Fethullah Gülen

Muhammed Fethullah Gülen (27 April 1941 – 20 October 2024), better known as Fethullah Gülen, was a Turkish preacher, author, educator and Muslim scholar. He lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania, United States.

Gülen taught a moderate version of Sunni / Hanafi Islam, derived from  Said Nursi's teachings and modernizing them. Gülen condemns terrorism, supports communication between people of different religions, and has initiated  dialogue with the Vatican and some Jewish organisations. Until 2013 he was an ally of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who later blamed him for the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt. He operated a worldwide organisation called the Gülen Movement also known as FETÖ.

Teachings
Fethullah Gülen's attitude towards hijab changed over time. In the past, Gülen, who regarded the unwinding of even a strand of women's hair as a great sin, suggested that women should cover their whole body by using veils and gloves. In his last speeches, Gülen evaluated the headscarf as a "füruat" (minor details).

Creationism: According to Gülen, the Universe is a work of creation that has a purpose, and the purpose of existence is to know Allah and science can gain value if it serves this purpose.

For him, to allow views opposed to belief in creation is a devastating delusion and evolution is a Darwin fallacy.

According to Gülen, the creation of Adam as the first human and Eve from Adam's file bone are miracle creations that should not be addressed in the context of cause-effect relationship.

He wrote his anti-evolutionary ideas in his book "The Truth of Creation and Evolution". This book was prepared by compiling his speeches at the meetings he held against Darwinism and evolution. In the book he states that biology science is a "fantasy" and that the greatest biology fantasy is the theory of evolution.

Death
Gülen died at a hospital in Pennsylvania on October 20, 2024 at the age of 83. He was being treated for heart and kidney failure.

References

Other websites


 Fethullah Gulen
 Hizment and Fethullah Gulen
 Love is a Verb  (2014), a film directed by Terry Spencer Hesser


 IMDb 

Category:1941 births
Category:2024 deaths
Category:Creationists
Category:Turkish educators
Category:Islamic religious leaders
Category:Turkish writers
Category:Hanafis
Category:Deaths from heart failure
Category:Deaths from renal failure
Category:Disease-related deaths in Pennsylvania