Islamic preacher honored for his commitment to humanitarianism
Atlanta, April 9, 2015 – Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College awarded its prestigious 2015 Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award to Islamic scholar Fethullah Gulen in recognition of his life-long dedication to promoting peace and human rights. The chapel has been giving a community builders prize and a peace award since 2001. Past recipients of these awards include leaders such as Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks, Andrew Young and Archbishop Desmund M. Tutu.
In a statement presented today, Mr. Gulen said he was humbled by the honor and accepted this award on behalf of the Hizmet participants from different nations, religions and ethnic backgrounds who have devoted themselves to serving fellow humans.
“These educators keep schools open in places like Iraq despite the ISIS threat; they provide education opportunities to girls in Nigeria and Afghanistan; doctors, nurses and humanitarian relief workers serve under dire conditions in places like Somalia and Sudan; entrepreneurs donate to charitable causes despite economic hardship.” He said in his statement: “You were kind enough to recognize their efforts and I simply accept this award on their behalf.” For his full statement, please visit: Fethullah Gulen Statement Accepting the 2015 Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award.
The Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award was designed to promote the importance of positive social transformation by honoring those who demonstrate extraordinary global leadership toward reconciling differences. Although Mahatma Gandhi was a Hindu from India, Martin Luther King Jr. a Christian from the U.S., and Daisaku Ikeda a Japanese Buddhist, the overwhelming ethical consistency in the global reach of their philosophies and influence serve as an inspiration to all the world’s citizens.
The chapel’s dean Dr. Lawrence Carter said that the chapel will recognize Gulen alongside photos of Gandhi, King and Ikeda in the chapel, as a Muslim representative of the same spirit.
For details on the award, please visit: http://www.morehouse.edu/mlkchapel/our-work/college-of-ministers-laity/.
About Fethullah Gulen
Fethullah Gulen is an Islamic scholar, preacher and social advocate, whose decades-long commitment to education, altruistic community service, and interfaith harmony has inspired millions in Turkey and around the world. Described as one of the world’s most important Muslim figures, Gulen has dedicated his life to interfaith and intercultural dialogue, community service and providing access to quality education.
About Turkish Cultural Center
Turkish Cultural Center is a non-profit organization dedicated to promote harmony in diverse cultural setting in the United States. Building, increasing and/or fostering a strong and lasting friendship by promoting a better understanding that is based on mutual respect between the individuals of the United States of America and those of Turkish background and/or origin. Introducing, promoting and informing the people in the United States with the Turkish history and culture by bringing people together in an open dialog.
In a modern world where even the farthest point is within an arm’s reach, it is impossible to live anywhere without experiencing diversity. This diversity, rather than a difference is now appreciated by the people who think that we can live in a world where people do have much more in common then separates them. In order for everyone to live peacefully together it is important for individuals to rise above differences that drive us apart or against each other. Adopting the dialogue and understanding Turkish Cultural Center aims to introduce commonalities and foster friendships between these two nations by setting up platforms where cultures express themselves.
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Gülen presented with prestigious award for dedication to peace
Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen has been presented with a prestigious peace award in recognition of his “life-long dedication to promoting peace and human rights” at Atlanta’s Morehouse College, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s alma mater.
The Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College honored Gülen with its 2015 Gandhi King Ikeda Peace Award on Thursday for promoting ideas shared by the world’s leading peace and civil rights activists. Past recipients of this award include Nobel laureates Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu and Michael Gorbachev, as well as Rosa Parks.
Representatives of the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel, which has presented the award since 2001, say the award is designed to promote the importance of positive social transformation by honoring “those who demonstrate extraordinary global leadership toward reconciling differences.”
Alp Aslandoğan, the president of the Alliance for Shared Values an umbrella body for US-based organizations affiliated with the Gülen movement accepted the award on behalf of Gülen. Aslandoğan said Gülen was unable to come to the award ceremony due to his medical condition.
“I am humbled,” Gülen said in a statement read by Aslandoğan after he received the award. “I can only accept this award on behalf of the participants of the Hizmet movement who devoted themselves to serving fellow humans without expecting anything in return,” Gülen said. Hizmet which means “service” in Turkish is used interchangeably to refer to the Gülen movement.
Gülen hailed sympathizers of the movement scattered across the world in his powerful statement, recognizing educators who defy sub-freezing climates thousands of miles away from their homes and those who continue to keep their schools open in northern Iraq despite the threat of the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL), a notorious group of militants that overran large swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria last year.
The Gülen movement has spread to more than 160 countries around the world and has a vast network of schools, charity organizations, health institutions and cultural dialogue centers. The volunteers of the movement often have to confront dire conditions in countries they serve, ranging from Ebola-stricken nations in Africa to conflict-ridden countries in the Middle East.
In recognition to their sacrifices, Gülen commended the activists, volunteers and educators in those countries, mentioning in particular Nigeria and Afghanistan, who provide educational opportunities to girls. He also praised the doctors, nurses and humanitarian relief workers who serve in Somalia and Sudan in difficult conditions as well as entrepreneurs who “compete in donating to charitable causes despite facing economic hardship themselves.”
“These devotees of love who come from different nations, religions, and ethnic backgrounds are the ones whose work is recognized with this award,” Gülen said. “They are the ones who seek happiness in the happiness of others. What unites them and the pioneers of human rights in Asia, in Africa, in the United States, such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and all around the world is their commitment to humanity. To hold every human as dignified and to be committed to the dignity of every human is a sign of respect for their Creator,” the Islamic scholar added.
Lawrence E. Carter, the dean of the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel, presented the award to Gülen, saying he is honored to present the peace award to a Muslim religious leader for the first time.
“We’re honored today to present this award to Fethullah Gülen… who contributes to global peace. … We’re honored because he has expressed that humanitarian value and morality is a shared value of every human being,” Carter said, adding that the college is also honored to present the award to Gülen because he has raised his voice loudly against suicide bombing attacks and has said that jihad cannot be done by killing innocent people.
Scott Alexander from Chicago’s Catholic Theological Union delivered the keynote address to explain about the Gülen movement to hundreds of participants who filled the hall from across the US. He hailed the Gülen movement for its activities, praising its volunteers who travel thousands of miles around the world with “their hearts and pockets only full of sincerity.” He noted that Gülen is honored not just because he has a “great soul” but also for his contribution in promoting education.
Alexander noted that Gülen could be considered a modern-day Moulana Jalaluddin Rumi, a great sufi mystic and poet known for his preaching of tolerance seven centuries ago. Recalling that Gülen promotes peace and tolerance in his educational activities across the world, Alexander hailed the volunteers of the Gülen movement for possessing “compassion.”
The organizers of the event unveiled a canvas portrait of Gülen, which will be put alongside other past recipients of the award in the chapel.
On the margins of the award ceremony, the Atlantic Institute an interfaith dialogue center based in Atlanta is holding a conference on the role of social and religious movements in fostering education and peace-building in collaboration with Soka Gakkai International, a worldwide Buddhist movement. The conference includes speakers from across the world. The organizers said the conference aims to show how “peace in today’s turbulent world can be achieved through informal, apolitical, educational, and grassroots mechanisms.”