Gülen’s initiatives for peace boost cooperation among different cultures 

An international conference on Fethullah Gülen’s initiatives for peace, dialogue, and cooperation in the contemporary world, which kicked off on Thursday at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, aroused great interest among participants. 

Participants attending the two-day conference, titled “Peaceful Coexistence: Fethullah Gülen’s Initiatives for Peace in the Contemporary World,” celebrated Gülen -- an Islamic scholar, peace activist and the mentor of a dynamic faith-based movement -- and said he sent messages of affection and peace to the whole world and that he calls on the international community to engage in dialogue among religions through his ideas and projects. Secretary of Interreligious Dialogue for the Society of Jesus in Rome, Professor Thomas Michel, who delivered the inaugural address at the conference, said the Gülen movement is based on peace and dialogue and he called on participants of the conference to contribute to this movement and extend the scope of its projects. The head of the Dialogue Academy, Gürkan Çelik, said: “The 32 academics from the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Turkey, Armenia and Israel who addressed the audience on various themes noted that they were very pleased to attend such a conference, which aimed at exploring the appeal and impact of the Gülen movement’s worldwide initiatives to help people respond creatively to the profound social changes occurring throughout the world.”

A Catholic priest from the Netherlands, Frans van der Sar, indicated that the notion of “dialogue” advocated by Gülen is the magic key to developing sound relations among different cultures and civilizations and added: “It was the first time I attended an international conference on the Gülen movement, and I should note that it was an excellent initiative. It greatly helped me to increase my knowledge of the ideas and projects put forward by the Gülen movement. I believe that dialogue among religions and cultures is of vital importance in nurturing mutual understanding among world civilizations. I congratulate those who organized this conference, and I believe that we should organize similar conferences for cooperation between Muslim and Christian communities.”

Professor Anton Wessels from the Free University in Amsterdam, who studies the history of religion, indicated that he was proud to see the Netherlands hosting such a conference advocating dialogue, saying: “Rotterdam was home to a very significant conference which was attended by numerous important scholars from many countries around the world. Even if participants focused on different topics, their statements led to a mutual point, namely dialogue. We all appreciate Gülen’s initiatives for education, which pave the way to education for thousands of children regardless of race, religion or language.” Professor Pim Valkenburg from Nijmegen University emphasized that the conference on Gülen’s initiatives for peace was an attempt to boost cooperation among different cultures. “Several scholars dwelled on very significant topics during this conference. I was really pleased to have attended such a comprehensive conference. We laid the foundation of an important project with this conference. What falls on us in the upcoming days is to proceed with our project with direct steps.”

Participants in the conference posed for souvenir photos and attended a dinner following the closing ceremony. Speaking at the dinner, Valkenberg evaluated the conference and said that people all over the world should be given a chance to get to know the Gülen movement.

24.11.2007
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