http://kotor-network.info/papers/2005/Gulen.Solberg.htm
http://kotor-network.info/
The Gülen Schools – an Introduction
The Gülen movement
I use the term “the Gülen schools” to denote schools that have been established by the Gülen movement and are
inspired by Fetullah Gülen and his Islamic ethos of education. These schools are not owned by Fetullah Gülen himself, but by private companies and institutions that sympathise with him and his thinking. The Gülen community is not a tightly controlled hierarchical organisation, but rather a loose network of schools, study centers, foundations, companies, media organisations, hospitals etc., some of which are closely affiliated with Gülen himself, and others who merely regard him as a source of inspiration. There are between 250 - 300 Gülen-inspired schools in nearly all parts of the world, the majority of them in Turkey, the former Soviet republics of central Asia, and
the Balkans.
Fetullah Gülen is a retired Turkish Muslim preacher currently living in the Unites States. His thinking is heavily influenced by Said Nursi, a popular Turkish Islamic reformist scholar of this century, who attempted to prove the compatibility between Islam and modern science and technology. The Nur community has grown to be one of the most powerful text-based Islamic movements in Turkey. The Gülen community is sometimes characterised as a neo-Nur community, as there are some significant differences between it and the other Nur groups.
Fetullah Gülen, the charismatic spiritual leader of the Gülen movement, is one of the most heavily debated public figures in Turkey. Due to his popularity and his close connections with leading Turkish politicians and statesmen, many Atatürkist and left-leaning journalists, authors, and representatives of military and the judiciary, accuse him of having a secret agenda of trying to undermine the secular system in Turkey, by encouraging his followers to aim for central positions within institutions such as the military and the police.
Others see him as someone who is putting “Turkey on the map” by promoting Turkey and Turkish abroad, and a champion of religious dialogue and inter-cultural tolerance.
Key elements of Fetullah Gülens thinking:
Fetullah Gülen sees the economic and moral decline in the Muslim world as a result of spiritual and intellectual decline, and aims to renew the Muslim tradition.
Characteristic of the Gülen movement in comparison with other Islamic social movements, is its emphasis on Turkish nationalism, the free market and modern education.
His thinking and strategy has changed considerably over the last 40 years. In his early writing, the discourse of Islamic revival and Turkish nationalism is more evident. From the 1990s onwards, however, he has turned to a more global discourse, emphasising inter-religious dialogue and tolerance.
The Gülen movement is sometimes referred to as a missionary movement, but I think it may be more useful to think of them as a faith-inspired education movement.
The Gülen schools in Bosnia
Bosna-Sema Educational Institutions owns and runs five educational institutions in Bosnia:
Sarajevo international primary school
Sarajevo college for boys (boarding school)
Sarajevo college for klix (boarding school)
Tuzla international primary school
Una Sana College in Bihać.
Another school is planned in Ilidža in Sarajevo,
the institution has been given land by the city council of Ilidža, and the architectural plans are completed
http://en.fgulen.com/