FTA: While some see Gülen as a docile advocate for religious tolerance, others argue he is practicing a form of “silent jihad.” In a 1999 sermon that aired on Turkish television, Gülen said that to effect reform, “every method and path is acceptable (including) lying to people.”
“You must move in the arteries of the system without anyone noticing your existence until you reach all the power centers …” he said. “You must wait for the time when you are complete and conditions are ripe, until we can shoulder the entire world and carry it.”
While some see Gülen as a docile advocate for religious tolerance, others argue he is practicing a form of "silent jihad." In a 1999 sermon that aired on Turkish television, Gülen said that to effect reform, "every method and path is acceptable (including) lying to people."
"You must move in the arteries of the system without anyone noticing your existence until you reach all the power centers …" he said. "You must wait for the time when you are complete and conditions are ripe, until we can shoulder the entire world and carry it."
Wayment had to take a deep breath the first time his research led him to a Gülen website. Could Gülen be the puppeteer behind Beehive's administration, choreographing the school's every move like a marionette show? It seemed far out.
"No one wants to think their kid's public school is part of some international conspiracy," Wayment said.
But the evidence kept piling up. Beehive shared an Internet protocol address with a West Coast Gülen dialogue organization. Beehive students were pictured in video clips and featured in news articles on Gülen's official websites. The school was propped up on high-interest personal loans from people associated with Gülen organizations.
Wayment could no longer deny it: his research pinpointed Beehive as one of about 600 Gülen charter schools across the globe. Each charter school was parented by a regional educational research institution, he said. All of them, like Beehive, were run by Turkish men and promoted Turkish culture.
MY BIG FAT QUESTION: Where does Gulen get its money?