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I think the Hizmet Movement is one of the moderate voices condemning terrorism and violence
of any sort, and I'm hoping that now in the light of this increasing terrorism around
the world, we'll hear more of the moderate voices
I'm Helen Rose Ebaugh. I'm a professor of sociology at the University of Houston
central campus, and I've been there for many years, and I teach the sociology of religion,
especially world religions, and I'm also a researcher there, where I've done research
on various sociology of religion-related topics.
The first time I was introduced to the Hizmet or Gülen Movement was ten days after 9/11.
There was a statement in the Washington Post on September 21st, protesting the attacks
on the World Trade Center, and it was signed by “M. Fethullah Gülen, Imam and scholar.”
And I was waiting to hear the moderate voice of a moderate Muslim. Because all we saw in
the media was the attacks and these awful Islamic terrorists. And so it was very refreshing
to hear that voice protesting the attacks. And that name stuck with me. It was three
or four years later, in fact, it was 2005. I was invited by the Journalists and Writers
Foundation from Turkey, and the Swedish ambassador to Turkey. I was invited to Gothenburg, Sweden,
for a Harran conference. And at that conference, there were religious leaders from Turkey,
from all the great religious traditions. And we spent three days dialoguing about religion,
and there I met the Journalists and Writers Foundation people, and I was very impressed.
This is a group in Turkey that is related to the Gülen Movement, and they focus upon
dialog among groups, particularly groups in conflict. And it was a wonderful experience.
And that same year we had our first graduate students in our sociology department from
Turkey, who were followers in the Movement. And I directed two theses that year, focused
on the Movement. So I began to more systematically learn about the Movement. And then in 2006,
these students invited me to my first interfaith trip to Turkey. And we visited, of course,
in some homes of Gülen followers, and we also visited many of the schools, hospitals
related to the Movement. We visited Zaman newspaper, the TV station, Asya Bank, that
were inspired by the Movement. And I was very impressed with the quality of these institutions,
especially the question that kept running through my mind is, “where's the money?
Who's financing all these top-quality institutions?” And so that question stayed with me. And then
in 2008, I returned to Turkey with a grant from the University of Houston to actually
talk about the financial support behind the Movement. So that was my introduction to the
Movement.
that the Movement is doing a lot of good in the world. That's what I see. I think that
people in the Movement are very authentic. They're very sincere about their religious
commitments, they care about the world. I was very impressed with the schools and the
hospital, and Kimse Yok Mu, which is the outreach relief organization. They send money to disasters
all over the world, and the kind of spirit behind the Movement is what really impressed
me. Lots of enthusiasm, a lot of sincerity. And it's just wonderful now that the Movement
is spreading around the world, and that we have them here in Texas. People value the
services of the Movement. Now, in Texas, in Houston, you don't really have an interfaith
event without including the Gülen Movement, people from the Movement, their leaders in
the interfaith community here in Houston. So that's what I see. Very committed, sincere
people, who have, you know, the good of God and the good of Mankind at the center of their
hearts.
I think Mr. Gülen is a very charismatic individual who came to the fore in Turkey at a very tumultuous
time. And he preached sort of a new breath of fresh air on Islam. His main message was
that Turkey needed more schools. But not madrasas. He really encouraged the building of schools
that would emphasize science, math, technology, all in the spirit of spirituality, and connecting
spirituality and science. So it was a breath of fresh air in Turkey. And I think that breath
of fresh air is being felt now around the world. So I look at him as a very charismatic
person.
I have never met him, and won't, and I do that on purpose. I've had a number of opportunities
to go to Pennsylvania and to meet with him. But I'm really, I'm a scientific researcher.
I was president of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion in 2000. I've been very
active in that society, and I'm very committed to working out of data. And I told the Movement
and the people at the University of Houston, from the very beginning of my research, I'm
on a journey to tell the truth. To get data, and to see what the data says. And that I'm
committed, if I see irregularities or things in the Movement that bother me, I'm as committed
to talk about that as I am the positive things. So I felt that if I interviewed Mr. Gülen
or if I was seen by the media with Mr. Gülen, you know, it would weaken that kind of scientific
approach that I wanted to have to this study.
I think the Hizmet Movement is one of the moderate voices condemning terrorism and violence
of any sort, and I'm hoping that now in the light of this increasing terrorism around
the world, we'll hear more of the moderate voices. I think you hear these moderate voices
more in Europe, for example, than you do in the United States. You know, blood and violence
and terrorism, they kind of make the news. And news media, I think, find it difficult
to present a moderate voice. What do you do except have somebody sit in a chair and interview
'em? It's not the kind of dramatic footage that all this terrorism proclaims. So I'm
very eager for people in the Gülen Movement, as well as other moderate movements, to really
speak out and condemn this terrorism. And I think it's happening. I heard a wonderful
talk Tuesday night at the Houston World Affairs Council, by Karima Bardone, I think is her
name, and she documents these moderate voices around the world that are condemning terrorism,
that are putting their very lives on the line, at stake, to protest this terrorism. And I
think the Gülen Movement fits in that.
I get asked this question a lot when I lecture around the world. “What's unique about the
Gülen Movement?” And that question actually led us to study seven movements around the
world that have roots in religious traditions. And they're all doing service around the world.
And I really think, basically, what's unique about the Gülen Movement is that it's Turkish
in origin, and it's Islamic. I mean, so much of the works that are going on in the Movement
are being done by other movements also. And I think that's good news. I mean, there's
so much need in the world. Let's all get on board.
I think they're wonderful. I think there needs to be a next step. But I think what they're
doing in terms of interfaith dialog is wonderful. For example, the Ramadan dinners, in which
they invite people of all religious traditions, and have a program, and have people from different
religious traditions sitting at the same table, you know, eating a meal together. It's wonderful.
I'm a big believer that the best way to do interfaith dialog is one-on-one. Getting to
know someone, personally, of a different religious faith. And that's what was so wonderful about
teaching world religions at a big university like the University of Houston. You had people
from all religious faiths in the classroom, and they got to be friends. And I think that's
a wonderful thing that the Movement does. It provides these kind of opportunities for
those kind of friendships.
The Hizmet schools are open to women, are open to girls, and provide, in some areas,
the only education that these students have. And so, again, it would be a very sad day
if these schools were not there.
I would like to say, I guess, that this is a Movement that has a lot of lessons to offer.
Especially in today's world. And I think that it's important to learn about the Movement.