Gülen Takes Place in the List of "Peaceful Heroes" As Only Turk

A Turk has been included in the website "Peaceful Heroes", selected by the University of Texas at Austin after a symposium conducted to determine those who have contributed to world peace. Beside Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, the Dalai Lama and Dorothy Day, well-known Turkish moderate Islamic scholar and thinker Fehullah Gülen has taken his place in the list of "Peaceful Heroes".

The list of "Peaceful Heroes" was prepared after a "Peaceful Heroes Symposium" conducted on Apr. 11-13, 2003 in University of Texas at Austin. In the declaration released after this symposium it said that "We are at a crossroads. Our world demands an alternative to violence in dealing with problems facing our new century. A "Peaceful Heroes Symposium" explored alternatives to violence as a mode of conflict resolution applicable to our culture and our ways of carrying out the conflict. The event examined the stories of women and men whose nonviolent beliefs and actions changed the course of history and inspired others to act against the violence that threatens our communities and the world at large. Major scholars of nonviolence came to Austin to show new generations how to build their own personal character and to shape a less violent world."

"Though simple in outward appearance, he is original in thought and action. He embraces all humanity, and is deeply averse to unbelief, injustice, and deviation. His belief and feelings are profound, and his ideas and approach to problems are both wise and rational. A living model of love, ardor, and feeling, he is balanced in his thoughts, acts, and treatment of matters" is how the website describes Gülen.

Fethullah Gülen, who has encouraged his followers to open hundreds of schools and universities across the world to contribute to world peace, tolerance and dialogue among different religions and civilizations, had to live in self-exile in America because of oppresion against him and his followers after the anti-democratic Feb. 28 process in Turkey.

After the symposium, a 4-part television series with Martin Sheen that will chronicle the history of nonviolence was produced. The series chronicles stories of nonviolent heroes over 5,000 years, bringing them to life to inspire a new generation. Featured heroes included Martin Luther King, Jr., Cesar Chavez, the Dalai Lama, and Mahatma Gandhi as well as Catholic Worker founder Dorothy Day, Burmese Nobel Laureate Aung Sang Suu Kyi, Jewish photographer Robert Capa, and Muslim peacemakers Said Nursi, Fetullah Gülen and Abdul Gaffar Khan.

The website says "It offers stories of hope, of conflict solved without bloodshed, of humanity at its best. These are the tales of people who make peace possible. These are the stories that history should repeat."

A Peace and Conflict Studies Center is available at the University of Texas at Austin. The Peace Studies Initiative has a track record of offering first-rate events to the university and community, such as the hosting an international peace studies conference in Austin that brought Nobel Laureate Oscar Arias and South African parliament member Ela Gandhi, granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi. Most recently they collaborated with the Islamic Dialogue Student Association to organize a conference on 'Preventing Another September 11th' with the dean of Islamic Studies John Esposito from Georgetown University and the Rumi Whirling Dervishes from Konya, Turkey. 10.25.2003