14_(240-250) A Global Sense.pmd


A GLOBAL SENSE OF SOLIDARITY, IN THE CONTEXT OF

NARROW NATIONALISM: THE CASE OF THE HIZMET

(SERVICE) MOVEMENT FROM TURKEY

Zeki Pariti

Thai Turkish Business Association, Bangkok, Thailand

Abstract

This paper is an effort to understand/present and outline how the

Hizmet (Service) Movement; more popularly known as the Gulen Move-

ment and named after the prominent Turkish scholar Fethullah G?len; on

which hundreds conferences papers and many books are written, has de-

veloped a global sense of solidarity that has a sphere of influence on the

global scale: Active in more than a hundred countries with schools, aid

organizations, intercultural centers and business organizations, the G?len

movement is considered to be one of the most significant social move-

ments that arose from the Muslim world.

º·¤Ñ́ ÂèÍ

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·Õè¹ÔÂÁÍÂèÒ§¡ÇéÒ§¢ÇÒ§ä é́ÍÂèÒ§äà ¢ºÇ¹¡Òà Ñ́§¡ÅèÒÇÁÑ¡à»ç¹·ÕèÃÙé̈ Ñ¡ã¹¹ÒÁ¢ºÇ¹¡ÒÃ
Gulen «Ö觵Ñ駪×è͵ÒÁ Fethullah G?len ¼Ùéà»ç¹¹Ñ¡ÇÔªÒ¡ÒêÒǵØÃ¡Õ ·Õè¹Ñ¡ÇÔªÒ¡ÒÃä é́·Ó
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¸ØáԨ ¢ºÇ¹¡Òà Gulen à»ç¹Ë¹Öè§ã¹¢ºÇ¹¡Ò÷ҧÊѧ¤Á·ÕèÊӤѭ·ÕèÊØ´·Õèà¡Ô´¢Öé¹ã¹
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210 Prajna Vihara, Volume 13, Number 1-2, January-December, 2012, 240-250

  c 2000 by Assumption University Press

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INTRODUCTION: Solidarity and Nationalism

The fact that, the changing philosophical and sociological mean-

ings of the terms ‘solidarity’ and ‘nationalism’ from a global perspective

makes it necessary to clarify that the usually trustworthy academic defini-

tions of these terms are limited by the Western understanding version of

them.

In his book, Solidarity: From Civic Friendship to a Global Legal

Community 2005, Hauke Brunkhorst says that “Solidarity is a thoroughly

modern concept. It is just as tightly bound up with the juridical concept

of equality as with the political concept of democracy. Its origin is in the

French Revolution”.1 Later Emile Durkheim referred to two types of soli-

darity __ mechanical and organic; a society characterized by mechanical

solidarity is unified because all people are engaged in similar activities or

responsibilities. In contrast, a society characterized by organic solidarity

is held together by the fact that all have different tasks or responsibilities

(George Ritzer 2004).

Even though nationalism is unique to the modern world as a po-

litical ideology, some of its elements can be traced throughout history.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. records that “The first

roots of nationalism are probably to be found in the ancient Hebrews, and

the ancient Greeks also felt superior to all other peoples. These feelings

of cultural superiority (ethnocentrism), which are similar to nationalism,

gave way to much more universal identifications under the Roman Em-

pire and with the Christian Church through its teaching of the oneness of

humanity. Then it was in the 19th century that nationalism became a wide-

spread and powerful force. During this time nationalism expressed itself

in many areas as a drive for national unification or independence. The

early 20th century, with the breakup of Austria-Hungary and of the Otto-

man Empire, saw the establishment of many independent nations, espe-

cially through the peace treaties ending World War I. The Paris Peace

Conference established the principle of national self-determination, up-

held by the League of Nations and later by the United Nations. While

self-determination is a nationalist principle, it also recognizes the basic

equality of all nations, large or small, and therefore transcends a narrow

nationalism that claims superiority for itself”.

Zeki Pariti  241



THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY

After the breakup of the Ottoman Empire, a new country, the

Republic of Turkey, which was to witness a radical change in the political

system along the lines of the western European nation-states was estab-

lished. This was an effort to establish and then hold on to, a nationalist,

laicist, and Westernized republic. (Cetin 2010) Later, the new Republic of

Turkey went through crises, conflicts and demands for modernization

period of time (1923-1950): The Republican era: one-party rule, laicist

policies, cultural revolution; the history and language reforms to erase

the pre-existing culture and education, execution of people, forbidding

publications in the old language and Kurdish language that was spoken

and written by the biggest ethnic minority other than Turkish in Turkey.

In 1950 power passed from a single-party dictatorship to an elected

democratic government. But then something happened that would recur

in different guises to haunt Turkey right up to the present: top army offic-

ers offered to stage a coup to suppress the elected government and re-

store the Republicans party which lost the previous election. The follow-

ing years of Turkey saw similar political conflicts that resulted in the ille-

gal deposition of the governments for four times including the one which

was called ‘Post-modern’ military coup between the years 1960-1997. Of

course, besides, the problems that were provoked by the pushed social

and cultural transformation in a short period of time in the early years of

the new Republic, education and health, which have been Turkey’s two

most important issues since the period of the Ottoman State, continually

grew larger during the republican period and, worse than that, became

tools for political goals. Especially, ideological and political concerns rather

than logic and science ruled almost all the decisions made in the field of

education. During this time, Turkey never became a noteworthy country

in the international arena. On the contrary, universities, which should have

made high-level scientific work, became a point of political focus and

were in the forefront of military coups in the recent Turkish history.

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WHO IS FETHULLAH GULEN?

Fethullah G?len is a Turkish Muslim intellectual, who was born in

1941 into a traditional family in the Pasinler district of Erzurum, Turkey.

Erzurum lies in the northeast of Turkey, and it is socio-culturally very

conservative. It is a town that has, for long centuries, reflected the basic

religious and national values in its social make-up.

As a young man, Gulen found himself in a position to deal with

two different cultures, Islam and the West. Beginning three generations

before him, people had experienced an identity crisis between these two

cultures and civilizations. Gulen had a good view of the transforming

cultural view of his age. Rather than falling into emotional or ethical de-

spair in the face of social and institutional transformations occurring in

Turkey and the world in general, he did not shy away from drawing on

both individual and traditional experience while actively engaging with

current social transformations by way of conscious participation. He de-

veloped a perspective that fed his personal, ethical, and cultural ideals

with new repertoires of knowledge. (Ergene 2007)

Along with other great Islamic scholars like Maulana Jalaluddeen

Rumi, one of the most important Islamic thinkers of late Ottoman Empire

and the Republican era from whom Fethullah Gulen was influenced was

Said Nursi (1873-1960). Nursi’s ideas for a modern Islamic conscious-

ness emphasized the need for a significant role for religious belief in pub-

lic life, while rejecting obscurantism and embracing scientific and techno-

logical development.

KEYS POINTS IN HIS MESSAGE

Inter-faith and Inter-cultural dialogue: Fethullah Gulen believes

that the thoughts, values and experiences which are shared by the people

of not only the same nation but by all the nations of the world, are much

more important and more numerous than what divides and antagonises

them, encourage tolerance and respect and promote unity, while at the

same time preventing the divisions and antagonisms from growing into

open hostility and conflict.

..

Zeki Pariti  243

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Education: its role and significance

Fethullah Gulen unequivocally asserts: ‘If you wish to keep the

masses under control, simply starve them of knowledge. The only escape

route from tyranny is through the attainment of knowledge’. He believes

the road to fair opportunity and justice for all is paved with an appropri-

ate and sufficient general education. Only then do the resources develop

within individuals and within their communities to enable understanding

and mutual respect which, in turn. are the basis upon which each others

rights can be secured by voluntary compliance. Fethullah Gulen has over

the years encouraged the elite and community leaders, successful indus-

trialists and businessmen, to support quality education for those who cannot

otherwise afford it.

Fethullah Gulen maintains: If a civilized nation expects to be ig-

norant and free, it is expecting what never was and never will be’. In the

field of education this principle means making intelligent use of, rather

than running away from, the latest knowledge and technologies, notably

mass communications technology such as television, to inform the public,

especially those unable to attain a formal education, of matters of con-

cern and relevance to them.

The usefulness of democracy

Fethullah Gulen is of the opinion that, in spite of its many short-

comings, democracy is the only viable choice in modern times for a sys-

tem to manage political decision-making and governance generally. He

argues therefore that mankind should preserve democracy and try to de-

velop and improve it.

People will always demand freedom of choice in the way they run

their affairs and especially in their expression of spiritual and religious

values.

The duty of hope

Do not despair in the face of adversity and do not yield to anar-

chists’, he emphasizes time and again. He has warned most particularly

244  Prajna Vihara
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against giving up hope when disappointments and failures come thick and

fast. Hopelessness is a quicksand that incapacitates the will to struggle

and succeed; it is a noose that chokes the powers of reason and imagina-

tion so that, in their despair, people refuse to learn from their trials and

run to false, short-term solutions which, in time, intensify the very prob-

lems they sought to escape. A strong faith in God and loyalty to funda-

mental principles are the best defence against the decay or loss of hope.

Visions for the future

Fethullah Gulen senses a positive change in the spiritual climate in the

world. He envisions a 21st century in which we shall see the birth of a

spiritual dynamism that will shake off the dust that has stifled moral val-

ues for so long. He looks forward to an age of tolerance and understand-

ing leading to co-operation between the great human civilizations and

ultimately to their unification. The nobility of the human spirit and moral

conscience will triumph on the way to inter-civilizational dialogue based

on shared values.

Mankind face anxieties and stresses in modern society, and their

labours, even well-intentioned, have undesirable outcomes, psychologi-

cally, socio-politically and environmentally. The principal reason, Fethullah

Gulen contends, is that man proceeds only haltingly in search of his Cre-

ator and the purpose of his creation. To the fundamental questions which

we all ask__Why was I born? What is the purpose of my living? What is

the meaning of death and what does it demand from me?__Fethullah Gulen

gives very practical and convincing answers, but people must choose in-

dividually to be guided or not. In his speeches and writings he has often

said: 'Man has come to a crossroads: one road leads to despair, the other

to salvation. May God give us the ‘wisdom to make the right choice.

Sharing the abundance

Fethullah Gulen does not believe that there exist any material short-

ages in the world which might conceivably justify the death of millions

from famine or drought. The problems arise from unequal distribution of

wealth and the resources from which wealth is generated. He argues

Zeki Pariti  245



strongly that wealth should be channeled through private charities to the

needy. He has spearheaded the establishment of many charitable organi-

zations to handle the welfare of the underprivileged and to administer and

carry out the most direct and effective methods of accomplishing this

task.

Material and spiritual values

In his philosophical writings and speeches Fethullah Gulen has

sought to synthesize the positive sciences with divinity, to reconcile the

alleged incongruities between them. In the same spirit, he has argued that

man must seek, in his everyday life of work and relationships, a subtle and

delicate balance between material and spiritual values. Individuals and

societies must guard against unrestrained avarice and the artificial multi-

plication of needs. Equally, absolute renunciation is not a way that all can

follow, nor one that even the few can follow all the time. Through steady

discipline and intelligent exercise of conscience a moderate path must be

sought and held to. Only then can individuals and societies enjoy serenity

and contentment.

Use reasoned argument, not violence

As for getting others to accept your ways, Fethullah Gulen tells

us, mere force is not appropriate. In a situation where communication

across great distances has become easier and easier, and people have ac-

cess or can demand access to the means of mass communication, the only

proper way to get others to accept your ideas is by persuading them

through convincing arguments. Those who resort to brute force to reach

their goals are intellectually bankrupt.

Current projects

Though officially retired, Fethullah Gulen remains active in the

organization of meetings and conferences, and as writer and speaker. He

is also teaching Islamic sciences to a large group of divinity graduates

under his private tutelage. His following in his native Turkey and abroad

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continues to grow. His biography recently reached its fiftieth edition. The

Fountain Magazine (Issue 23, 1998).

THE HIZMET (Service) MOVEMENT

During the decades of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, he preached

to large crowds in mosques and public places throughout Turkey and

wrote hundreds of newspaper columns, articles and books espousing his

ideas. Gradually, many Turks from all walks of life responded to his ideas

of education, modernization, positive relationships with the West and in-

terfaith dialogue by establishing dormitories, university preparatory courses

and schools in which quality education, especially in the sciences and

technology, were buttressed with commitment to Islamic ideals. With the

fall of the Soviet Union, his ideas and service projects spread to the former

Turkish-Soviet countries and ulti-mately to western Europe, North

America, Asia, Africa, Australia and to Middle Eastern countries. Today,

the G?len-inspired movement has over 1,000 schools in 100 countries on

5 continents. It is a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam and com-

mitted to educating youth, fostering interfaith and intercultural dialogue,

assisting the needy in society and contributing to global peace. (Helen

Rose Ebaugh 2010)

Social movements take time to develop; they do not come ready-

made. In any case, the availability of political opportunities does not au-

tomatically and promptly translate into increased action and is insuffi-

cient to account for the emergence of a collective action and actor. For an

organized collective action as large as the G?len Movement, there has to

be, already in place, a sufficient number of people with the necessary

intellectual and professional skills, and the readiness and will to be em-

ployed, before a window of opportunity opens up in history.

Generally, a collective actor or action (such as a social movement

or political party) does not automatically spring from political or social

tensions or conditions. Numerous factors determine whether or not this

will occur. Necessary factors include the availability of adequate organi-

zational resources, the ability of movement leaders to represent their ide-

ology attractively to the public or masses, and a political context which

Zeki Pariti  247



makes action possible.

FIELD OF ACTIVITIES OF THE HIZMET MOVEMENT IN

GENERAL

. Education; Nonreligious, non-denominational schools.

. Interfaith-Intercultural Dialogue Organizations

. Media Institutions; an expansion of educational initiative to
masses.

. Relief Organizations

. Business Associations; collectively includes thousands of busi-
nesses.

. Healthcare institutions

BASIC DYNAMICS OF THE MOVEMENT

Analyzing the internal dynamics of a movement is important for

two reasons. First, it allows others to perceive the structure by which the

movement is organized. Second, it prevents others from falling into the

trap of overlooking the totality of the movement, as they focus on partial

analyses. I use dynamics here to mean the key concepts of the movement.

Intellectual and social attitudes of a movement are shaped by the

movement’s dynamics. Social science analyses that study a movement

proceed on safer grounds if they are aware of that movement’s dynamics,

and they do not fall into frequent fallacies. Understanding a movement’s

dynamics allows us to pinpoint who is making an objective analysis, and

who forges a “pirated” analysis without any knowledge (Ergene 2007).

For instance, a person who strives to comply with the basic dynamics of

Islamic Sufi practice by being humble in his or her relations with others

(tawadhu), or regarding himself as inferior to others (mahwiyat), would

surely appear as a shy person. An observer, who is unaware of any Sufi

and ascetic dynamics, might interpret this humble attitude as hypocritical

or clandestine. If an analysis does not account for this movement’s Mus-

lim Sufi dynamics and experiences, can we really call this analysis “scien-

tific”?

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Sufi, moral, and spiritual profundity in Islam invites believers to

be humble and tolerant in their family and their social relations. Personal

virtue and social maturity are pre-requisites. Thus, in order to understand

this movement, it is first necessary to understand the spiritual dynamics

of Islam, and the extent to which Islam influences its participants. It is

almost impossible to analyze even an ordinary Muslim’s intellectual and

social life without first understanding the profound nature of Islam in

general. Cultural Islam gives us a general outlook in regard to the theo-

logical, mental, moral, and social relations of Muslims. When we look

from the window of general dynamics, we can obtain a first glimpse of

the individual, spiritual, moral, and social attitudes of Muslims in a com-

munity. From all these points of view, elaborating on the religious/spiri-

tual, social, and cultural dynamics of the G?len movement would help us

formulate a proper rendering of the religious and socio-cultural attitudes

of the movement in general. Indeed, the titles and concepts that I will

highlight are also important in regard to how they are interpreted and

how they are transferred to social practice, as well as to their deep mean-

ing in Muslim cultural perception. The importance of G?len comes from

his success in transforming these dynamics into action in socio-cultural

life. In theory, these cultural and religious dynamics existed in books and

other sources for almost 1,500 years.

1. Magnanimity (Generosity of spirit)

2. Communicating the word of God (call, conveyance, and guid-

ance)

3. Living for others

4. The spirit of devotion

5. Sacrifice, fidelity, and loyalty

6. Representing and communicating the faith

CONCLUSION: IS SOLIDARITY AN AIM OF THE GULEN

MOVEMENT?

We are all ‘solidary’ through the identity of our behavior.

Georges Jacques Danton

Zeki Pariti  249

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Solidarity is not in itself the cause or primary goal of the forma-

tion and the collective action of the Movement.

It is a secondary or a tertiary effect which results from the collec-

tive services and action. Put simply, the Movement and its participants do

not pursue solidarity as a goal of their effort; rather solidarity ensues

from their collective effort. The solidarity which participants experience

comes from their doing together what they collectively have approved as

good for themselves and wider society. Such solidarity can be considered

a ‘natural’ output (as against ‘politically contrived’ or ‘artificial’ input).

There are other organizations which pursue solidarity by focusing

inward and guarding against outside influences. This contrasts with the

G?len Movement, which always seeks common grounds with others.

Finally, as the main question in this paper “how and why”: This is

the case. This can be addressed by grouping all the factors in three main

categories:

1- Potential in the Turkish social and historical context

2- Characteristics of Gulen’s ideas, and the success of projects

3- Reaching out to overall population

Due to combination of all these three factors, some others like

Public Stance against Violence, Terror and Suicide Attacks, Emphasis on

the Spiritual Dimension of Faith, Science and Faith in Harmony, Pro-

Democracy, Solutions to Social Problems Working on the Ground, Other

Civil Society Projects, Fethullah Gulen’s ideas have influenced millions

of people both in Turkey and abroad.

References:

All the information that needs to be referenced, and if not stated

the source, were taken from the official website of Fethullah Gulen: http:/

/www.fethullahgulen.org.

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