Explore Quotes by Fethullah Gulen

I have said time and again that the republican order, and secularism, when executed perfectly, are blessings from God.

Avoiding the physical sciences due to the fear that they will lead to heresy is childish.

My message to the Turkish people is never to view any military intervention positively because through military intervention, democracy cannot be achieved.

I think the United States is mindful of its reputation for its democracy and rule of law, and if they are willing to risk that reputation by extraditing me based on the request and claims made by Turkey, I would never say no. I would go willingly.

Even if, at the helm of the country there are people who would like to replace me and suppress me and oppress me at the level of blood-sucking vampires, then I do not want to remove them with anti-democratic means. This is my attitude toward any and even the idea of the consideration of a military coup.

When the opportunities come, Cemaat participants, just like any other citizen will make their choices based on their values.

My philosophy - inclusive and pluralist Islam, dedicated to service to human beings from every faith - is antithetical to armed rebellion.

My message is, if someone beats you, act like you don't have hands. If someone slurs you, act like you don't have a tongue. Society is already polarized enough, don't make it worse.

My core belief is to seek peace in the world, helping people eliminate certain malevolent attitudes through education as much as possible.

The greater jihad is proclaiming war on our ego's destructive and negative emotions and thoughts... which prevent us from attaining perfection.

Interfaith dialogue is a must today, and the first step in establishing it is forgetting the past, ignoring polemical arguments, and giving precedence to common points, which far outnumber polemical ones.

Tolerance is our safest refuge and our fortress against the handicaps that arise from schism, factions, and the difficulties inherent in reaching mutual agreement

The purpose of our creation is obvious: to reach our utmost goals of belief, knowledge, and spirituality; to reflect on the universe, humanity, and God, and thus prove our value as human beings.

A person is truly a human if he or she learns, and teaches, and inspires others. It is difficult to regard as truly human someone who is ignorant and has no desire to learn.

Today, people are talking about many things: the danger of war and frequent clashes, water and air pollution, hunger, the increasing erosion of moral values, and so on. As a result, many other concerns have come to the fore: peace, contentment, ecology, justice, tolerance, and dialogue. Unfortunately, despite certain promising precautions, those who should be tackling these problems tend to do so by seeking further ways to conquer and control nature and produce more lethal weapons.

Only a few people seem to realize that social harmony and peace with nature, between people, and within the individual only can come about when the material and spiritual realms are reconciled.

Tolerance, a term which we sometimes use in place of the words respect, mercy, generosity, or forbearance, is the most essential element of moral systems; it is a very important source of spiritual discipline and a celestial virtue of perfected people.