The Characteristics and Appeal of the Hizmet Movement

The Hizmet (Service) movement associated with the Turkish theologian M. Fethullah Gülen is arguably the most powerful Islamic-based reform movement operating in the world today. However, as the movement becomes more widespread and influential, its critics have become more vocal. The movement has always faced internal opposition from secularists and literalist Muslims. In the United States, the criticism seems to be largely centered in the neoconservative political wing, Armenian organizations, some pro-Israel groups, and certain Christian fundamentalist groups. We believe that these criticisms are unfounded and are either driven by ideology or based on ignorance of the movement’s goals. The purpose of this paper is to examine the great appeal the movement has for its various constituencies. Our paper approaches this matter by considering two interrelated issues: (1) general forces that have molded and continue to influence the Hizmet movement; and (2) the movement’s attraction for its Turkish followers as well as its non-Muslim supporters. These factors include: a widespread hunger for spirituality that is fulfilled by Gülen’s neo-Sufism; an educational vision that seeks to reconcile science with religion; the movement’s direct and personal approach to aid, which satisfies altruistic impulses; the movement’s successful promotion of a moderate, tolerant version of Islam truly interested in interfaith dialogue; Gülen’s extraordinary transformational leadership qualities; the dedication of its followers and, finally, the appeal of a dynamic movement with a real potential to have a positive impact on an international scale.

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Dr. Karen Fontenot is Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences at Southeastern Louisiana University and professor of communication. Before entering academia she worked as a newspaper reporter and magazine writer and editor. She received her Ph.D. in Communication Studies from Louisiana State University and her master’s degree in journalism from the Manship School of Journalism at LSU. Her areas of expertise are cross-cultural communication, organizational communication, and interpersonal communication. She has published widely in these areas, and is the author or co-author of more than sixty articles and conference papers. She is particularly interested in the impact and influence that culture and religion have on human behavior.

Dr. Michael J. Fontenot is a history professor at Southern University at Baton Rouge, La. He received a Ph.D. from Louisiana State University with fields in Russian and European history and a concentration in socialist thought. Benefiting from a number of major grants and fellowships—including four National Endowment for the Humanities fellowships, two Fulbright-Hays awards, and two East-West Center grants—he has come to appreciate interdisciplinary approaches and has looked for new understandings at the intersections of various academic fields. His latest works have focused on the Nurcu and Gülen movements as strikingly successful examples both of rhetorical competence and sufi adaptability.

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