools, foundations and other entities in Turkey —more than 2,500 institutions worth an estimated 12 billion dollars—were closed and their properties seized by the Turkish government following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt on 23 July.<ref>{{cite news |date=1 September 2017 |title=Turkey on Diplomatic Push to Close Schools Linked to Influential Cleric |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/turkey-erdogan-gulen-schools/4010073.html |access-date=7 September 2017 |publisher=Voice of America News}}</ref><ref name="autogenerated2">{{cite news |title=Real and imagined threats: the shared past of AKP and the Gülen movement | World | DW | 27.07.2016 |url=http://www.dw.com/en/real-and-imagined-threats-the-shared-past-of-akp-and-the-g%C3%BClen-movement/a-19429199 |access-date=21 September 2017 |publisher=Deutsch Welle}}</ref> In addition, the Turkish government reportedly sought to pressure a number of foreign governments into shutting down schools and medical facilities allegedly associated with the Gülen movement including in Pakistan, Somalia, Germany, Indonesia, Nigeria and Kenya.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-security-gulen-education-idUSKCN10A0AM |title=Turkey's anti-Gulen crackdown ripples far and wide Voice of AmericaReuters |date=30 July 2016}}</ref> In Somalia, two large schools and a hospital linked to the movement have been shut down following a request by the Turkish administration.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/31/world/europe/in-debt-to-turkey-somalia-shuts-network-tied-to-fethullah-gulen.html?_r=0 |title=In Debt to Turkey, Somalia Shuts Network Tied to Fethullah Gulen |work=The New York Times |date=30 July 2016}}</ref> Albania and Bosnia have also seen requests by Turkey to close or investigate Gülen-linked schools.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://jamestown.org/program/attack-on-gulen-movement-increasingly-a-cornerstone-of-turkeys-foreign-policy-in-the-balkans/|title=Attack on Gülen Movement Increasingly a Cornerstone of Turkey's Foreign Policy in the Balkans|website=Jamestown}}</ref>

==== Egypt asylum proposal ==== {{see also|Egypt–Turkey relations}} In Egypt, MP Emad Mahrous called on the Egyptian government to grant asylum to Gülen in 2016. In the request, sent to Speaker of the House of Representatives Ali Abdel-Aal, Prime Minister Sherif Ismail and Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry on 24 July 2016, Mahrous noted that "[Turkey] was a moderate Muslim country that [had] become an Islamist dictatorship at the hands of [Turkish president] Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his affiliated Muslim Brotherhood political party", arguing that it was highly distasteful that Erdoğan has requested Gülen's extradition from the United States while at the same time "giving shelter to hundreds of leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood terrorist organisation and members of other bloody militant Islamist groups which attack Egypt by day and night".<ref name="GulenAsylum">{{cite news|url=http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/234917/Egypt/Politics-/The-govt-should-give-asylum-to-Turkish-opposition-.aspx|title= 'The govt should give asylum to Turkish opposition figure Gulen,' says Egypt MP|author=Gamal Essam el-Din|website=Ahram Online|date=25 July 2016|access-date=2 August 2016}}</ref>

Mahrous argued that Erdoğan had not only accused Gülen of plotting the failed coup attempt, but also used this allegation as an excuse to engage in mass purges against public institutions allegedly loyal to Gülen—"but at the same time Erdoğan [had] decided to turn Turkey into a media battleground against Egypt, with Turkish intelligence providing funds for several Muslim Brotherhood TV channels to attack Egypt". Mahrous stated that his advice to Gülen was to not wait until he would get extradited, but instead leave the United States and obtain permanent asylum in Egypt. Former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat granted asylum to Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi following his arrival in Egypt from the US, regardless of the threats that were issued by Iran's ayatollahs during the Iranian Revolution.<ref name="GulenAsylum" />

==== Continuing aftermath ==== In March 2017, former CIA Director James Woolsey told ''The Wall Street Journal'' that he had been at a 19 September 2016 meeting with then Trump campaign advisor Mike Flynn with Turkey's foreign minister, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, and energy minister, Berat Albayrak, where the possibility of Gulen's abduction and forced rendition to Turkey was discussed.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/ex-cia-director-mike-flynn-and-turkish-officials-discussed-removal-of-erdogan-foe-from-u-s-1490380426|title=Ex-CIA Director: Mike Flynn and Turkish Officials Discussed Removal of Erdogan Foe From U.S.|first1=James V.|last1=Grimaldi|first2=Dion|last2=Nissenbaum|first3=Margaret|last3=Coker|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=24 March 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/what-mike-flynn-did-for-turkey |title=What Mike Flynn Did for Turkey |magazine=The New Yorker |access-date=28 September 2017}}</ref> Although no concrete kidnapping plan was discussed, Woolsey left the meeting, concerned that a general discussion about "a covert step in the dead of night to whisk this guy away" might be construed as illegal under American law.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://fortune.com/2017/03/27/michael-flynn-turkey-russia/ |title=The Michael Flynn Scandal Just Got A Lot Worse |magazine=Fortune|access-date=28 September 2017}}</ref> A spokesman for Flynn denied Woolsey's account, telling ''Business Insider'' that no nonjudicial removal had been discussed at the meeting.<ref>{{cite news|author=Politics |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/mike-flynn-turkey-lobbyist-james-woolsey-gulen-2017-3 |title=James Woolsey and Mike Flynn Turkey Gulen |website=Business Insider |access-date=28 September 2017|date=24 March 2017}}</ref>

In July 2017, one year after the anti-Erdoğan putsch, Gülen wrote: "Accusations against me related to the coup attempt are baseless, politically motivated slanders."<ref>{{cite news |author=Fulya Ozerkan |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/turkey-dismisses-over-7-000-police-soldiers-ministry-194905886.html |title=New Turkey purge on eve of failed coup anniversary |website=Yahoo |date=14 July 2017 |access-date=7 September 2017 |archive-date=7 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170907080252/https://www.yahoo.com/news/turkey-dismisses-over-7-000-police-soldiers-ministry-194905886.html |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://hizmetnews.com/22898/fethullah-gulens-message-anniversary-coup-attempt-turkey/#.WWqI1tKos74 |title=Fethullah Gulen's Message on the Anniversary of the Coup Attempt in Turkey |work=Hizmet News |date=15 July 2017|access-date=7 September 2017}}</ref> In the 1990s, Gulen had been issued a special Turkish passport as a retired holder of the religious post, in the Turkish state religion of Sunni Islam, of mufti; in 2017 this passport was revoked.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/top-court-approves-revoke-of-gulens-special-passport.aspx?pageID=238&nid=76217 |title=Top court approves revoke of Gülen's 'special passport' – Politics |work=Hürriyet Daily News |date=29 December 2014 |access-date=14 September 2017}}</ref> Unless Gulen travels to Turkey by the end of September 2017, he will be stateless.<ref>{{cite news|author=Hannah Lucinda Smith, Istanbul |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/fethullah-gulen-erdogan-rival-left-stateless-in-passport-purge-fltf7qp5q |title=Fethullah Gulen: Erdogan rival left stateless in passport purge|work=The Times|date=6 September 2017 |access-date=14 September 2017}}</ref> On 26 September 2017, Gulen asked for a United Nations commission to investigate the 2016 coup attempt.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://hizmetnews.com/23376/gulen-resorts-un-investigate-turkeys-coup/#.WcxJR1tSyUk |title=Gülen resorts to UN to investigate Turkey's coup |work=Hizmet News |date=15 July 2016 |access-date=28 September 2017}}</ref>

Also, Gulen said in an interview with NPR: "To this day, I have stood against all coups. My respect for the military aside, I have always been against interventions. ... If any one among those soldiers had called me and told me of their plan, I would tell them, 'You are committing murder.' ... If they ask me what my final wish is, I would say the person [Erdogan] who caused all this suffering and oppressed thousands of innocents, I want to spit in his face."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/07/11/536011222/cleric-accused-of-plotting-turkish-coup-attempt-i-have-stood-against-all-coups |title=Fethullah Gulen, Exiled Cleric Accused of Turkey Coup Attempt Plot: 'I Have Stood Against All Coups': Parallels |publisher=NPR |date=11 July 2017 |access-date=18 October 2017}}</ref>

On 28 September 2017, Erdoğan requested the U.S. to extradite Gülen in exchange for American pastor Andrew Brunson, under arrest in Turkey on charges related to Brunson's alleged affiliation with "FETO" (the Gulen movement); Erdoğan said, "You have a pastor too. Give him to us. ... Then we will try [Brunson] and give him to you".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/blogs/erasmus/2017/09/us-turkish-relations |title=A pastor becomes a pawn in a spat between America and Turkey |newspaper=The Economist|date=30 September 2017 |access-date=18 October 2017}}</ref><ref name="npr swap">{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/09/29/554451339/turkeys-erdogan-suggests-swap-jailed-u-s-pastor-for-turkish-cleric |title=Turkey's Erdogan Suggests Swap: Jailed U.S. Pastor For Turkish Cleric: The Two-Way |publisher=NPR |date=29 September 2017 |access-date=2 October 2017|last1=Chappell |first1=Bill}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/give-us-gulen-if-you-want-arrested-pastor-andrew-brunson-to-be-freed-erdogan-tells-us-120084|title=Give us Gülen if you want arrested pastor Andrew Brunson to be freed: Erdoğan tells US|website=Hürriyet Daily News|date=28 September 2017}}</ref><ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2017/09/28/world/europe/ap-eu-turkey-us-pastor.html "Turkey Rebuffs Trump, Won't Send Jailed US Pastor Back"]. ''The New York Times''. 28 September 2017.</ref> "You have a pastor too. ... You give us that one and we'll work with our judiciary and give back yours."<ref name="npr swap" /> The Federal judiciary alone determines extradition cases in the U.S. An August 2017 decree gave Erdogan authority to approve the exchange of detained or convicted foreigners with people held in other countries. Asked about the suggested swap on 28 September 2017, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said: "I can't imagine that we would go down that road. ... We have received extradition requests for him [Gulen]." Anonymous US officials have said to reporters that the Turkish government has not yet provided sufficient evidence for the U.S. Justice Department to charge Gulen.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/erdogan-suggests-freeing-imprisoned-us-pastor-gulen-extradition-1298278843 |title=Erdogan suggests freeing imprisoned US pastor for Gulen extradition |work=Middle East Eye |date=29 September 2017 |access-date=18 October 2017}}</ref>

As of September 2017, what Turkey had provided the U.S. was information about Gulen dating to before the 2016 coup attempt and Turkey was in the process of compiling information allegedly linking Gulen to the coup attempt.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2016/09/04/492105146/in-turkey-the-man-to-blame-for-most-everything-is-a-u-s-based-cleric |title=In Turkey, The Man To Blame For Most Everything Is A U.S.-Based Cleric: Parallels |publisher=NPR |date=4 September 2016 |access-date=18 October 2017}}</ref>

In 2017, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch separately issued statements urging governments to avoid extraditions to Turkey.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://turkeypurge.com/gulen-linked-businessman-jailed-forced-return-sudan|title=Gülen-linked businessman jailed after forced return from Sudan|last=TurkeyPurge|date=27 November 2017|access-date=28 November 2017|archive-date=18 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518124602/https://turkeypurge.com/gulen-linked-businessman-jailed-forced-return-sudan|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In November 2018, the Trump administration asked the U.S. Justice Department to explore what legal justifications could be used, should it decide to seek for Gulen to be deported.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/white-house-weighs-booting-erdogan-foe-u-s-appease-turkey-n933996|title=Trump administration officials last month asked federal law enforcement agencies to examine legal ways of removing exiled Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, according to two senior U.S. officials and two other people briefed on the requests. The effort includes directives to the Justice Department and FBI that officials reopen Turkey's case for his extradition, as well as a request to the Homeland Security Department for information about his legal status, the four people said.|publisher=NBC News|date=15 November 2018}}</ref> On 17 November 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the issue of Gülen's extradition to Turkey was not on his agenda.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ingber |first=Sasha |date=November 17, 2018 |title=Trump Says Extraditing Turkish Cleric Fethullah Gulen Is 'Not Under Consideration' |url=https://www.npr.org/2018/11/17/668898939/trumps-says-extraditing-turkish-cleric-fethullah-gulen-is-not-under-consideratio |access-date=November 24, 2024 |work=NPR}}</ref> On 17 December 2018, the US Department of Justice announced the indictment of two men, alleging that they acted "in the United States as illegal agents of the Government of Turkey" and conspired "to covertly influence U.S. politicians and public opinion against" Fethullah Gulen.<ref>{{cite press release |author= |title=Two Men Charged with Conspiracy and Acting as Agents of a Foreign Government |url=https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/two-men-charged-conspiracy-and-acting-agents-foreign-government |location=Washington, DC |publisher=US Department of Justice |date=17 December 2018 |access-date=17 December 2018}}</ref> The two men, former associates of ex-US national security adviser Michael Flynn, used the now-dissolved Flynn Intel Group in an effort to discredit Gulen dating back to July 2016, according to the indictment.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/two-associates-michael-flynn-charged-trying-influence-u-s-politicians-n948816 |title=Two ex-associates of Michael Flynn charged with trying to influence U.S. politicians |last1=Winter |first1=Tom |last2=Ainsley |first2=Julia |last3=Williams |first3=Pete |last4=Schapiro |first4=Rich |date=17 December 2018 |publisher=NBC News |access-date=17 December 2018}}</ref>

In a February 2019 opinion piece, Gülen said, "[I]n Turkey, a vast arrest campaign based on guilt by association is ongoing. The number of victims of this campaign of persecution keeps increasing... Erdogan is draining the reputation that the Turkish Republic has gained in the international arena, pushing Turkey into the league of nations known for suffocating freedoms andjailing democratic dissenters. The ruling clique is exploiting diplomatic relations, mobilizing government personnel and resources to harass, haunt and abduct Hizmet movement volunteers all around the world."<ref>{{cite news |title=Fetullah Gülen: Behind the failure of Turkish democracy is the betrayal of Islam |url=http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Fetullah-G%C3%BClen:-Behind-the-failure-of-Turkish-democracy-is-the-betrayal-of-Islam-46383.html |website=Asia News}}</ref>

In 2022, U.S. Senate candidate for Pennsylvania Mehmet Oz predicted (to ''The Washington Post''), "Gulen cannot be touched. There are no credible allegations that he was involved in the coup. He will stay in Pennsylvania."<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/02/16/doctor-oz-close-ties-to-turkey-raise-concern-about-senate-candidacy/ Would Turkey's president have leverage over 'Senator Doctor Oz'?] ''www.washingtonpost.com'', accessed 18 May 2022</ref> ==Thought and activism==

===Initiatives=== {{main|Gülen movement|Gülen movement schools|Alliance for Shared Values}}

The Gülen movement is a transnational Islamic civic society movement inspired by Gülen's teachings. His teachings about ''hizmet'' (altruistic service to the common good) have attracted a large number of supporters in Turkey, Central Asia, and increasingly in other parts of the world.{{#tag:ref|In Lester Kurtz's (of University of Texas, Austin) words, "One of the most striking operationalizations of Gulen's fusion of commitment and tolerance is the nature of the Gulen movement, as it is often called, which has established hundreds of schools in many countries as a consequence of his belief in the importance of knowledge, and example in the building of a better world. The schools are a form of service to humanity designed to promote learning in a broader sense and to avoid explicit Islamic propaganda." Kurtz also cites in the same work the comments of Thomas Michel, General Secretary of the Vatican Secretariat for Inter-religious Dialogue, after a visit to a school in Mindanao, Philippines, where the local people suffered from a civil war, as follows: "In a region where kidnapping is a frequent occurrence, along with guerrilla warfare, summary raids, arrests, disappearances and killings by military and para-military forces, the school is offering Muslim and Christian Filipino children, along with an educational standard of high quality, a more positive way of living and relating to each other." Kurtz adds: "The purpose of the schools movement, therefore, is to lay the foundations for a more humane, tolerant citizenry of the world where people are expected to cultivate their own faith perspectives and also promote the well being of others ... It is significant to note that the movement has been so successful in offering high quality education in its schools, which recruit the children of elites and government officials, that it is beginning to lay the groundwork for high-level allies, especially in Central Asia, where they have focused much of their effort." See, Lester R. Kurtz, "Gulen's Paradox: Combining Commitment and Tolerance", ''Muslim World'', Vol. 95, July 2005; 379–381.|group="nb"}}

====Education==== [[File:Enes Kanter 2011 draft.jpg|thumb|Enes Kanter Freedom, a former NBA player and human rights activist, is a graduate of a Gulen school and openly expressed his support for Gulen and the Gulen movement.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mita |first=Molly |date=2019-03-08 |title=E:60 Goes To Turkey To Tell Enes Kanter's Story |url=https://www.espnfrontrow.com/2019/03/e60-goes-to-turkey-to-tell-enes-kanters-story/ |access-date=2025-11-16 |website=ESPN Front Row |language=en-US}}</ref>]] In his sermons, Gülen has reportedly stated: "Studying physics, mathematics, and chemistry is worshipping God."<ref name="60min2012"/> With regard to terrorism, Gülen believes "The antidote is a religious education program that teaches the tradition in a holistic and contextualized way. To be able to resist the deceits of radical ideologues, young Muslims must understand the spirit of their scripture and the overarching principles of their Prophet's life".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.politico.eu/article/muslims-unique-responsibility-in-fighting-terror-london-attack-fethullah-gulen/|title=Muslims' unique responsibility to fight terror|first=Fethullah|last=Gulen|date=11 June 2017|website=Politico}}</ref>

Gülen's followers have built over 2,000 schools and at least 25 universities around the world.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ebaugh |first=Helen Rose |author-link=Helen Rose Ebaugh |title=The Gülen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MWEePOkKpkoC&pg=PA4 |year=2009 |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |isbn=978-1-4020-9894-9 |page=4}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Canada |first=Immigration and Refugee Board of |date=2015-02-19 |title=Russia: The Fethullah Gülen movement (Hizmet movement), including activities and regions of operation; treatment of members by society and authorities; recourse available to members, including state protection (2002-January 2015) [RUS105066.E] |url=https://www.ecoi.net/en/document/1058803.html |access-date=2025-12-07 |website=IRB – Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |language=en}}</ref> In Turkey, Gülen's schools were considered among the best modern facilities where the English language is taught from the first grade.<ref name="60min2012"/> However, former teachers from outside the Gülen community have called into question the treatment of women and girls in Gülen schools, reporting that female teachers were excluded from administrative responsibilities, allowed little autonomy, and—along with girls from the sixth grade and up—segregated from male colleagues and pupils during break and lunch periods.<ref name="Spiegelman">{{cite news|last=Spiegelman|first=Margaret|title=What Scares Turkey's Women?|url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/03/21/what-scares-turkey-s-women.html|work=The Daily Beast|date=21 March 2012|access-date=28 November 2012}}</ref>

====Interfaith and intercultural dialogue==== [[File:Fethullah Gülen visiting Ioannes Paulus II.jpg|thumb|Gülen with Pope John Paul II in 1998 as part of interfaith dialogue efforts.]] {{further|Interfaith dialogue|Galip Hassan Kuscuoglu}} Gülen established the Journalists and Writers Foundation (''Gazeteciler ve Yazarlar Vakfı'') in 1994. The organization launched the '''Abant Platform''' meetings, which brought together Turkish citizens from diverse intellectual and religious backgrounds, including Muslims, secularists, traditionalists, atheists, Christians, leftists, modernists, and conservative to discuss and debate common positions on key contemporary issues.<ref name=":7">{{Cite book |last=Ebaugh |first=Helen Rose Fuchs |title=The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam |date=2010 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-1-4020-9893-2 |pages=43}}</ref>

During the 1990s, he began to advocate interreligious tolerance and dialogue.<ref name="Toward a Global Civilization" /> He has personally met with leaders of other religions, including Pope John Paul II,<ref name="Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh p 38" /> the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, and Israeli Sephardic Chief Rabbi Eliyahu Bakshi-Doron.<ref>{{Cite book |author=Ali Unal |title=Advocate of Dialogue: Fethullah Gülen |date=1 October 2000 |publisher=Fountain |isbn=978-0970437013 |url=https://archive.org/details/advocateofdialog00aliu}}</ref>

Gülen has said that he favors cooperation between followers of different religions as well as religious and secular elements within society. Among his strongest supporters and collaborators has been for years the Greek Orthodox Turcologist and professor at the University of Ottawa, Dimitri Kitsikis.

Gülen has shown sympathy towards certain demands of Turkey's Alevi minority, such as recognising their cemevis as official places of worship and supporting better Sunni-Alevi relations; stating Alevis "definitely enrich Turkish culture".<ref>{{cite news|title=Gülen: Alevi-Sunni brotherhood should not be marred by bridge controversy|url=http://www.todayszaman.com/national_gulen-alevi-sunni-brotherhood-should-not-be-marred-by-bridge-controversy_318673.html|access-date=21 December 2014|work=Today's Zaman|date=19 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141221060752/http://www.todayszaman.com/national_gulen-alevi-sunni-brotherhood-should-not-be-marred-by-bridge-controversy_318673.html|archive-date=21 December 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=Elise Massicard|title=The Alevis in Turkey and Europe: Identity and Managing Territorial Diversity|date=2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9780415667968|pages=109–10|edition=illustrated}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=Greg Barton|author2=Paul Weller|author3=Ihsan Yilmaz|title=The Muslim World and Politics in Transition: Creative Contributions of the Gulen Movement|date=18 December 2014|publisher=A&C Black|isbn=9781441158734|page=119}}</ref>

=== Humanitarian Aid === Embrace Relief, a Gulen movement non-profit has provided over 40,500 cataract surgeries and more than 600,000 preventative health screenings in Uganda, Mali, Kenya and Burkina Faso. It has distributed over $540,000 of medical supplies to doctors.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Embrace Relief {{!}} Explore Embrace Relief {{!}} PWI |url=https://projectworldimpact.com/organization/embrace-relief |access-date=2026-01-22 |website=projectworldimpact.com |language=en}}</ref>

===Political views===

==== Theology ==== Gülen does not advocate a new theology but refers to classical authorities of theology, taking up their line of argument.<ref>Erol Nazim Gulay, ''The Theological thought of Fethullah Gulen: Reconciling Science and Islam'' (St. Antony's College Oxford University May 2007). p. 1</ref> His understanding of Islam tends to be moderate and mainstream.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://press.princeton.edu/titles/8412.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100206155723/http://press.princeton.edu/titles/8412.html/|url-status=dead|title=Schooling Islam|archive-date=6 February 2010|publisher=Princeton University Press}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.qantara.de/webcom/show_article.php/_c-478/_nr-216/i.html|title=Portrait of Fethullah Gülen, A Modern Turkish-Islamic Reformist|publisher=Qantara.de|access-date=24 August 2014}}</ref> Though he has never been a member of a Sufi ''tarekat'' and does not see ''tarekat'' membership as a necessity for Muslims, he teaches that "Sufism is the inner dimension of Islam" and "the inner and outer dimensions must never be separated."<ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001FFVBFC|title=Thomas Michel S.J., ''Sufism and Modernity in the Thought of Fethullah Gülen'', The Muslim World, Vol. 95 No. 3, July 2005, pp. 345–5|editor=Zeki Saritoprak |date=1 January 2005 |publisher=Blackwell Publishing/Hartford Seminary |access-date=24 August 2014}}</ref>

He teaches that the Muslim community has a duty of service (Turkish: ''hizmet'')<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r04OPJArUPQC&q=A+Civilian+Response+to+Ethno-Religious+Conflict&pg=PP1|title=Mehmet Kalyoncu, A Civilian Response to Ethno-Religious Conflict: The Gülen Movement in Southeast Turkey (Tughra Books, 2008), pp. 19–40|access-date=24 August 2014|isbn=9781597840255|last1=Kalyoncu|first1=Mehmet|year=2008|publisher=Tughra Books}}</ref> to the common good of the community and the nation<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sup.org/book.cgi?isbn=0804755019|title=Berna Turam, Between Islam and the State: The Politics of Engagement (Stanford University Press 2006) p. 61|author=Berna Turam|work=Sup.org|access-date=24 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611191850/http://www.sup.org/book.cgi?isbn=0804755019|archive-date=11 June 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> and to Muslims and non-Muslims all over the world;<ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001FFVBFC|title=Saritoprak, Z. and Griffith, S. Fethullah Gülen and the 'People of the Book': A Voice from Turkey for Interfaith Dialogue, The Muslim World, Vol. 95 No. 3, July 2005, p.337-8|editor=Zeki Saritoprak |date=1 January 2005 |publisher=Blackwell Publishing/Hartford Seminary |access-date=24 August 2014}}</ref> and that the Muslim community is obliged to conduct dialogue with not just the "People of the Book" (Jews and Christians), and people of other religions, but also with agnostics and atheists.

Gülen's Sufism is greatly influenced by Kurdish Quranic scholar Said Nursi (1877–1960), who advocated illuminating modern education and science through Islam.{{citation needed | date=November 2025}} Gülen expands on Nursi to advocate what has been described as a "Turkish nationalist, state-centered and pro-business approach" centered on service (''hizmet'', in Turkish).<ref name="autogenerated2" /> Some participants within Gülen's movement have viewed Nursi's or Gülen's works as that of ''mujaddids'' or "renewers" of Islam within their respective times.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.herkul.org/weekly-sermons/the-role-of-the-spiritual-guide/|title=The Role of the Spiritual Guide | Fethullah Gülen Hocaefendi'nin sohbetleri.|date=18 February 2013}}</ref> Others have opined in more eschatological terms, equating Gülen's work as assistance toward the prophesied Mahdi to come,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/22/opinion/who-was-behind-the-coup-attempt-in-turkey.html|title=Opinion | Who Was Behind the Coup Attempt in Turkey?|first=Mustafa|last=Akyol|newspaper=The New York Times|date=22 July 2016}}</ref> albeit Gülen's spokespersons discourage broaching such speculation.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.barakainstitute.org/news/dear-muslims-dont-wait-for-a-savior-by-mustafa-akyol/ |title='Dear Muslims, don't wait for a savior' by Mustafa Akyol |publisher=Baraka Institute}}</ref> Gülen's website hosts an article entitled "Claiming to be the Mahdi is Deviation".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://fgulen.com/en/home/1359-fgulen-com-english/gulens-works/recent-articles/25352-claiming-to-be-the-mahdi-is-deviation|title=Claiming to be the Mahdi is Deviation |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site}}</ref> In 2016, Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate (Diyanet), Mehmet Görmez, said Gülen is a "fake Mahdi movement".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/gulen-movement-is-fake-mahdi-says-turkeys-religious-directorate-head-102487|title=Gülen movement is fake Mahdi, says Turkey's Religious Directorate head|website=Hürriyet Daily News|date=5 August 2016}}</ref>

====Anatolian nationalism; Turkish Islam==== Gülen defines Turkish nationalism by particular type of Anatolian Muslim culture that is at the roots of the modern Turkish nation state, rather than by any specific ethnicity. He believes ''Turkish Islam'' (meaning "Sufism"{{citation needed|date=October 2025}}) an especially legitimate, if not an exclusively valid expression of the Islamic faith, especially with concern individuals of a Turkish background. Albeit Gülen ascribes positive characteristics to various localized entities, overall the tenor of Gülen's teachings warn against the human tendencies toward insularity or discriminations against people of other ethnicities, other branches of Islam, or other faiths.

==== Kurdish issues ==== {{see also|Kurdish–Turkish conflict (1978–present)}} He was accused of being against the peace process that had aimed to resolve the long-running Kurdish-Turkish conflict. However, Gülen's supporters dismiss this claim, citing his work with many Kurds.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/gulen-movement-peace-process-pkk.html|title=Is Gulen Movement Against Peace With PKK?|author=Mustafa Akyol|date=22 May 2013|work=Al-monitor |access-date=7 September 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/08/turkey-why-erdogan-wants-link-gulen-pkk.html|title=What's behind AKP's allegations of Gulen-PKK ties?|date=15 August 2016|work=Al-Monitor|access-date=10 January 2017|language=en-us}}</ref><ref name="gg5">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/10/world/europe/turkey-kurdish-mayors-expect-arrests.html?_r=0|title=As Turkey Cracks Down, Kurdish Mayors Pack Bags for Jail|last1=Nordland|first1=Rod|date=10 December 2016|work=The New York Times|access-date=10 January 2017}}</ref><ref name="2sa">{{cite news|url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/08/turkey-why-erdogan-wants-link-gulen-pkk.html|title=What's behind AKP's allegations of Gulen-PKK ties?|date=15 August 2016|work=Al-Monitor|access-date=13 December 2016|language=en-us}}</ref><ref name="fthg1">{{cite news|url=http://rudaw.net/turkish/interview/06082016|title=Fetullah Gülen'in Kürt planı!|work=Rudaw|access-date=13 December 2016}}</ref> Gulen movement established the first Kurdish language private TV channel in Turkey in 2010.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2010-07-23 |title=Kürtçe ilk özel TV yayında - MediaCat |url=https://mediacat.com/kurtce-ilk-ozel-tv-yayinda/ |access-date=2025-10-26 |language=tr}}</ref> A study emphasized the effectiveness of the Gülen Movement’s non-political approaches to ethnic conflict, suggesting that its educational and community building efforts have helped reduce terrorist recruitment by the PKK and Hizbullah among youth in Mardin, a Kurdish majority city in Turkey.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kalyoncu |first=Mehmet |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r04OPJArUPQC |title=A Civilian Response to Ethno-religious Conflict: The Gülen Movement in Southeast Turkey |date=2008 |publisher=Tughra Books |isbn=978-1-59784-025-5 |language=en}}</ref>

====Freedom of expression==== Excerpt from Gülen-penned op-ed in ''The New York Times'': {{blockquote |The core tenets of a functioning democracy – the rule of law, respect for individual freedoms – are also the most basic of Islamic values bestowed upon us by God. No political or religious leader has the authority to take them away ... Speaking against oppression is a democratic right, a civic duty and for believers, a religious obligation. The Quran makes clear that people should not remain silent in the face of injustice: "O you who believe! Be upholders and standard-bearers of justice, bearing witness to the truth for God's sake, even though it be against your own selves, or parents or kindred".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/04/opinion/fethullah-gulen-turkeys-eroding-democracy.html|title=Opinion | Fethullah Gulen: Turkey's Eroding Democracy|first=Fethullah|last=Gulen|newspaper=The New York Times|date=3 February 2015}}</ref>}}

====Secularism==== Gülen has criticized secularism in Turkey as "reductionist materialism". However, he has in the past said that a secular approach that is "not anti-religious" and "allows for freedom of religion and belief, is compatible with Islam."<ref name="European Muslims">{{cite web |author=skyron.co.uk |url=http://www.continuumbooks.com/books/detail.aspx?BookId=157777&SearchType=Basic |title=European Muslims, Civility and Public Life Perspectives on and From the Gülen Movement |publisher=Continuum Books |access-date=24 August 2014 |archive-date=17 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017084853/http://www.continuumbooks.com/books/detail.aspx?BookId=157777&SearchType=Basic |url-status=dead }}</ref>

According to one Gülen press release, in democratic-secular countries, 95% of Islamic principles are permissible and practically feasible, and there is no problem with them. The remaining 5% "are not worth fighting for".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://tr.fgulen.com/content/view/227/141/ |title=Fethullah Gülen Web Sitesi – Devlet ve Şeriat |website=Tr.fgulen.com |date=31 October 2006 |access-date=24 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140813013701/http://tr.fgulen.com/content/view/227/141/ |archive-date=13 August 2014}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|date=December 2018}}

Gülen does not favor for the implementation of Sharia law by the state. He argues that most Islamic regulations pertain to individual's private life, while only a small portion relate to governance.<ref name=":3" />

He states that the democratic form of government is the best choice, and is very critical of the regimes in Iran and Saudi Arabia.<ref name=":3" />

====Turkish bid to join the EU==== {{see also|Accession of Turkey to the European Union|European Union–Turkey relations}} Gülen has supported Turkey's bid to join the European Union and has said that neither Turkey nor the EU have anything to fear, but have much to gain, from a future of full Turkish membership in the EU.<ref name="European Muslims"/>

====Women's roles==== According to Aras and Caha, Gülen's views on women are "progressive".<ref name="biu.ac.il"/> Gülen says the coming of Islam saved women, who "were absolutely not confined to their home and ... never oppressed" in the early years of the religion. He feels that extreme feminism, however, is "doomed to imbalance like all other reactionary movements" and eventually "being full of hatred towards men".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://en.fgulen.com/recent-articles/2897-women-confined-and-mistreated.html |title=Women Confined and Mistreated |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site |date=8 May 2008 |access-date=24 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140917204907/http://en.fgulen.com/recent-articles/2897-women-confined-and-mistreated.html |archive-date=17 September 2014}}</ref>

Gulen movement established many schools for girls in countries such as Turkey, Tanzania, Senegal, and Nigeria, expanding access to education for communities where opportunities for girls were otherwise limited <ref>{{Cite journal |last=Dohrn |first=Kristina |date=2014 |title=Translocal Ethics: Hizmet Teachers and the Formation of Gülen-inspired Schools in Urban Tanzania |url=https://www.academia.edu/97087262 |journal=Sociology of Islam |volume=1 |issue=3–4 |pages=233–256 |doi=10.1163/22131418-00104007 |issn=2213-140X}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Between Conservatism and Secularism: Girls' Education in Gülen Inspired Schools {{!}} EERA |url=https://eera-ecer.de/ecer-programmes/conference/26/contribution/50100?utm_source=chatgpt.com |access-date=2025-11-16 |website=eera-ecer.de}}</ref>{{AI-retrieved source|date=March 2026|checked=no}}

Gulen stated that "no one should suppress the progress of women through the clothes they wear." He also said, "no one should be subject to criticism for his or her clothing or thoughts." and "women can become administrators," contradicting the views of some of the classical Islamic intellectuals.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=MERIA: Fethullah Gulen And His Liberal "Turkish Islam" Movement |url=https://ciaotest.cc.columbia.edu/olj/meria/meria00_arb01.html |access-date=2025-11-03 |website=ciaotest.cc.columbia.edu}}</ref>

Gulen suggested that women to learn martial arts to defend themselves against domestic abuse, stating "I wish women would take karate, taekwondo or judo courses. If he hits once, she should hit him twice". He also stated "Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him) and his companions never beat their wives".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Magd |first=Nadia Abou el |title=Domestic violence fatwa stirs outrage |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/mena/domestic-violence-fatwa-stirs-outrage-1.503419 |access-date=2025-11-03 |website=The National |language=en}}</ref>

====Terrorism==== Gülen has condemned terrorism.<ref name="Gulen peace and humanity">{{cite web |url=http://en.fgulen.com/content/view/1052/14/ |title=Fethullah Gülen: A life dedicated to peace and humanity- True Muslims Cannot Be Terrorists |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site |date=4 February 2002 |access-date=24 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140917203545/http://en.fgulen.com/content/view/1052/14/ |archive-date=17 September 2014}}</ref><ref>[https://www.rferl.org/a/Turkish_Schools_Coming_Under_Increasing_Scrutiny_In_Central_Asia/1616111.html "Gulen, who currently resides in the United States, condemns terrorism"] ''www.rferl.org''</ref> He warns against the phenomenon of arbitrary violence and aggression against civilians and said that it "has no place in Islam". He wrote a condemnation article in ''The Washington Post'' on 12 September 2001, one day after the September 11 attacks, and stated that "A Muslim can not be a terrorist, nor can a terrorist be a true Muslim."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fethullah-gulen.org/op-ed/gulen-movement-9-11.html |title=Importance of Gulen Movement in the Post 9/11 Era: Co-existenceFethullah Gulen |publisher=Fethullah Gulen |access-date=24 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141022095416/http://www.fethullah-gulen.org/op-ed/gulen-movement-9-11.html |archive-date=22 October 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://fgulen.com/en/press/1322-nuriye-akmans-interview-in-zaman-daily/25171-a-real-muslim-cannot-be-a-terrorist |title=A Real Muslim cannot be a Terrorist |publisher=Fethullah Gulen |date=23 March 2004 |access-date=20 October 2014}}</ref> Gülen lamented the "hijacking of Islam" by terrorists.<ref name="Toward a Global Civilization"/><ref>Rajghatta, Chidanand (17 July 2016). [https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/europe/Turkey-coup-mastermind-is-in-exile-in-US-with-green-card/articleshow/53243211.cms "He has repeatedly condemned terrorism and the hijacking of Islam by terrorists"]. ''The Times of India''.</ref>

====Gaza flotilla==== Gülen criticized the Turkish-led Gaza flotilla for trying to deliver aid without Israel's consent to Palestinians in Gaza.<ref>{{cite web|author=Günter Seufert|title=Is the Fethullah Gülen Movement Overstretching Itself?|url=https://www.swp-berlin.org/fileadmin/contents/products/research_papers/2014_RP02_srt.pdf|publisher=Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik|access-date=2 August 2016|format=Research Paper|date=January 2014}}</ref> He spoke of watching the news coverage of the deadly confrontation between Israeli commandos and multinational aid group members as its flotilla approached Israel's sea blockade of Gaza. He said, "What I saw was not pretty, it was ugly." He has since continued his criticism, saying later that the organizers' failure to seek accord with Israel before attempting to deliver aid was "a sign of defying authority, and will not lead to fruitful matters."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704025304575284721280274694 |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|first=Joe |last=Lauria |title=Reclusive Turkish Imam Criticizes Gaza Flotilla |access-date=4 June 2010}}</ref>

====Syrian civil war==== {{see also|Syrian civil war}} Gülen is strongly against Turkish involvement in the Syrian civil war.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/news/europe/21578046-turkish-government-under-attack-home-its-assertive-policy-towards-syria-explosive |title=Turkey and Syria: An explosive border |newspaper=The Economist|date=18 May 2013 |access-date=24 August 2014}}</ref> While rejecting the Turkish government's desire to topple the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad, Gülen supports military intervention against ISIL.<ref>{{cite news|title=Gülen warns against Turkey's unilateral war|url=http://www.todayszaman.com/national_gulen-warns-against-turkeys-unilateral-war_360947.html|access-date=21 December 2014|work=Today's Zaman|date=7 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141221050301/http://www.todayszaman.com/national_gulen-warns-against-turkeys-unilateral-war_360947.html|archive-date=21 December 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author1=Halil Karaveli|title=Erdogan Pays for His Foreign Policy|url=http://nationalinterest.org/commentary/erdogan-pays-his-foreign-policy-7719|website=The National Interest|access-date=21 December 2014|date=12 November 2012}}</ref>

====Armenian genocide==== {{see also|Armenian genocide}} Addressing the Armenian genocide in a 6 May 1965 letter, Gülen wrote: {{blockquote|I have known Armenian families and individuals during my childhood and working positions. I will not stop cursing the Great Genocide committed against Armenians in 1915. I know that among the people killed and massacred were many highly respected individuals, for whose memory I bow with respect. I curse with great grief the massacre of the sons of the Great Prophet Christ by ignorant individuals who call themselves Muslims."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://mirrorspectator.com/2020/05/18/turmoil-in-turkey-on-letter-by-gulen-recognizing-the-armenian-genocide/|title=Turmoil in Turkey on Letter by Gulen Recognizing the Armenian Genocide|date=18 May 2020}}</ref>}}

==Publications== Gülen's official website<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tr.fgulen.com/content/section/30/3/|title=Gulen's publications|language=tr|access-date=2 March 2014|website=tr.fgulen.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140311183400/http://tr.fgulen.com/content/section/30/3|archive-date=11 March 2014}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|date=December 2018}} lists 44 publications by him; these are, however, more akin to essays and collections of sermons than books on specific subjects with a specific thesis. He is also said to have authored many articles on a variety of topics: social, political and religious issues, art, science and sports, and recorded thousands of audio and video cassettes. He writes the lead article for ''The Fountain'', ''Yeni Ümit'', ''Sızıntı'', and ''Yağmur'' Islamic philosophical magazines. Several of his books have been translated into English.<ref name="GulEng">{{cite web |url=http://en.fgulen.com/gulens-works |title=Gulen books in English |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site |access-date=29 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140911020221/http://en.fgulen.com/gulens-works |archive-date=11 September 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

*''The Messenger of God: Muhammad'', Tughra Books, 2nd edition, 2008. {{ISBN|1597841374}} *''Reflections on the Qur'an: Commentaries on Selected Verses'', Tughra Books, 2012. {{ISBN|1597842648}} *''Toward Global Civilization Love and Tolerance'', Tughra Books, 2010. *''From Seed to Cedar: Nurturing the Spiritual Needs in Children'', Tughra Books, 2013. {{ISBN|1597842788}} *''Terror and Suicide Attacks: An Islamic Perspective'', Tughra Books, 2008. {{ISBN|1932099743}} *''Journey to Noble Ideals: Droplets of Wisdom from the Heart'' (Broken Jug), Tughra Books, 2014. {{ISBN|1597843482}} *''Speech and Power of Expression'', Tughra Books, 2010. {{ISBN|1597842168}} *''Selected Prayers of Prophet Muhammad'', Tughra Books, 2012. {{ISBN|1597842265}}

==Reception==

Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College awarded its 2015 Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award to Gülen in recognition of his lifelong dedication to promoting peace and human rights.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.todayszaman.com/diplomacy_gulen-presented-with-prestigious-award-for-dedication-to-peace_377639.html|title=ZAMAN|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150416083718/http://www.todayszaman.com/diplomacy_gulen-presented-with-prestigious-award-for-dedication-to-peace_377639.html|archive-date=16 April 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.afsv.org/fethullah-gulen-awarded-2015-gandhi-king-ikeda-peace-award/|title=Fethullah Gulen Awarded 2015 Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award|access-date=16 April 2015|archive-date=14 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150414021700/http://www.afsv.org/fethullah-gulen-awarded-2015-gandhi-king-ikeda-peace-award/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.morehouse.edu/mlkchapel/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/CML15-FINAL-1.pdf |title=Link |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150513105749/http://www.morehouse.edu/mlkchapel/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/CML15-FINAL-1.pdf |archive-date=13 May 2015}}</ref> Gülen topped the 2008 Top 100 Public Intellectuals Poll of the Foreign Policy and came out as the most influential thinker.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/prospect-100-intellectuals/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110424145152/http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/prospect-100-intellectuals/|url-status=dead|archive-date=24 April 2011|title=2008 Oscar nominations |magazine=Prospect}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-11-25 |title=Meet Fethullah Gülen, the World's Top Public Intellectual |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2008/08/04/meet-fethullah-gulen-the-worlds-top-public-intellectual/ |access-date=2025-11-21 |website=Foreign Policy |language=en-US}}</ref>

Gülen was named as one of ''Time'' magazine's 100 Most Influential People in 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.niagarafoundation.org/niagara-foundations-honorary-president-m-fethullah-gulen-named-in-time-magazines-worlds-100-most-influential-people-for-2013/|title=Fethullah Gulen Named in Time Magazine's 'World's 100 Most influential people in the world' in 2013|publisher=Niagara Foundation|access-date=18 April 2013|archive-date=19 April 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130419231450/http://www.niagarafoundation.org/niagara-foundations-honorary-president-m-fethullah-gulen-named-in-time-magazines-worlds-100-most-influential-people-for-2013/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 2015, Oklahoma City Thunder basketball player and human rights activist Enes Kanter said that he was excluded from the Turkish national basketball team for his public support of Gülen.<ref>{{cite news|title=Controversy looms as Gülen follower Enes Kanter left out of national team|url=http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/controversy-looms-as-gulen-follower-enes-kanter-left-out-of-national-team.aspx?pageID=238&nID=84460&NewsCatID=366|access-date=18 December 2015|work=Hürriyet Daily News|date=24 June 2015}}</ref> Kanter was disowned by his family in 2016 due to his support for Gülen.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-security-basketball-idUSKCN10K13P |title=Symbol of a troubled Turkey, pro-Gulen NBA star splits with family |publisher=Reuters |date=9 August 2016}}</ref>

Gülen was listed as one of the 500 most influential Muslims by the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre in Amman, Jordan.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://themuslim500.com/profiles/hodjaefendi-fethullah-gulen/|title=Fethullah Gülen|website=The Muslim 500|date=30 May 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Schleifer |first1=Abdallah |title=The Muslim 500: The World's 500 Most Influential Muslims, 2012 |publisher=The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre |location=Amman, Jordan |date=2011 |isbn=978-9957-428-37-2|page=55}}</ref>

A documentary movie titled Love Is a Verb and narrated by Ashley Judd was made in 2014 about the Gulen movement.

On 14–15 November 2008, Georgetown University hosted a conference on Fethullah Gülen titled ''"Islam in the Age of Global Challenges."'' <ref>{{Cite journal |last=Willoughby |first=Jay |date=2009-01-01 |title=Islam in the Age of Global Challenges |url=https://www.ajis.org/index.php/ajiss/article/view/1430 |journal=American Journal of Islam and Society |language=en |volume=26 |issue=1 |pages=155–157 |doi=10.35632/ajis.v26i1.1430 |issn=2690-3733|doi-access=free }}</ref>

==''Rise Up (Colors of Peace)'' album== thumb|Cover of album ''Rise Up (Colors of Peace)''

''Rise Up (Colors of Peace)'' was a musical project to turn Gülen's poems and writings in Turkish language into songs. A total of 50 poems were sent to various Muslim and non-Muslim artists from various countries, who were free to pick, and then compose and vocalize the poem chosen, record it in their own country and send it back for inclusion in the planned album. Reportedly, no restrictions were put on the artists in using instrumentation, despite reservations by stricter Muslim interpretations about music and use of musical instruments. The album ''Rise Up (Colors of Peace)'' turned into an album of world music encompassing various genres like jazz, pop, flamenco, rai, Indian music among others.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.fgulen.com/press-room/news/4538-todays-zaman-islamic-scholar-gulens-poems-turned-into-songs-for-international-album|title= Islamic scholar Gülen's poems turned into songs for international album|author=Fethullah Gülen |website=Fethullah Gülen's Official Web Site |access-date=20 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303231950/http://en.fgulen.com/press-room/news/4538-todays-zaman-islamic-scholar-gulens-poems-turned-into-songs-for-international-album|archive-date=3 March 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Further reading== *{{cite book|url=https://uofupress.lib.utah.edu/turkeys-july-15th-coup/|author=M Hakan Yavuz & Bayram Balci|year=2018|title=Turkey's 15 July Coup: What Happened and Why|series=Utah Series in Middle East Studies|publisher=University of Utah Press|isbn=9781607816065|archive-date=5 December 2021|access-date=25 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211205085605/https://uofupress.lib.utah.edu/turkeys-july-15th-coup/|url-status=dead}} *{{cite magazine|magazine=The Fountain |url=https://fgulen.com/en/what-went-wrong-with-turkey|date=2017|title=What Went Wrong with Turkey? |issue=Special |publisher=Blue Dome Press |place=Clifton, New Jersey |issn=0967-9928}} *{{cite book|author=Faruk Mercan|publisher=Blue Dome Press|year=2017|title=No Return from Democracy: A Survey of Interviews with Fethullah Gulen|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5jAgMQAACAAJ|isbn=978-1682060179}} *{{cite book|title=Toward an Islamic Enlightenment: The Gülen Movement|author=M. Hakan Yavuz|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2013|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qsTdpmviIQ4C|isbn=9780199927999}} *{{cite book |url=http://www.ecfr.eu/publications/summary/the_good_the_bad_and_the_gulenists7131 |title=The good, the bad and the Gülenists: The Role of the Gulen Movement in Turkey's Coup Attempt |publisher=European Council on Foreign Relations|author=Asli Aydıntaşbaş|date=September 2016|isbn=978-1-910118-88-7}} *{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hc7QAgAAQBAJ|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2014|title=The House of Service: The Gülen Movement and Islam's Third Way|isbn=9780199336418|author=David Tittensor}} *{{cite web |title=Gülen movement: Creating an elite to lead the state |date=26 November 2017 |author=Timur Tinç |url=https://www.dandc.eu/en/article/turkish-guelen-movement-expanding-worldwide-opinions-differ-reasons-why |publisher=D+C Development and Cooperation}} *{{cite web|title=Creating an elite to lead the state: The Gulen movement in Turkey|url=http://en.qantara.de/node/29833|publisher=Qantara.de|author=Timur Tinç|date=27 December 2017}} *{{cite news |url=https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/12/turkey-finally-some-gulenists-speak-out.html |title=Gulenists Speak Out at Last |author=Mustafa Akyol |date=7 December 2017 |work=Al-Monitor}} (a review of former Hizmet participants' scholarly commentary about the movement) * {{cite book |author=Maimul Ahsan Khan|date=2011 |title=The Vision and Impact of Fethullah Gulen: A New Paradigm for Social Activism |location=New York |publisher=Blue Dome |isbn=978-1-935295-09-9|author-link=Maimul Ahsan Khan}}

==Notes== {{reflist|group="nb"}}

==References== Specific citations: <references> <ref name="60min2012">{{cite news |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-charter-schools-tied-to-powerful-turkish-imam/|title=U.S. charter schools tied to powerful Turkish imam |date=13 May 2012 |publisher=CBS News |work=60 Minutes |access-date=14 May 2012}}</ref> </references> General references: {{refbegin}} *{{cite news |url=http://www.forbes.com/business/2008/01/18/turkey-islam-gulen-cx_0121oxford.html |title=Gulen Inspires Muslims Worldwide |website=Forbes |access-date=24 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080123015034/http://www.forbes.com/business/2008/01/18/turkey-islam-gulen-cx_0121oxford.html |archive-date=23 January 2008 |url-status=dead}} *[http://interfaithradio.org/node/491 "Turkey's Champion of Interfaith Dialogue"]. Interfaith Radio. *[http://www.economist.com/world/international/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10808408 "Global Muslim networks – How far they have travelled"]. ''The Economist''. *[http://www.economist.com/world/international/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10808433 "Fethullah Gulen – A farm boy on the world stage"]. ''The Economist''. *[https://web.archive.org/web/20080709063632/http://uk.reuters.com/article/featuresNews/idUKL0939033920080514 "Turkish Islamic preacher – threat or benefactor?"]. Reuters. *[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/04/world/asia/04islam.html?ei=5124&en=625b88103a702f94&ex=1367640000&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink&pagewanted=all "Turkish Schools Offer Pakistan a Gentler Vision of Islam"]. ''The New York Times''. *[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/18/world/europe/18iht-19oxan-Turkishpreacherprofile.9324128.html "Fethullah Gulen profile"]. ''The New York Times''. *[https://web.archive.org/web/20091113023209/http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=4408 "Fethullah Gulen as a Top Public Intellectual"]. ''Foreign Policy''. *[https://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/2011/01/21/january-21-2011-the-glen-movement/7949/ Profile]. ''Religion and Ethics''. PBS. 21 January 2011. *[http://www.tnr.com/article/world/magazine/79062/global-turkey-imam-fethullah-gulen "The Global Imam"]. ''The New Republic''. *[https://web.archive.org/web/20100817141459/http://en.qantara.de/webcom/show_article.php/_c-478/_nr-907/i.html "The Fethullah Gülen Movement: Pillar of Society or Threat to Democracy?"]. Qantara.de. *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110919100055/http://meria.idc.ac.il/journal/2000/issue4/jv4n4a4.html "Fethullah Gülen and his Liberal 'Turkish Islam' movement"]. MERIA. *[https://web.archive.org/web/20051028004718/http://www.meforum.org/article/404 "Turkish Islam's Moderate Face"]. ''The Middle East Forum''. *[http://www.meforum.org/2045/fethullah-gulens-grand-ambition "Fethullah Gülen's Grand Ambition: Turkey's Islamist Danger"]. ''The Middle East Forum''. *[http://religion.info/english/interviews/article_74.shtml The Gülen Movement: a modern expression of Turkish Islam] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20150213015820/http://www.amerasianworld.com/islam_in_kazakhstan.php The Nurcu Movement in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan] {{refend}}

== Further reading == * Jon Pahl (2019). [https://www.google.com/books/edition/Fethullah_Gulen/q6ORDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 Fethullah Gülen: A Life of Hizmet], Blue Dome Press. {{ISBN|9781682065259}}

==External links== {{Commons}} {{Wikiquote}} * {{Official website|1=http://fgulen.com/en}} * [http://www.niagarafoundation.org/niagara/fethullah-gulen/ Fethullah Gulen] * [http://www.afsv.org/about-us/hizmet-and-fethullah-gulen/ Hizment and Fethullah Gulen] * [http://www.loveisaverbmovie.com/movie/ ''Love is a Verb''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160729124058/http://www.loveisaverbmovie.com/movie/ |date=29 July 2016}} (2014), a film directed by Terry Spencer Hesser ** {{cite news|work=The Huffington Post|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/arzu-kaya-uranli/yes-love-is-a-verb-turkey_b_5490691.html|author=Uranli, Arzu Kaya|title=Yes, Love Is a Verb!|date=13 June 2014}} ** {{cite web|title=Love is a Verb|website=Rotten Tomatoes|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/love_is_a_verb/}} ** [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3181886/ IMDb] * [http://www.city-journal.org/html/who-fethullah-g%C3%BClen-13504.html Who Is Fethullah Gülen?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160802161113/http://www.city-journal.org/html/who-fethullah-g%C3%BClen-13504.html |date=2 August 2016}} * {{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/the-turkey-i-no-longer-know/2017/05/15/bda71c62-397c-11e7-8854-21f359183e8c_story.html|newspaper=The Washington Post|title=The Turkey I No Longer Know|author=Fethullah Gulen|date=15 May 2017|type=op-ed}} ; Multi-media * {{cite news|url=http://www.france24.com/en/20170718-interview-fethullah-gulen-turkey-failed-coup-not-worried-extradition-erdogan-trump|publisher=France24|date=13 November 2017|type=video of interview|title=Exclusive: US-exiled cleric Gulen says he knew about Turkey's 'Flynn bribes'|author=Philip Crowther & Leela Jacinto}} * {{cite AV media |title=Gulen admits meeting key figure in Turkey coup plot, dismisses Erdogan's 'senseless' claims|url=http://www.france24.com/en/20170718-gulen-admits-meeting-key-man-turkey-coup-plot-dismisses-erdogan-senseless-claims|publisher=France24|date=19 November 2017|type=video of interview|author=Philip Crowther & Leela Jacinto}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gulen, Fethullah}} Category:1941 births Category:2024 deaths Category:People from Pasinler * Category:Turkish Sufis Category:Turkish anti-communists Category:Turkish dissidents Category:Turkish exiles Category:Turkish scholars of Islam Category:Turkish emigrants to the United States Category:Turkish Islamists Category:Turkish male writers Category:Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam Category:Christian–Islamic–Jewish interfaith dialogue Category:Muslim critics of atheism Category:Islam and politics Category:Islamic democracy activists Category:Scholars of Sufism Category:Stateless people Category:Quranic exegesis scholars Category:Fugitives wanted on terrorism charges Category:Fugitives wanted by Turkey Category:People involved in the 2016 Turkish coup attempt Category:20th-century Muslim scholars of Islam Category:21st-century Muslim scholars of Islam Category:20th-century Turkish male writers Category:21st-century Turkish male writers Category:Conservatism in Turkey Category:People who lost Turkish citizenship Category:Human rights in Turkey Category:Islamic scholars