| “When the pope came here he showed by his visit, by his presence, that he respects us,” remarked educator Servet Sayma. “That is why it’s important when religious leaders come together publicly, in front of nations. They give us an example of how to act with respect and tolerance for the Other,” added Sayma, a mathematics teacher at an Anatolian high school inspired by the teachings of Fethullah Gülen.
A 68-year-old Turkish scholar, mystic and spiritual leader, Gülen and his teachings advocate a Muslim faith that welcomes religious pluralism. This initiative alone sets Turkey apart in many ways from other Muslim nations.
Gülen’s teachings, in fact, have developed into what is known as the Gülen movement — a growing alliance of volunteers who aim at nothing less than transforming society through fundamental values, such as education, service, spirituality and family.
In Turkey, Gülen-inspired volunteers have built hospitals, newspapers, publishing centers, a television station and more than 300 schools.
Interreligious dialogue is a crucial ingredient in Fethullah Gülen’s recipe for a peaceful planet. He calls love, compassion, tolerance and forgiving “the pillars of dialogue.”
In his own words: “Interfaith dialogue is a must today, and the first step in establishing it is forgetting the past, ignoring polemical arguments and giving precedence to common points, which far outnumber polemical ones.”
Twenty-nine-year-old Fatih Ozcan first encountered Gülen’s teachings in the form of university students who volunteered to help him prepare for Turkey’s stringent university entrance exam. “Whenever I needed help, they were always there. They were a model of service for me,” he explained. Eventually Ozcan borrowed one of Gülen’s books that the students were reading. “I saw that the way they lived their lives, was what was taught in the book.”
At the university, Ozcan met other students inspired by Gülen’s writings and even joined them in a service project in Azerbaijan. Still, he said, “I did not understand why they used words like love, tolerance, dialogue, understanding.”
After three years working as a physics teacher, Ozcan went to graduate school in the United States, arriving first in Fairfax, Va., and then to Houston, where the language of interfaith dialogue took root in his heart. “I began to understand the words I heard!”
For the past two and a half years, Ozcan has been developing in Kansas City the work of interfaith dialogue that he witnessed successfully in Houston. “The power of this (Gülen) movement is that it is an independently growing movement,” remarked Ozcan, who is studying for an master’s degree in education at Kansas City’s Park University. “People are inspired by him and his teachings, but the work of the Gülen movement will go on after Fethullah Gülen.”
In the United States, the Institute of Interfaith Dialog (IID) began in Houston, spreading through Texas and beyond. Since 2004 the Institute has organized interfaith tour groups to Turkey for academics, clergy, journalists and community leaders.
For 10 days in January, Freddie and Carrie Komar of Bryan, Texas, participated in one of IID’s interfaith tours with Fatih Ozcan as their volunteer guide.
“When I told my friends what we were doing, coming here, they kept talking to me about the dangers. Before I came, I, too, had fear because of all the differences,” said Carrie, office manager for the athletic department at Bryan High School.
Acknowledging this was their first trip outside the United States, Carrie added, “Now it is clear to me that it all comes down to family and faith, and the people we met are the same as us, and we are the same as them.”
For the Komar’s, their journey with interfaith dialogue began with the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001. As a response to 9/11, the Texas A&M University interfaith group and the local Muslim community started preparing dinners for the police department as a way of meeting their officers.
Freddie Komar, assistant chief with the Bryan Police Department, invited Carrie to join him at his first interfaith meeting at the local Episcopal church. “We certainly didn’t know what to expect,” he said, remembering how at first the two of them “just sat back and observed.”
“In my line of work,” after 28 years in law enforcement, Freddie added, “there’s a danger of becoming very skeptical. So many of the people I deal with have ulterior motives and secondary agendas. But when I first met the members of the (interfaith) group, it was refreshing. These folks were genuinely kind.”
When asked how the interfaith tour of Turkey had changed him, Freddie Komar candidly observed, “We have a lot of immigrants in our area (Bryan/College Station), and our department devotes a lot of time and money to teach our officers Spanish and to learn the culture,” he said. The times in Turkey when the group wandered off without a Turkish translator and guide, “has helped give me an appreciation for what our immigrants go through, for how alienated they must feel.” Ultimately, Carrie added, “You have to let go of your pre-conceived ideas, be willing to get to know the real person and trust yourself to your faith.”
Source:
http://www.satodayscatholic.com/030207_BuildingInterfaith.aspx
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