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So That Others May Live A Fethullah Gulen Reader Erkan M Kurt 9781935295297 Books

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Fethullah Gülen is undoubtedly one of the most influential Muslim thinkers of our time. His work and writings have inspired a transnational civic movement that advocates for education, promotes intercultural and interfaith understanding, and delivers humanitarian aid and disaster relief. Originated in Turkey, this “Hizmet” or “Gülen Movement” is active in more than one hundred countries across the globe. So That Others May Live offers a definitive compilation of Gülen’s characteristic essays. Some of them are available here in English for the first time. The rest have been carefully re-translated and edited, providing even familiar readers with new insight into Gülen’s most remarkable writings on faith, morality, education, civic service, and modern civilization. Together, this selection functions as a valuable guide to the ethical impetuses of a global social movement—one that has rooted itself in Gülen’s signature synthesis of humanism and Islam.

So That Others May Live A Fethullah Gulen Reader Erkan M Kurt 9781935295297 Books

Review by Jared Graham

Erkan Kurt’s compilation of Fethullah Gulen’s lead articles came to me very auspicious effort in many ways. Introducing a self-exiled, moderate, and progressive preacher to the world is something we all need today, at a time when misconceptions about Islam are abound. It is really intriguing that a person like Fethullah Gulen has not been gained a global recognition enough by the intellectual and spiritual communities and traditions. Perhaps more interesting than this is the fact that still many people don’t have any idea what the “Hizmet” Movement or Gulen Movement, “a loose network of civic and humanitarian projects that include schools, tutoring centers, universities, hospital aid and relief organizations, interfaith and intercultural dialog organizations, publishing houses, and media outlets” (p.vii) is all about.

In his introduction, the editor Dr. Erkan Kurt (also the translator) describes Fethullah Gulen’s lifestyle as “very modest and yet socially active” (p.viii) which summarizes Gulen’s entire life journey; extremely humble, but also very interactive. Kurt also argues that Gulen is a moralist like Kant and a “wise teacher” like Ghazali or Rumi (p.ix). There are 40 essays in this reader collected in six chapters. Each chapter has its own theme.

Entitled Humanity & Civilization, the first chapter starts with humanity and takes it to concepts like “woman”, “ideal society”, “civilization”, and “nature”. But Gulen also touches some other concepts elegantly. Especially his description of love is simply brilliant. “Love does not fight for ascendancy, it is already enthroned” (p.3) is an apt description about love. “A person armed with love needs no other weapon” (p.5) is a strong argument against so-called fundamentalist Muslims.

Gulen, on the other hand, does not ignore the animal side of the human beings, his emphasis on our Hobbesian side (p.9) as well as the competition between our animal and angelic side is noteworthy (p.10). When talking about the women, he argues that “woman and man share the same divine creation and mission in the world; they are like two faces of a single reality” (p.25). In “The Ideal Society”, we see that it start with the ideal human, the prerequisite for such a society (p.31).

Gulen also makes comparisons between certain concepts. For instance, he compares “civilization” with “modernization”, contending that the latter “can change the appearance of life, but it does not necessarily civilize people” (p.35). Sometimes, his unique approach to a specific concept like nature is worth contemplating: “Nature was like a magnificent vessel sailing toward the country of love, or a chandelier with a thousand lights illuminating the realms beyond” (p.39). The very first chapter can be summarized as the place of humanity in God’s sight as well as the unique approach by Gulen to various concepts.

Second chapter, named Faith and Wisdom, is about the relationship between the believer and the God. Gulen again emphasizes love, seeing as the foundation of the believer’s actions. He mentions different types of love including the ones felt by the unbelievers towards people. Gulen distinguished all these types and thinks that love of God is the true type of love.

Chapter Three is called Morals and Sprituality. Gulen explains “heart”, “love” (again), “mercy”, “forgiveness”, “tolerance”, and “happiness”. Will take pages to expound on them, but for example, about heart we read this: “Today, we yearn for the stories of the heart, for in them we feel the reviving breaths of Jesus” (p. 82). In mercy, he associates it with nature: “Different voices and tunes merge in rhythms so perfect that only an all-encompassing mercy could be directing this mysterious music” (p.88).

The fourth chapter is Education. The editor selected the articles starting with the youth and then the philosophy of education Gulen adopts. As the source of inspiration of a social movement who focuses on education, Fethullah Gulen expresses his unique views on it. About a teacher, for example, he writes this: “One who grasps the significance of phenomena and builds associations between life and conscience. The teacher hears the truth in everything and can express it n any language. School is like a laboratory for future generations, and the teacher is its physician. The teacher is the one who can heal our social ailments and remove the dark clouds from our horizon” (p.119). Gulen’s main concern is to “cultivate virtue in youth” (p.123). He wants the pupils to have two wings, one filled with positive science and the other with virtue. That is why, Gulen thinks that humanity is at a crossroads to “elevate our children to the truth of their humanity or abandon them to alienation” (p.130).

People of Service is the name of Chapter Five. As the name suggests it is about the general characteristics of the people in the Movement. Gulen describes these people with many phrases, but “the people we are longing for” (p.133), “the architects of our future” (p.135), and “devout architects of our souls” (p.143) are equally striking. Gulen adds more words when describing these people. “In them, there is no quarrel between spirit matter” (p.134) says Gulen, bringing so-called faith/science clash to our attention. On an interesting note, in the article dated March 1991, Gulen states that “the new person… will utilize all possible means for reaching the minds and the heart of people, from publication to mass media” (p.140). It is no surprise that Gulen Movement or Service Movement is very active in mass and social media.

But perhaps the most conspicuous aspect of those people is the self-sacrifice. “So that Others may Live”, as the title of the book, summarizes Gulen’s purpose of life in this world. In many places of the book, he reiterates the same philosophy through different combination of sentences. “He suffers so that others may not suffer. his tears flow so that others may not weep. If he does not serve others, he considers himself worthless” (p.64), “True virtue lies in living for the sake of others” (p.95), “… he readily sacrifices his own felicity for the happiness of others” (p. 105), “… devout ones, who are not concerned with their own felicity and who understand that their own prosperity is intimately tied to the prosperity of others” (p.143), “they neglect themselves in order to better serve others” (p.145)

The final chapter is entitled Islam. Most of the chapter is dedicated to various characteristics of Islam with the very last article, the longest one in the book, is exclusively about Prophet Muhammad. When talking about Islam’s message to humanity, Gulen is concise: “(Islam) is rooted in divine revelation, remains within the framework of human reason, respects human feelings, and is enriched by inspiration (p.173). Gulen explanation to jihad is also a must-read.

In general, this book is a very useful compendium of articles to know better the life philosophy of Fethullah Gulen and the movement he inspired as well as the Islamic concepts which form its foundation. The editor, Dr. Kurt, does an excellent job with the selection and translation.

Product details Hardcover 216 pages Publisher Blue Dome Press (October 7, 2013) Language English ISBN-10 1935295292

Tags : So That Others May Live: A Fethullah Gulen Reader [Erkan M. Kurt] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <span><span>Fethullah Gülen is undoubtedly one of the most influential Muslim thinkers of our time. His work and writings have inspired a transnational civic movement that advocates for education,Erkan M. Kurt,So That Others May Live: A Fethullah Gulen Reader,Blue Dome Press,1935295292,Islam - General,Islam,RELIGION Islam General,Religion,Religion - World Religions,Religion: Islam General
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So That Others May Live A Fethullah Gulen Reader Erkan M Kurt 9781935295297 Books Reviews

Gulen is a Turkish scholar,intellectual and preacher.He took the lead of Hizmet Movement which is started in Turkey.The Movement rooted in moderate Islam and committed to educating youth,fostering interfaith and intercultural dialog,assisting the needy in society and contributing to the global peace. Gulen inspired a generation in Turkey and now in the world saying with let that others may live.
I have the pleasure to meet the author and such a good book couldnt came from other person. If you want to learn more about this movement but at the same time fullfill your heart do not hesitate in buying this book
A wonderful introduction to a muslim that destroys the caricature of Muslins as being terroists anto woman etc.
Excellent book to examine Mr Fethullah Gulen's thoughts and ideas. He is a prominent Islamic scholar and social activist. No doubt, there are a lot of brilliant scholar in Islamic world. But he is the one of the unique example of Turkic Islamic world to mobilize individuals for working to peace of humanity. Educational institutes, humanitarian help activities and intercultural dialog organizations which are Hizmet movement'(aka Gulen Movement) main activities.
Review by Jared Graham

Erkan Kurt’s compilation of Fethullah Gulen’s lead articles came to me very auspicious effort in many ways. Introducing a self-exiled, moderate, and progressive preacher to the world is something we all need today, at a time when misconceptions about Islam are abound. It is really intriguing that a person like Fethullah Gulen has not been gained a global recognition enough by the intellectual and spiritual communities and traditions. Perhaps more interesting than this is the fact that still many people don’t have any idea what the “Hizmet” Movement or Gulen Movement, “a loose network of civic and humanitarian projects that include schools, tutoring centers, universities, hospital aid and relief organizations, interfaith and intercultural dialog organizations, publishing houses, and media outlets” (p.vii) is all about.

In his introduction, the editor Dr. Erkan Kurt (also the translator) describes Fethullah Gulen’s lifestyle as “very modest and yet socially active” (p.viii) which summarizes Gulen’s entire life journey; extremely humble, but also very interactive. Kurt also argues that Gulen is a moralist like Kant and a “wise teacher” like Ghazali or Rumi (p.ix). There are 40 essays in this reader collected in six chapters. Each chapter has its own theme.

Entitled Humanity & Civilization, the first chapter starts with humanity and takes it to concepts like “woman”, “ideal society”, “civilization”, and “nature”. But Gulen also touches some other concepts elegantly. Especially his description of love is simply brilliant. “Love does not fight for ascendancy, it is already enthroned” (p.3) is an apt description about love. “A person armed with love needs no other weapon” (p.5) is a strong argument against so-called fundamentalist Muslims.

Gulen, on the other hand, does not ignore the animal side of the human beings, his emphasis on our Hobbesian side (p.9) as well as the competition between our animal and angelic side is noteworthy (p.10). When talking about the women, he argues that “woman and man share the same divine creation and mission in the world; they are like two faces of a single reality” (p.25). In “The Ideal Society”, we see that it start with the ideal human, the prerequisite for such a society (p.31).

Gulen also makes comparisons between certain concepts. For instance, he compares “civilization” with “modernization”, contending that the latter “can change the appearance of life, but it does not necessarily civilize people” (p.35). Sometimes, his unique approach to a specific concept like nature is worth contemplating “Nature was like a magnificent vessel sailing toward the country of love, or a chandelier with a thousand lights illuminating the realms beyond” (p.39). The very first chapter can be summarized as the place of humanity in God’s sight as well as the unique approach by Gulen to various concepts.

Second chapter, named Faith and Wisdom, is about the relationship between the believer and the God. Gulen again emphasizes love, seeing as the foundation of the believer’s actions. He mentions different types of love including the ones felt by the unbelievers towards people. Gulen distinguished all these types and thinks that love of God is the true type of love.

Chapter Three is called Morals and Sprituality. Gulen explains “heart”, “love” (again), “mercy”, “forgiveness”, “tolerance”, and “happiness”. Will take pages to expound on them, but for example, about heart we read this “Today, we yearn for the stories of the heart, for in them we feel the reviving breaths of Jesus” (p. 82). In mercy, he associates it with nature “Different voices and tunes merge in rhythms so perfect that only an all-encompassing mercy could be directing this mysterious music” (p.88).

The fourth chapter is Education. The editor selected the articles starting with the youth and then the philosophy of education Gulen adopts. As the source of inspiration of a social movement who focuses on education, Fethullah Gulen expresses his unique views on it. About a teacher, for example, he writes this “One who grasps the significance of phenomena and builds associations between life and conscience. The teacher hears the truth in everything and can express it n any language. School is like a laboratory for future generations, and the teacher is its physician. The teacher is the one who can heal our social ailments and remove the dark clouds from our horizon” (p.119). Gulen’s main concern is to “cultivate virtue in youth” (p.123). He wants the pupils to have two wings, one filled with positive science and the other with virtue. That is why, Gulen thinks that humanity is at a crossroads to “elevate our children to the truth of their humanity or abandon them to alienation” (p.130).

People of Service is the name of Chapter Five. As the name suggests it is about the general characteristics of the people in the Movement. Gulen describes these people with many phrases, but “the people we are longing for” (p.133), “the architects of our future” (p.135), and “devout architects of our souls” (p.143) are equally striking. Gulen adds more words when describing these people. “In them, there is no quarrel between spirit matter” (p.134) says Gulen, bringing so-called faith/science clash to our attention. On an interesting note, in the article dated March 1991, Gulen states that “the new person… will utilize all possible means for reaching the minds and the heart of people, from publication to mass media” (p.140). It is no surprise that Gulen Movement or Service Movement is very active in mass and social media.

But perhaps the most conspicuous aspect of those people is the self-sacrifice. “So that Others may Live”, as the title of the book, summarizes Gulen’s purpose of life in this world. In many places of the book, he reiterates the same philosophy through different combination of sentences. “He suffers so that others may not suffer. his tears flow so that others may not weep. If he does not serve others, he considers himself worthless” (p.64), “True virtue lies in living for the sake of others” (p.95), “… he readily sacrifices his own felicity for the happiness of others” (p. 105), “… devout ones, who are not concerned with their own felicity and who understand that their own prosperity is intimately tied to the prosperity of others” (p.143), “they neglect themselves in order to better serve others” (p.145)

The final chapter is entitled Islam. Most of the chapter is dedicated to various characteristics of Islam with the very last article, the longest one in the book, is exclusively about Prophet Muhammad. When talking about Islam’s message to humanity, Gulen is concise “(Islam) is rooted in divine revelation, remains within the framework of human reason, respects human feelings, and is enriched by inspiration (p.173). Gulen explanation to jihad is also a must-read.

In general, this book is a very useful compendium of articles to know better the life philosophy of Fethullah Gulen and the movement he inspired as well as the Islamic concepts which form its foundation. The editor, Dr. Kurt, does an excellent job with the selection and translation.