Gülen Movement and Culture of Devotion
Is there anybody in whom you have great trust; someone who you could say was "your right hand?"
I have never called anybody my right or left hand. Originally, I am from Erzurum . I also worked in Kirklareli and Edirne . There I had very dear friends who were really supportive of me. Then I went to Izmir . God granted me there very dear friends, like Kemal Erimez (may he rest in peace), Mustafa Birlik, Yusuf Pekmezci, and Kose Mahmut. If I am to talk about a right hand, then they would have been these people and if one of them had been my right hand, I would have been crushed under that hand, unable to bear the weight. Because, if anyone was to be a right hand, then I would say "I want one of them to look on me as their right hand, I wish I could be Kemal Erimez or Mustafa Birlik; I wish I were Yusuf Pekmezci."
There is a man called Nurettin Veren, who claimed to be your right hand and made some claims. Is what he said true?
If anybody really has a right in God's sight, then that right should never disappear. God knows everybody's place.
Was it Nurettin Veren who introduced you to politicians and enabled you to start the activities abroad?
I did not read his claims; my friends conveyed a part of them to me over the internet. When I listened to it as a summary, I was surprised. Along with a few people who were around him, he adopted a negative attitude against the services which they once also appreciated themselves, and they made groundless claims.
When I looked at his demands, I was surprised. He talks like a law-maker. He makes demands that are practically and even legally impossible, like "let this movement be something like the Red Crescent organization. And let it be presided over by a permanent council," among whom he included himself. I would say that some of his demands could not even be met by the state within the present law.
Who introduced you to politicians?
The person who introduced me to Süleyman Demirel, Turgut Özal, and Ismet Sezgin was Kemal Erimez. He had been acquainted with Süleyman Demirel for a long time. And he was on first name terms with Turgut Özal. He was the person who did the most to prepare the grounds for such meetings.
Nurettin Veren has some photographs taken with politicians. Didn't he make any contributions?
Sometimes when we were going somewhere, he drove the car and he went acted as an envoy to some people for the prestige of the movement. But if he has declared himself to be my right hand, then he is taking advantage. I merely examine what has been told me, and I can see that if there was somebody visiting me, he tried to appear in the photos with this person; if he went to the President in the name of the service (for God) he had a photograph taken, and then made them into an album. He filed the letters to be given to different heads of states under his own name.
If this much is enough to be called a right hand, then everybody would be a right hand. Frankly, I never would have thought it possible for those people who were occasionally working closely with me to be so calculating and to take such advantage of the situations.
Did he come to you in the USA , and did you threaten him?
He left, saying "leave me alone, I want to run my own business and become rich." We did not see one another for a long time. In fact, I was offended. He used the credibility of the movement for his own benefit, he lied, and he coerced. In a certain period, he misled some of our friends, making them believe that they could serve (God) better by being a Member of Parliament, or by being a member of a political party. Then some our friends came to apologize saying "Sir, may God bless you, we were about to be seduced into politics." Nevertheless, we have some certain principles, such as not being involved in politics, and keeping an equal distance from all political parties. Therefore I was angry, I protested.
A long time passed like that. A few years ago he came to America and said to a friend whom I refuse nothing, "I want to ask him to pray for me." I didn't trust him and I didn't want to see him. But the person who asked me to do so was someone I trusted. As a result, he came and stayed here for some time.
One day he wanted to enter my room, and I was a bit forbearing. When he came in he said, "haven't I suffered enough?" and I replied "What suffering, did anyone do anything to you, making you leave?" I later understood that there were rumors about him that it was he who had provided the tapes used for the montage employed in the defamation campaign against me; this was what he meant. But I was totally unaware of the rumors. Then he started shouting and threatening me. And I opened the door; and called for my friends to see him off.
Did you threaten him to kill him?
As a blessing from God, I'm a person who is loved and respected by many people in Turkey . If anyone has so much as touched him, he should say it. One should fear God (and speak the truth).
What do you think about him now?
When he was gone, my mercy was dominant and I included him in my prayers despite being heartbroken. And even now I do not exclude him from my prayers. I pray that his heart will be guided. I left the matter with God.
I try not to read whatever has been written against me, not only what he has said, but also other things that have been written against me, so that nothing negative remains in my heart toward those people. Thank God, I do not have any negative feelings for anyone; I have such a clear conscience that I can open my heart and extend my hand to everyone.
Sociologically, every community makes up their own language, their own style. Did this movement make up its own language and style?
We say love is the essence of creation. We are trying to program our lives with the principle that was expressed by Muhammad Bahauddin "If God had not looked at us with love we would not be able to love us." When this is the case, a relevant terminology spontaneously begins to form, of course. I mean there must be a harmony between the ontological and the epistemological. In order to delineate the bright path of the Prophet and the illustrious scholars among the early generations in Islamic history the changes and differentiations that have taken place since those times should be taken into consideration; they should then be stated with a fresh discourse.
One of the key concepts is: What kind of a relation do you think there is between the movement and devotion?
Devotion means being a person of ideals who is thoroughly attached to our values. If our ideal is love, introducing our culture, and presenting the beauties of religion in order to let others benefit from them, then our perspective, which is related with the essence of devotion, necessitates the regulation of our lives accordingly, and that we evaluate everything other thing as a component supporting and serving our ideals.
Devoted people unite their ideals and try to put forth a prophet-like determination, thinking of nothing but conveying their message with righteousness, loyalty, trustworthiness, and by keeping away from sin. At the same time, we hope that such an ideal-centered life will save people from an egocentric life of selfishness and egoism.
All great deeds are carried out by those who do not care for their own comfort. In the philosophy of devotedness, one lives attached to lofty ideals, preferring a poor and simple life for the good and wellbeing of the nation, thinking of nothing but serving God.
What is the role of sermons and counseling meetings in the formation of a culture of devotion?
The tradition of counseling is the first way that leads to the acceptance of every idea. It is for this reason that the Prophet said "Religion is counsel." There is also a need for a continuity of counseling. people might fall away, even if only a small way; there can be passions, like being too interested in worldly goods or worldly rank, a love of comfort, a desire to be seen (by others), or an ambition for fame. Each one of these has the potential to topple many people, and they constitute a problem for the devotees who serve (for the sake of God). One needs to be counseled in order not to fall under the effect of such things.
Within the values of the present time, power and control are decisive, and we mostly look at life through these. But you say, "for the sake of God." Your terminology is more difficult to understand from different perspectives.
I'm speaking with utmost sincerity; I don't have any interest but to seek God's good pleasure. I cannot claim to have attained it, but there is no hour, no day in which I do not wish to attain His good pleasure. At least hundred times a day I say, "my God, (all I want is) Your forgiveness, goodness, and to attain Your good pleasure." If I was offered the greatest degree of sainthood, even if I were to just glance at it, I would consider myself the lowliest person in the world. I long for my Lord. Maybe my wish hasn't been responded to so far. What I should do is to continue wishing, until the last moment of my life.
This wish, which is the greatest capital of my life, may not be easily understood, for it doesn't correspond to anything in the terminology of other people. I am almost shackled by thoughts like "You should care about the approval of God in your deeds. If He approves of your behavior, but the whole world objects, it doesn't matter. If He is well pleased, and approves, He will make others accept it as well, even if you don't wish this to be so" (Said Nursi). If my eyes don't see anything else, I beg forgiveness for my blindness.
- Created on .