No Research on Islamic World is Possible Without Making Mention of Gülen
"It is not possible to conduct research on Muslims or the Islamic world in the West by neglecting Fethullah Gülen or the Gülen movement."
This statement was made by Marcia Hermansen, professor of Islamic Studies from the Divinity School of Loyola University in Chicago. Hermansen is only one of the many academics who participated in the three-day conference titled "Changing Islamic World: Contributions of the Fethullah Gülen Movement," which was opened at the House of Lords by Baron Nazir Ahmed and also held at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and the London School of Economics.
Noting that she was impressed by the well-prepared papers submitted at the conference, Hermansen talked about the emphasis of the Gülen movement on collective memory and symbols. She also said academic interest in the movement would gain momentum following the London conference.
Papers by 49 academics from different countries were presented at the conference's 12 panels, each with four presenters who had the close attention of the audience. It was evident even during the opening reception hosted by Lord Ahmed that the conference would be of the highest intellectual caliber and academic quality. A friend of mine told me about the low participation in an event held at the House of Lords and sponsored by the Armenian diaspora but said he was impressed by the attendance and participation at the Gülen conference. The 150 distinguished invitees included international academics, researchers and politicians as well as British ministers, members of parliament, members of the House of Lords, high-level bureaucrats and editors from prominent British papers.
The interest by young academics and leading experts in their respective fields at the conference implies that the Gülen movement will receive more thorough coverage in academic studies. Associate Professor Turan Kayaoğlu from the University of Washington told me in an informal conversation that the conference, which brought together tens of academics working on the Gülen movement, offered great opportunities for these academics to take notice of their shortcomings in regards to their fields of research.
Both halls at the SOAS and the London School of Economics were extremely crowded; the audiences in both halls were upset at missing panel discussions going on simultaneously in the other room. However, the organizing committee has already taken preliminary measures on this matter. The committee coordinated by SOAS faculty member Dr. İhsan Yilmaz published a book containing the papers presented at the conference for distribution to participants.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, SOAS Center for Islamic Studies Director Professor Muhammad Abdulhalim said: "I cannot help but admire the organizing committee of the Gülen movement, the most dynamic movement in the world. We collect papers only months after a conference to publish them in a book; however, the papers of this conference had already been published as book chapters before the event." Moreover, the frequently heard joke noting that the "London/Gülen criteria will be followed in similar academic meetings from now on" was really just expressing satisfaction with the performance of the committee.
Professor Doğu Ergil, who followed the meeting with great interest, noted that the interest in conferences of this sort depended on the strength of their subject matter, implying that the great interest in the event should be attributed to the growing importance attached to the Gülen movement. Paul Weller, a professor in interfaith relations from Derby University who also served on the academic board of the conference, stressed that the importance of the Gülen movement stemmed from its impact on the Islamic world and its ability to influence Islamic movements. As a British academic, Weller was particularly curious about the results of the interaction between the Gülen movement and the Islamic approaches prevalent in India and southern Asia. Weller also noted that meetings of this kind facilitated exchange of different ideas and perspectives.
Maybe time will tell whether Weller satisfied his curiosity, but we can spread the good news now -- a similar conference consistent with the London/Gülen criteria will be held in the second half of November in the Netherlands. (Bülent Kenes, London)
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