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Devoted to the Truth
For decades, Fethullah Gülen spoke on religion together with science, addressed challenging issues on faith, and inspired a generation to promote education and dialogue around the world. Those who listened to him felt empowered by this engaging and learned man of religion. To the ruling establishment of Turkey, his native country, these activities were assumed to be crossing over the line, and they made sure he suffered the consequences, especially throughout the second decade of the twenty-first century. Gülen and the people he inspired were scapegoated for the failures and malfeasance of a corrupt regime which conducted a nationwide crackdown on affiliated schools, foundations, and media organizations, while hundreds of thousands of teachers, doctors, journalists, civil servants, and supporters affiliated with them were purged and incarcerated, especially in the aftermath of the “staged” coup attempt in July 2016. Devoted to the Truth is a series of essays Gülen wrote following this event. What transpires from this collection is a seasoned leader who is going through all the blood, sweat, and tears to keep his ship afloat, the crew and passengers safe and calm. When the world seems to be in darkness, we find Gülen calling out to his community that this “Eclipse” is over, and inspires them how to be “Travelers to the Light.” As he leads his followers on this journey, he teaches how they should hold themselves to account by “Facing the Self.” While feeling “Pity” for the perpetrators of all the persecution they are going through, Gülen shows the path on to how to “Heal” and take action “So Others May Live.”
154 pages, Hardcover
Published October 10, 2023
About the author
M. Fethullah Gülen
301 books240 followersMuhammed Fethullah Gülen was a Turkish Muslim scholar, preacher, and leader of the Gülen movement who as of 2016 had millions of followers. Gülen was an influential neo-Ottomanist, Anatolian panethnicist, Islamic poet, writer, social critic, and activist–dissident developing a Nursian theological perspective that embraces democratic modernity. Gülen was a local state imam from 1959 to 1981 and he was a citizen of Turkey until his denaturalization by the Turkish government in 2017. Over the years, Gülen became a centrist political figure in Turkey prior to his being there as a fugitive. From 1999 until his death in 2024, Gülen lived in self-exile in the United States near Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania.
Gülen said his social criticisms are focused upon individuals' faith and morality and a lesser extent toward political ends, and self described as rejecting an Islamist political philosophy, advocating instead for full participation within professions, society, and political life by religious and secular individuals who profess high moral or ethical principles and who wholly support secular rule, within Muslim-majority countries and elsewhere. Gülen was described in the English-language media as an imam "who promoted a tolerant Islam which emphasises altruism, hard work, and education" and as "one of the world's most important Muslim figures".
In 2003, a number of Gülen movement participants allied with Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's right wing Justice and Development Party (AKP), providing the AKP political and sorely-needed administrative support. This political alliance worked together to weaken left-of-center Kemalist factions, but fractured in 2011. Turkish prosecutors accused Gülen of attempts to overthrow the government by allegedly directing politically motivated corruption investigations by Gülen-linked investigators then in the judiciary, who illegally wiretapped the executive office of the Turkish president, and Gülen's alleged instigations of the 2016 coup attempt. Gülen denied the accusations.
A Turkish criminal court issued an arrest warrant for Gülen in 2016, and Turkey demanded his extradition from the United States. U.S. government officials did not believe he was associated with any terrorist activity, and requested evidence to be provided by the Turkish government to substantiate the allegations in the warrant requesting extradition, frequently rejecting Turkish calls for his extradition.
Gülen was wanted as a terrorist leader in Turkey and Pakistan, as well as by the OIC and GCC.
Gülen said his social criticisms are focused upon individuals' faith and morality and a lesser extent toward political ends, and self described as rejecting an Islamist political philosophy, advocating instead for full participation within professions, society, and political life by religious and secular individuals who profess high moral or ethical principles and who wholly support secular rule, within Muslim-majority countries and elsewhere. Gülen was described in the English-language media as an imam "who promoted a tolerant Islam which emphasises altruism, hard work, and education" and as "one of the world's most important Muslim figures".
In 2003, a number of Gülen movement participants allied with Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's right wing Justice and Development Party (AKP), providing the AKP political and sorely-needed administrative support. This political alliance worked together to weaken left-of-center Kemalist factions, but fractured in 2011. Turkish prosecutors accused Gülen of attempts to overthrow the government by allegedly directing politically motivated corruption investigations by Gülen-linked investigators then in the judiciary, who illegally wiretapped the executive office of the Turkish president, and Gülen's alleged instigations of the 2016 coup attempt. Gülen denied the accusations.
A Turkish criminal court issued an arrest warrant for Gülen in 2016, and Turkey demanded his extradition from the United States. U.S. government officials did not believe he was associated with any terrorist activity, and requested evidence to be provided by the Turkish government to substantiate the allegations in the warrant requesting extradition, frequently rejecting Turkish calls for his extradition.
Gülen was wanted as a terrorist leader in Turkey and Pakistan, as well as by the OIC and GCC.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
August 18, 2025
Review of Devoted to the Truth by Fethullah Gülen
What struck me most in this book was its emphasis on how, in today’s world, people often worship this life rather than the next. Gülen highlights three fundamental problems of our age—ignorance, poverty, and division—and what I admire is that he doesn’t stop at naming them. He emphasizes personal responsibility and the steps we must take to confront these issues, rather than simply complaining about them.
I also appreciated how Gülen draws from the lives of not only the prophets, but also major religious leaders such as ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān, Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, and Abū Bakr. Alongside these figures, he weaves in references to poets like Mehmet Akif, Recaizade Mahmud Ekrem, and Namık Kemal. This breadth of knowledge—combining religious history with literature—makes me trust his ideas even more. It shows how deeply he has read and how carefully he draws on diverse sources to guide his message.
The principles in this book are illuminated by these examples, reminding us that titles, money, and worldly possessions hold far less value than we think. In the end, what truly matters are eternal things: our relationship with God, our prayers, and the state of our soul.
The book also powerfully explains why oppressors, tyrants, and wrongdoers act as they do: they lack devotion to the truth, whereas the oppressed often find their deepest strength in holding firmly to it. This contrast really resonated with me.
The chapter “I Pity” was by far the most moving part of the book. It was so emotionally and spiritually charged that I almost felt I could hear Gülen’s voice speaking those words. It brought me closer to his message—but even more importantly, it drew me closer to God. It made me reflect on what I pity in myself and in humanity, and I almost cried reading it. I wholeheartedly recommend this book, especially for anyone seeking to reorient their heart toward what truly matters.
What struck me most in this book was its emphasis on how, in today’s world, people often worship this life rather than the next. Gülen highlights three fundamental problems of our age—ignorance, poverty, and division—and what I admire is that he doesn’t stop at naming them. He emphasizes personal responsibility and the steps we must take to confront these issues, rather than simply complaining about them.
I also appreciated how Gülen draws from the lives of not only the prophets, but also major religious leaders such as ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān, Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, and Abū Bakr. Alongside these figures, he weaves in references to poets like Mehmet Akif, Recaizade Mahmud Ekrem, and Namık Kemal. This breadth of knowledge—combining religious history with literature—makes me trust his ideas even more. It shows how deeply he has read and how carefully he draws on diverse sources to guide his message.
The principles in this book are illuminated by these examples, reminding us that titles, money, and worldly possessions hold far less value than we think. In the end, what truly matters are eternal things: our relationship with God, our prayers, and the state of our soul.
The book also powerfully explains why oppressors, tyrants, and wrongdoers act as they do: they lack devotion to the truth, whereas the oppressed often find their deepest strength in holding firmly to it. This contrast really resonated with me.
The chapter “I Pity” was by far the most moving part of the book. It was so emotionally and spiritually charged that I almost felt I could hear Gülen’s voice speaking those words. It brought me closer to his message—but even more importantly, it drew me closer to God. It made me reflect on what I pity in myself and in humanity, and I almost cried reading it. I wholeheartedly recommend this book, especially for anyone seeking to reorient their heart toward what truly matters.
Displaying 1 of 1 review