The First Period

This first phase saw a rise in conservatism, fueled by quasi-taxpayer revolts and an increasing oligarchical minority seeking to control all aspects of government and business.

As this early period of conservatism rose, it became evident that the desire by many for smaller, more responsive government and less taxes would not be met. Evidence would later surface that the oligarchy, much in the manner of the 19th century “robber barons,” colluded to gather power and wealth for themselves while using the taxpayer’s own dissatisfaction against them.

Governments became, in fact, larger and more military oriented, subservient to the demands of business and the oligarchy for less and less regulation. With each increment in the reduction of environmental and other regulations came a concurrent reduction in personal liberties.

Believing there was a need for more energy, restrictions against the mining of coal, the drilling for oil and natural gas, and seeking alternative ways to obtain fossil fuels were reduced and/or eliminated. The need for more and more of these fossil fuels led to more global conflicts, as countries sought to find and secure the rapidly diminishing supplies of fossil fuel. This in turn necessitated increased military, defense, and security-based spending. Wars became the norm rather than the exception, which created an age gap, as an entire generation was squandered fighting in these conflicts.

The reduction or removal of environmental-based regulations, long proclaimed by conservatives as barriers to economic growth, led to an increase in air and water pollution levels, and the destruction of natural habitats, which in turn had a devastating impact on the planet in general. The increase in pollution levels and lack of regulations would also have an adverse effect on the general health of the world’s human population. The air quality in many cities around the world literally forced governments to shut down because people could not go outside. Infant mortality, once dropping, began to rise.

Faced with an increase in military, defense, and security-based spending, many governments had to cut back on humanitarian spending, education, and basic research. At first, this was accepted by the many who had sought the elimination of such projects.

And while attempts to resist these steps were made at the local level, they were decidedly limited in their impact. Hospitals – taken over by health insurance companies (under the mantra that businesses knew how to make hospitals work) and driven by the bottom-line mentality that suggested each hospital had to make a profit – began to close, leaving many people without any medical assistance. It quickly became apparent that only a relative few, the rich and powerful that constituted the oligarchy, would have medical care.

As businesses responded to the demands of the oligarchy, wages were reduced with the declaration that businesses could not pay living wages and make a profit. The effect of this mentality began to show towards the latter portion of this first period.

Eventually, due to the increased military spending and the falling wages of the majority, businesses began to fail. There was a sense that a Great Depression, far greater than any before, was imminent.

At the same time, loss of income and the failure of many businesses triggered a revival in debtors’ prisons, where people who could not pay their bills were jailed until someone could pay their debts for them. The false logic of this solution – that people who were not able to pay their own bills would be able to pay the bills of their friends – escaped those whose only concern was the bottom line.

Responding to other latent demands of the conservatives, laws against discrimination were also repealed. Discrimination based on race, sexual and gender identity, and ethnic origin rose precipitously.

Organized religion, already in decline as the 21st century began, saw its decline rapidly increase. Along with a rise in political conservatism was a rise in religious conservatism. Those associated with these fundamentalist movements sought a stricter interpretation of their respective Holy Scriptures (oftentimes in direct contradiction to what was the commonly accepted ideas of the Scriptures), as well as the need for greater cooperation between governments and religions.

These now fundamentalist religions began to openly push a more Calvinistic view: that wealth and power were the hallmarks of a righteous life, poverty was the sign of a sinful life, and that one’s status in life was already determined.

Educational systems, already under attack at the beginning of the 21st century, were slowly transformed from centers of creativity and thought into indoctrination academies, dedicated to teaching basic knowledge without additional thought and supportive of the discriminatory nature of society. The goal of the early 21st century school was the development of trained, unquestioning workers who accepted minimum wage jobs with limited benefits and no job protections.

Colleges which did not support the overall view of the oligarchy and conservative establishment quickly found themselves under attack and without funds.
Technology development stagnated as individuals capable of maintaining and supporting existing technology were no longer available. And with the loss of general research and support funds, there was no research being done on the next generation of technology or areas such as alternative energy research. An interesting side-effect to this loss of technologically skilled workers was that defense projects begun in the late 20th and early 21st century, almost all of which relied heavily on technology, were not able to be repaired as military units had no one to deal with the support function, leaving many of the weapons procured for multiple millions of dollars unusable.

Workers were quickly stripped of the rights and privileges, all of which had been gained through the workers’ movements of the mid-20th century. Unions, already suffering massive blows, were quickly eliminated as the conservative central government declared that businesses did better without them. As workers dealt with increasingly inhospitable working conditions and uncaring management, there was a concurrent rise in workplace violence as stress levels increased.

Clearly, the consequences of changes begun at the beginning of the 21st century were not what its supporters had wanted or even imagined. It was a world beset by climate and environmental problems, embroiled in many different global wars, and divided by racial, gender, and ethnic identities.

The move into the 21st century instead began to look like a movement backwards in time, echoing the rise of Nazism in the early and mid-1930s.

The Second Period

The second phase of the 21st century would be labeled by some as a time of creative anarchy.

The beginnings of this phase were marked by what became known as the 4th or “Greater” Faith Revival. Frustrated by the failure of the organized church and religious groups to respond to the increasingly discriminatory   nature of society, individuals began leaving organized religions. Faced with the need find comfort in a time of need, individuals began meeting, often in secret, in the homes of believers or other non-traditional venues, such as coffee houses or book stores.

Echoing the days of the early Christian church, these small groups began ministering to the poor and needy, the homeless and sick, the persecuted and forgotten. These groups flourished because they offered solutions that the current power and social structures could not solve or ignored completely. While at first these groups were defined in the traditional sense, they quickly became places to study other faiths and find ways to utilize the common points of all faiths to change the role of society outside traditional thought. It was recognized that faith was an individual’s relationship with God and that each relationship was unique.
Groups increasingly shut out of traditional political, economic, and social structures began forming their own political, economic, and social structures. These groups no longer willingly supported the traditional organized structures. An underground economy, first begun in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, utilizing “bitcoins” and micro-banks, supported these small groups.

Despite the seeming chaos, these small groups, founded in faith and a belief in the people, began making changes that supported everyone, even those outside their small group. These changes in turn began to weaken traditional structures, both political and social.

In addition, from almost the start of these small groups, it was understood that there was a limit to the size of the group. And once that size limit   was reached, it would be necessary to split into two or more groups to maintain the innovative and creative nature of the group. This limiting principle proved a necessity for the future success of the movement.

Utilizing the new underground economy, people found ways to do what the oligarchy had long been doing, and that is to avoid paying taxes. Conflicts between the oligarchy and their political representatives arose as the political representatives sought ways to fund governments and the members of the oligarchy refused to pay. This led to multiple funding crises in countries around the world.

The graduation of the classes of 2020, the “classes of vision,” provided the critical mass necessary to transform the small underground groups into the basis for a world-wide movement that transcended traditional social, economic, political, and geographical boundaries. This paved the way for the third phase of the 21st century to begin and flourish.

The Third Period

In this third phase, small groups, formed in protest to traditional processes, began developing ways to work together. Democracy became more localized as these groups used the social media communication methods first established during the Arab Spring of 2010. These methods allowed groups to communicate and work together without the need for centralized governments.

This was typified by the change in government operations in the United States. Recognizing the efficiency of the small group approach, members of the United States House of Representatives and Senate began operating out of their home and district offices, with Congress meeting as a large collection

of town and group meetings. While there were still government offices in Washington, D. C., the bulk of the government business was conducted electronically. This in turn made government more responsive to the needs and interests of the local population and less to that of the oligarchy that had risen to power just a few years earlier.

There was also a shift, fueled in part by the underground economy but also by the change in the way government worked, in overall government spending.

Big companies, long considered the essential role-model, could not adapt to the small group mentality of the new economy and began to collapse or were replaced by more responsive local industries and businesses.

Agriculture became increasingly “community supported agriculture” with less reliance on fertilizers, insecticides, and other chemicals to bolster production.

The third period of the 21st century saw a major decrease in military, defense, and security spending. As small groups began working and communicating with each other, there was less and less of a need for a continued military presence in each country. With money no longer being spent this way, additional funds were directed towards increased spending on humanitarian and research efforts.

Healthcare became universal as individuals, having gone through a time where there was no healthcare and faced with serious healthcare-related issues, saw the need for a universal system. And surprisingly, the cost which so many people proclaimed would rise dramatically, was reduced to virtually nothing. Concurrently, great strides were made in the area of medical research, achieving goals long thought impossible to meet.

The third period of the 21st century saw the promise of space exploration, first achieved in the late 20th century but cast aside due to limited funds, again become a reality. A truly permanent presence in low-earth orbit around the globe was established and exploratory manned missions to the other planets, and beyond, were begun.

The transition to the 22nd century

As Earth’s population moved into the 22nd century and beyond, the boundaries of the earth’s gravity that had for so long, figuratively and actually, bound mankind to its surface, there was a renewed human spirit that transcended political and geographical boundaries.

There was an increased focus on faith as it became evident that, without faith, the outcome of the 21st century might have been something terribly different.

And while there were those who would continue to proclaim that it would be better to be bigger, the evidence showed that there was a greater sense of security and stability, of health and happiness, in the small group model.

During the 18th and 19th centuries, people sought ways to establish peaceful communities by withdrawing from society. Such communities were always doomed from the beginning because one can never truly escape from society. But as the 21st century came to a close and the 22nd century began, people found a way to come close to those Utopian goals. And while there were and will probably always be differences between individuals, both in small groups and across the planet, the understanding of how to work between groups to resolve differences without violence, destruction, or warfare, helped humanity achieve a lasting peace.

As a phenomenon, stress is a must for humanity’s survival; however, it becomes harmful when encountered excessively. Stress is what makes you run away from a giant bear in the middle of the forest. And it is the same force that drives you to fight when cornered. This fight or flight response primarily involves the sympathetic nervous system, which initiates a chain of reactions in communications between the body and the brain. Within seconds, stress hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine) are released into the bloodstream, which in turn increase heart rate and blood pressure. This response occurs rapidly, though the hormones clear out of the system just as quickly when the threat passes.

What happens if our fight or flight response is constantly triggered? What if stress hormones become a normal part of our bodily system? For instance, you might have taken your first “F” on a calculus test; this is followed by many others later on in the semester. Or you may have wanted to start your day with a fresh cup of coffee; instead, you were stuck in traffic and were late for work, and then forgot to hand in a big report to your boss.

Imagine that these kinds of events are repeated more often than not; now think about how they make your feel. The medical terminology for this phenomenon is chronic stress. The consequences of chronic stress affect all aspects of our health, primarily the neural control systems, i.e. the brain.

The Hippocampus, an essential area for memory storage and recall, is located in the inner layers of the brain. The specific system within which this structure is located is called the Limbic System. This is the brain’s Emotion Center. Similar to computers, our brains have two main memory systems. One is called short-term memory, which stores the information received through our senses. This information is usually brief, e.g. seven letters or digits such as phone numbers, and is usually processed in just a few seconds. This feature of the human brain resembles RAM (random access memory) in computers, because it mainly serves as a temporary storage area.
Conversely, the other type of memory, also referred to as our “real memory,” is long-term. This is where we permanently store information – unless, of course, our brain is impaired by physical traumas, aging, or stress. We can think of this as the equivalent of a hard drive in data processing machines.

Despite contributions from many other areas, the hippocampus plays the leading role in memory storage by performing “information consolidation” and converting temporary memories into memories that are suitable for long term storage. The process by which our brain commits information to long term memory can take minutes, hours, or even days. Our brain can retain information for a very long time, until we start to lose either individual encoded nerve cells or the connections bridging them. Once info is stored, it becomes your permanent data, to be recalled when needed. For this reason, the hippocampus can be seen as our personal storage box.

Despite the astonishing hippocampus and its ability to develop on its own, it is ultimately affected by the brain’s common enemies, such as strokes, neurodegenerative diseases, brain tumors, and trauma related injuries. Most of these conditions will impact the region by attacking the neurons and their network of connections, which may lead to memory loss, depending on the magnitude of the damage and the region where the impairment takes place. Alzheimer’s disease is a commonly observed condition that leads to memory loss. Although, it was first believed that Alzheimer’s primarily affects elderly people older than the age of 65, recent cases indicate that it can be diagnosed as early as one’s thirties. The signature symptom of the disease is a progressive memory loss due to the substantial loss of neurons in this area. This is called hippocampal deterioration. For this reason, the size of the hippocampus can be used as a measure to follow up the progress of the disease. Although age related factors are the prime suspects, there are more variables in the equation that can trigger this devastating condition.

Stress can affect our memory. While normal and moderate levels of stress are necessary for our body to trigger protective mechanisms, excessive levels of stress can lead to temporary and chronic disorders. Signs of stress can be physical, behavioral, and emotional, but they can also be cognitive. These include memory deficits. To see the dramatic changes that result from chronic stress on nerve cells.

The underlying mechanism of how stress affects the hippocampus can be explained by the fact that the hippocampus contains high levels of glucocorticoid receptors, which make it more vulnerable to long-term stress than most other brain areas. Stress-related steroids affect the hippocampus in at least three different ways: first, by reducing the excitability of some hippocampal neurons; second, by inhibiting the genesis of new neurons in the dentate gyrus; third, by causing the atrophy of dendrites in pyramidal cells.

Interestingly, religion plays a role in how our memory works – and it can be both a positive and negative force. “Hippocampal atrophy can be introduced by the level of stress that has been suffered in selected religious groups,” found Amy Owen and her colleagues at Duke University. She hypothesizes that the observed hippocampal shrinkage is greater in those who are part of a minority group or struggle to express their beliefs in society. In their MRI (brain imaging method used to measure the volume of the hippocampus) studies, Owen et al. found significantly greater hippocampal shrinkage among born-again Protestants, Catholics, and those with no religious affiliation compared to others.

Earlier studies regarding relations between religion and the brain demonstrated many undeniably positive effects of religion on the brain. It is believed that since religion leads to a more tranquil and less stressful lifestyle, religious practices have beneficial effects on the human brain, particularly on the hippocampus. However, controversial findings have caused speculation about the negative effects of religious experience on selected individuals by causing chronic stress and anxiety.

When we consider the principles of memory processing and its ability to store the information gained by sensory perception, it is not surprising that “life-changing experiences” would have a great impact on our body. When we are surprised, we learn. Who does not remember the first time we were burned by a hot stove? Or falling off a bicycle? The strength of our memories depends on the degree of impact the event has on us. It is known that the experiences that have greater impacts, such as an affiliation with a new religion, are more likely to be stored in the long-term memory part of the brain and be recalled as active memories.

It’s understandable, then, why religious experiences can have such an impact on a person’s brain. Just as a strong religious community leads to a healthy brain, it makes sense that a minority in a religious community might be stressed. Though “religion” is frequently referred to as an important coping mechanism, it may also have contrasting effects in such cases. This raises two important questions: why and how?

Starting at an early age, we are susceptible to environmental changes like growing up in a family, building friendships, and living in society. Living as a minority in our society or have conflicting beliefs with others may cause short-term or long-term stress, if the experiences also produce a change in one’s social network.

“Life changing experiences in religion” are not easy to interpret since many variables are involved, such as age, sex, ethnicity, and existing traditions. Do these factors also play a critical role in this equation?

One might ask, what if we test younger subjects, who have fewer life experiences, to see if they are better at adapting to new conditions? This might reveal the underlying causes of stress, i.e. whether religious practices cause stress and if they have an effect on hippocampal atrophy.

The hippocampus is not completely developed until the age of two. During this early period, its development is extremely sensitive to the effects of chronic stress. It has been documented that hippocampal shrinkage is highly possible among those who are born healthy but exposed to stressful conditions. Growing in a healthy family and gaining supportive parental care is an important part of eliminating early stress in young children.

The difficulties that certain individuals experience while trying to adapt to new communities or societies may be similar to what children experience in a less caring family. Studies show that stress and chaos at home impair the development of self-regulatory behaviors, which can lead to underdeveloped decision making skills.

To understand the underlying mechanism of stress-induced hippocampal atrophy in certain individuals, we might have to reconsider our current understanding of the environmental conditions that cause stress. In other words, in what circumstances are we most likely to experience stress and feelings that lead to stress, and what is the product of these events?

Nevertheless, stress is necessary, to a certain extent. It allows us to understand the significance of an obstacle. Imagine yourself studying for one of the most important tests of your life; the level of stress and pain during the pre-test period would be described as “suffering.” However, once the test is over, you’ll likely feel a sense of great relief.

This leads to another question researchers must ask: how do individuals handle stress when they have been prepared to face it? Once again, the student-test example is useful. In one extreme, student A studies very diligently and feels confident about the test. Although the student spends a good amount of time stressing out about the test, this stress will be temporary and replaced by gratitude once the goal is achieved. On the other hand, student B is lazy and does not prepare at all. Though deceptively happy at first, he or she is ultimately wasting his or her time by playing around. Overwhelming stress will take over as the deadline approaches. The Qur’an comments on this:

There is no clear answer as to whether religious affiliation leads to increased or decreased levels of stress, especially in people who have survived critical changes in their lives. Is the stress we experience because we struggle with our beliefs in society, or is it because of difficulties in adapting our beliefs to those of society? This is a chicken and egg problem. Although we are not certain how religion affects the human brain, we now know there is an absolute correlation. It seems that this uncertainty will prevail until some studies that can shed light on the issue become available.

References

• Owen AD, Hayward RD, Koenig HG, Steffens DC, Payne ME, 2011 Religious Factors and Hippocampal Atrophy in Late Life. PLoS ONE 6(3): e17006. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0017006
• Rong-Jian Liu * and George K. Aghajanian, Stress blunts serotonin-and hypocretin-evoked EPSCs in prefrontal cortex: Role of corticosterone-mediated apical dendritic atrophy, PNAS January 8, 2008 vol. 105 no. 1 359-364
• Marks L., Fam Process. 2004 Jun;43(2):217-31. Sacred practices in highly religious families: Christian, Jewish, Mormon, and Muslim perspectives.
• Prull MW, Gabrieli JDE, Bunge SA (2000). “Ch 2. Age-related changes in memory: A cognitive neuroscience perspective”. In Craik FIM, Salthouse TA. The handbook of aging and cognition. Erlbaum. ISBN 978-0-8058-2966-2.].
• Nature Reviews Neuroscience 7, 30-40 (January 2006) | doi:10.1038/nrn1809
• Sapolsky RM, Krey LC, McEwen BS (1986) The neuroendocrinology of stress and aging: the glucocorticoid cascade hypothesis. Endocr Rev 7: 284–301.
• Bremner JD. Does Stress Damage the Brain? Understanding Trauma-related Disorders from a Mind-Body Perspective. New York: W.W. Norton; 2002.
• D. Kapogiannis, A. K. Barbey, M. Su, G. Zamboni, F. Krueger, and J. Grafman, “Cognitive and Neural Foundations of Religious Belief,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 106, no. 12 (2009): 4876–4881.
• Aging, stress and the hippocampus. Miller DB, O’Callaghan JP. Ageing Res Rev. 2005 May; 4(2):123-40

After the attempted putsch on July 15, 2016, Erdoğan’s government lost no time in blaming Hizmet, even though Gülen himself vehemently denies any involvement, declaring that those actually behind the events “committed treason against the unity of their country” and “caused hundreds of thousands of innocent people to suffer under the government’s oppressive treatment.” Immediately afterwards, Erdogan began to accelerate his course of harassment, detaining and arresting thousands in a sweep termed the “Purge.” The ensuing fear has increased societal divisiveness and paranoia. Amidst the chaos, Erdogan continues to posture as “Savior of Besieged Turkey.”

Safiye described the situation: “There is no law in Turkey, they are just putting people into jail.” Although traumatized, she and her husband are among the fortunate who left in time—thousands of passports of those currently trying to flee have been revoked by the Turkish government. The couple will now apply for asylum, and try to rebuild their disrupted lives in the United States, although how they will do so is unclear. While I have interviewed over twenty Turkish refugees, here I focus chiefly on Safiye and a few others. This article sheds light on the plight of Hizmet-affiliated Turkish refugees, and seeks to explain why and how they left, and what they will now do in their place of refuge. Those fleeing repressive regimes, whose lives have been upended by political events beyond their control, deserve to have their stories known.

Why Hizmet participants fled Turkey
The rift and government repression before July 15, 2016

Erdoğan’s AKP government is oppressing the Hizmet movement today, but both appeared to be allies of convenience for around ten years. In part, this was because both groups promoted freedom of religion in the public arena. Having suffering under decades of an aggressive form of secularism, supported by previous governments ever since Atatürk founded the Turkish Republic in 1923, the two parties found common cause in freedom of faith. Atatürk’s form of secularism strictly relegated piety to the home or mosque, and discriminated against the overtly pious, such as women wearing headscarves. However, the relationship between Gülen and Erdogan took an ugly turn after a series of events, beginning with Hizmet participants’ escalating dismay at the brutal way Erdogan handled the 2013 Gezi Park protestors, and his government’s connection to a corruption scandal involving smuggling gold to Iran to pay for Turkey’s fuel. Because Erdogan believed that Hizmet participants were directly involved in bringing that 2013 graft scandal to light, he angrily closed schools and tutoring centers linked to the movement, and began to arrest members of the judiciary and police whom he believed were Hizmet-affiliated and had exposed the scheme.

Part of Erdogan’s strategy to consolidate power has involved closing or taking over a number of media institutions and closing thousands of “college prep” schools, even those in disadvantaged areas, such as Kurdish regions in southeast Turkey. His government, run by the Justice and Development Party (AKP), also began to arbitrarily arrest and seize the assets of those perceived in any way as a challenge to his control of Turkey, including judges, educators, and businessmen. Those involved in the Hizmet movement and the Kurdish community are his primary targets, but his reach has gone beyond those two groups.

The Hizmet movement has focused much of its energy establishing and operating these educational institutions, which has left affiliated teachers, students, and their families acutely vulnerable to the government’s hostile focus. Safiye pointed out that before the rift, those supporting the AKP had also put their children in Hizmet schools. She insisted, “They [AKP supporters] know us, they used to know us very well, more than others in the rest of Turkey.” Yet in 2015, the government had the Ankara police department’s anti-terrorism units invade Hizmet-affiliated schools in Ankara as they had done elsewhere. She described the scene: “They tore the upholstery off of the sofa. We don’t even smoke, no one smokes in our schools. They were looking for drugs. They did terrible things. They brought 200 police to one single school.”

Similarly, Fatih, a single 26 year-old teacher, described three years of school inspections, as frequent as once a week. He explained, “The students were always scared by the black cars; they were scared the inspectors would close the school.” According to Fatih, these inspectors were seeking to find the smallest of infractions so they could shut the schools, but this widespread tactic, which began after the rift, also reflects a pattern of intimidation against the movement. Others told me similar stories—in several cases, these schools were raided by soldiers carrying machine guns during school hours, terrifying the children.

This pattern of overt harassment also extended to the media. After the November 2015 elections, the emboldened government began to take extreme measures. In March, 2016, it assumed control of Hizmet-run Zaman Newspaper, and later raided Koza-İpek, one of the major media corporations supporting Hizmet. Opposition television and radio syndicates were closed down or taken over (Hizmet-affiliated and otherwise), and by late October 2016, over 160 media outlets had been closed or taken over by the government. This number includes fifteen that were closed on October 29 alone. These were mainly Kurdish media outlets, found in southeast Turkey.

Erdogan also began arresting hundreds of Hizmet-affiliated bureaucrats, government employees, and businessmen in Turkey, in his effort to quash what he alternatively termed, as part of his smear campaign, “the parallel state” or the “Gülenist terror group.” By April, 2016, 2,261 participants had been detained, and 501 arrested.” These events led many in the movement to fear for their physical safety and the future of Hizmet in Turkey. Those that could afford to leave, fearing imminent arrest, fled Turkey for other countries, even before the events of July 15.

After the Coup Attempt: The Purge

Unduly condemned for attempting to overthrow the government, Hizmet participants’ situation rapidly deteriorated after the failed coup. Erdogan declared a state of emergency and decreed a three-month suspension of the European Convention of Human Rights, which he later prolonged for another three months (thus far). Doing so, he removed human rights safeguards, allowing his government to take actions against civilians that otherwise would be illegal in Turkey. His government has fired over 100,000 people, detained over 75 thousand, and arrested over 35 thousand. While many of those targeted are connected in some way to the movement, Erdogan’s scope has included anyone perceived as opposing his government. According to Human Rights Watch, many in jail have been subject to torture by the Turkish police. Detainees report being raped and sexually abused, held in stress positions, deprived of sleep, and beaten. Those suffering these forms of abuse will not find justice any time soon: government officials taking part in the torture have been absolved of responsibility by decrees released during the State of Emergency, even though international law clearly prohibits torture. Even in the unlikely case that some clandestine faction of the movement were eventually found culpable of the plot, this would not justify the government’s arrest and torture of those uninvolved Hizmet participants.

Those not arrested have found their lives disrupted in other ways. Over two thousand educational institutes were abruptly closed or taken over, leaving thousands of students in the lurch, having to find new institutions or unable to complete their degrees. Labeled “terrorists,” Hizmet participants find themselves treated as if they were radioactive by the larger Turkish society, and sometimes even by their neighbors, friends, and family members. Weary yet indignant, Safiye stated, “Everyone knows we are not guilty or terrorists. I haven’t ever used a weapon. The only time I have used a knife is in the kitchen.” In the fearful aftermath of the coup attempt, even those who might privately defend Hizmet, cannot do so publicly without fear of reprisal—or even worse, they might then find that others now associate them with the movement.

Conspiracy theories abound regarding who actually masterminded the events of July 15, but as of yet, the question has not been resolved. Observers of Turkish politics have noted that other possible architects include Erdogan himself, the secular ultranationalists, or an unknown anti-government alliance. Nevertheless, those minimally connected with Hizmet find themselves stigmatized and under a cloud of suspicion. Despite their ostensibly profound commitment to altruism, Hizmet members find themselves the brunt of bigotry, painfully ostracized, and alone.

In fact, they are not completely alone. Kurds, who make up 18% of Turkey’s population, have also felt the sting of his attacks in a number of ways, and the Purge also victimizes the Kurdish community. Only a small minority of Kurds belong to the militant Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has carried out terror attacks on Turkish soil towards the goal of an independent Kurdish state. Yet the larger Kurdish community, which has suffered decades of oppression in Turkey, is unfairly associated with PKK violence. Erdogan capitalizes on nationalist anti-Kurdish sentiment in Turkey, gaining support through his tough rhetoric and military attacks against the Kurds (not just the PKK); current social divisiveness has heightened xenophobia in Turkey. While many Kurds nonetheless support Erdogan’s AK Party, others belong to the pro-Kurdish HDP (The Peoples’ Democratic Party), which is fiercely critical of the government (but not militant). On November 4, 2016, the government arrested Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdag, co-leaders of the HDP, as part of a terrorism investigation. The HDP is the third largest political party in Turkey and unconnected to PKK terrorism—this move appears to be part of the president’s policy of muzzling dissent.

How They Fled

Many of those interviewed left because they feared impending arrest, and some left immediately after hearing that colleagues had been thrown in jail. Those with sizable wealth were more easily able to purchase tickets to move abroad, although some reported having to sell homes or businesses at a fraction of their worth, in order to liquidate assets. Those in the middle class told me they sold items such as their cars or laptops just to buy airfare. For example, Safiye explained that her husband had to give up his property to leave. She said, “He sold the house and car, and came to Seattle and waited for me. He said, ‘you’ll come to the US, and we’ll see how it goes.’ Unfortunately, other plans [the coup] happened.”

Fatih described becoming increasingly anxious about the political situation, and said, “I just got onto a plane and left with only two thousand dollars.” He was fortunate to have been able to leave, as was Safiye’s family. Soon after the attempted coup, the government revoked the passports of over 50,000 Turkish citizens to prevent them from immigrating.

Starting All Over

Almost all of the refugee families with whom I spoke planned to apply for political asylum, and then to open a business in the United States, even when they had no business experience. Some also related a desire to pursue academic degrees. While many speak some English, most will have to spend time sharpening their English language skills to be able find employment. I asked Safiye and her husband, Atilla, what they planned to do here if their asylum bid were successful. Safiye dreams of pursuing a Master’s degree in psychology, but for now would settle with opening a small shop. She laughed suddenly, overwhelmed, and said, “I don’t know, I can’t think.”

Her husband, Atilla, also plans to open a business. I asked him how he would do that, and his eyes got red and teary, and he abruptly walked away from the interview to compose himself. When he returned, he admitted he did not yet know how he would do that, having spent his life in the field of education. He explained, “Now we are zero. How can we start from zero? We will try to get to one. We will try to be an individual of the US. I want to be a good citizen of the US. We can’t leave here illegally. If we want to live here, we have to do everything by the law.”

A few asylum-seekers were too traumatized to think that far ahead, and might need to cope with their grief before trying to make a plan. Refugees are dealing with pain and guilt about loved ones at home, some of whom have been arrested before or during the Purge. The shock of having to leave their homes to escape before being detained, in some cases with little warning, left some refugees reeling. Fatih explained, “I can’t get stressed out. If I do, I get headaches and hair loss. I went to the doctor and he said, ‘do not get stressed.’ Here I am a nothing, I have no value. I don’t have a working permit. I don’t have plans about life. I can’t see my future, I can’t see in front of myself. I’m 26 years old, I’m educated, but here I’m nothing, I’m not a teacher.” Clearly, time and support are needed for him to recover and make a new life.

Providing Assistance

Any expression or action of support on the part of Americans for Turkish refugees is deeply appreciated and needed, especially in the current climate. After the 2016 presidential election, many Muslims in the United States are terrified that president-elect Donald Trump will carry out his threat to ban or deport Muslims, and that some of the Islamophobic statements he has made will embolden others to bully or intimidate Muslims. Of particular concern is the recent spike in attacks against Muslim women in America, whose headscarves make them particularly identifiable. That being said, in general, the recent wave of Muslim refugees arriving from places of political conflict (Syria, Yemen, Turkey) are even more acutely vulnerable than American Muslims with US citizenship. Safiye and her family, for example worry about receiving asylum, being seen favorably by other Americans, and having their daughter accepted—and not bullied—in her new school. Meanwhile, they also worry about finding permanent housing, employment, and friends with whom to create a new community.

Americans can help in a number of ways. They can offer to be allies and stand against Islamophobic bullying. They can assist in finding employment and housing, even by simply offering advice or contacts. They can donate to associations that aid refugees such as the International Rescue Committee (IRC) or the United Nations High Committee for Refugees (UNHCR). Even the simple altruistic gesture of offering a neighboring refugee a friendly cup of tea or coffee, goes far in making someone who suddenly finds him or herself in an unfamiliar environment, dispirited, alone, and disoriented, better able to cope.

Conclusion

Safiye’s family, like Fatih and many others, narrowly escaped being arrested for their association with the Hizmet movement. Despite choosing a career as a teacher in order to help others, Safiye finds herself rejected by her own motherland. She laughed bitterly at the end of her story, and told me that to her, a homeland is the place that provides for its citizens’ wellbeing. “Turkey doesn’t give us that,” she added, and stated, “if a country or a nation does not give you food, water, security, it is not your nation anymore.” Others I interviewed echoed her sentiment, and are resigned to settling abroad, perhaps permanently. Victims of Erdogan’s attempts to silence all opposition in Turkey, they now have to find their way in exile. 

Roses, daisies, dandelions, lilies, all in mesmerizing colors
Dew sparkling on violets, jasmines, and leaves,
Bleary-eyed hyacinths and tulips
Moths flying between light and colors
Appearing on every horizon is the brightest of beauties.

When my heart is filled with the best dreams,
My faith is my honest guide
My prism to see and love everything
Making me feel all the mystery
In every step of the colorful world

As the spirit coils up into the ether
Traces of meanings emerge in my imagination
Silent whispers flow into my heart
In an incomprehensible language, without letters and words
As if the gates to the heavens creak open nearby

At that point humans listen to existence
Hearing the tunes of the Infinite One in their hearts
On the prairies, valleys, and shores every spring
They look for the lost Heavens
Feelings of hope and longing are side by side

They embrace everything on their path
The grass, trees, rocks, earth, all of existence
For them, the light and darkness are the same
They welcome sickness and health with contentment
They are slaves, living like kings

Nanotechnology is any kind of scientific application that deals with such small materials.  Nanotechnology has become a very important branch of development in the last 30-40 years. As advanced microscopes, such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) or atomic force microscopy (AFM), became more popular, nanometer scale visualizations become easily accessible in universities and laboratories. This has allowed laboratories to try modifications on different materials or biological samples. Nanotechnology is relevant for every branch of science; however, in this article we will talk about the application of it in materials science, which is the study and design of new materials.

Hydrophobic means water repelling, as the name implies. A super hydrophobic surface means a surface that does not hold any water. On the other hand, super hydrophilic means a surface that loves water, and therefore is completely absorbent (Figure 1).

A material that doesn’t get wet is desirable for many applications. These kinds of materials don’t hold any dirt or mud, and can be especially useful as military clothes or as water repellant glass for the front window of cars, etc. Even though today’s nanotechnology can make the surfaces of materials super hydrophobic, the materials can remain so only for a short period of time. These kinds of modifications either get torn off the surface or lose their hydrophobic properties due to friction, etc. Therefore, water repellant surfaces haven’t become commercially popular – yet.

There are many surfaces in nature that are super hydrophobic. Almost all of the hydrophobic nano-technological developments have been inspired by these natural surfaces. This is also called “bio-mimicking,” because nature is mimicked for scientific purposes. Examples of super hydrophobic surfaces in nature are butterfly wings, cicada wings, mosquito feet, duck feathers, and some plant leaves. There are many reasons for hydrophobicity to exist in nature. For instance, the super hydrophobicity of a butterfly’s wings allows it to fly while it is raining. The same quality allows ducks to stay dry while swimming or mosquitoes to walk on water. And the super hydrophobic nature of lotus leaves allows them to “self-clean.”

Every creature with super hydrophobic properties has different nano structures. Nano structures on animal surfaces not only allow for super hydrophobicity, they can also give the creature different properties. For example, the nano pattern on shark skin was discovered to be anti-biofilm forming. The mechanism of how this structure prevents bacteria from colonizing it is still a mystery. It is thought to have the exact surface tension for repelling bacteria. This pattern has been commercialized by Sharklet® and is sold to help make much hospital equipment bacterial resistant.  

Lotus leaves also have many interesting micro/nano structures. Lotus leaves are known to grow at the bottom of ponds, but emerge above the water surface as if untouched by the contamination of the dirty water that they grow in [3]. The water-repellant lotus leaf is often associated with extreme purity, as the surface restricts the growth of bacteria and pathogens [4]. When a water droplet touches the lotus leaf, it immediately rolls off the surface, dragging the dirt and dust accumulated on the leaf’s surface (Figure 2 and Figure 3). Thanks to this mechanism, the surface of the leaf is constantly clean and dry. This “self-cleaning” mechanism was discovered by advanced microscopes that allow scientists to observe the micro/nano structure of the leaf’s surfaces.

When a piece of lotus leaf was observed under a SEM microscope it was seen that these surfaces have physical hierarchical surface features. What this means is that the surfaces have micro scale roughness patterns, and on top of these roughness patterns they have even smaller nano scale roughness patterns (Figure 4). These roughness patterns allow for air pockets to form on top of the surface; therefore, water does not stick to these surfaces. When the roughness is only at the micro scale, the surface becomes hydrophobic; however, for super hydrophobicity to occur, a combination of micro and nano scale roughness is necessary (Figure 5).

Many labs are trying to mimic this hierarchical micro/nanostructure roughness pattern. Some of the modifications have been successful, such as coating polymer surfaces with inorganic particles like Nano-diameter silica particles. Another possible application is making physical modifications on the surfaces of polymers using sophisticated methods like photolithography. Various suggestions have been made by laboratories all around the world. However, super hydrophobic surfaces have not been commercialized yet because these applications are either too sophisticated and time consuming to apply, or the modifications made are not permanent – meaning they get peeled off over time.

The micro/nano scale topography of every creature in nature is different, giving each of them different properties. Some of these properties allow for super hydrophobicity, some allow for super hydrophilicity, and some nano scale patterns prevent bacteria from sticking to the creature’s surface. When these creatures were created, their surface topographies were tailored according to their needs. It’s remarkable they could be made so perfectly when we as humans have to put in an incredible amount of effort and research to mimic the roughness of a single leaf. As science allows us to understand how nature works, our amazement at the perfection of the universe becomes stronger.

References

1) ARC-FLASH® Thin Film Coating Techniques, 2004.

2) Barthlott, W. et.al. Raster-Elektronenmikroskopie der Epidermis-Oberflächen von Spermatophyten. Tropische und subtropische Pflanzenwelt, 1977. 19: p. 110.

[3] Li, X. M. et.al. What do we need for a hydrophobic surface? A review on the recent progress in the preparation of superhydrophobic surfaces. Chem. Soc.Rev., 2007. 36: p. 1350–68.

[4] Genzer, J. et.al. Recent developments in superhydrophobic surfaces and their relevance to marine fouling: a review. Biofouling, 2006. 22: p. 339–60.

5) Goodman, T. Inspired By The Lotus Leaf: Lotusan® Paint. Invertor SPOT.

2016 did not offer much hope that solutions to these many problems and exhaustions are just around the corner.  On the contrary, things seemed to get worse – maybe the worst they’ve been since World War II. Many of us wondered, “When is this going to end?” As the Rev. Deborah Moldow, the World Peace Prayer Society’s Representative to the United Nations, writes in this issue, it seems like “after centuries of material progress have brought undreamed of comforts, and travel and communications opened the world to us, we have reached a perfect storm of unprecedented crises.”

So, what is the way out, if there is any? Rev. Moldow believes one solutions is what the United Nations calls the “culture of peace.” According to her, there are two main hallmarks of this consciousness. The first is the understanding that we are all members of one human family. And the second is the renewal of our sense of deep connection with nature, realizing that our future must include new ways to live in harmony with our environment. Rev. Moldow expounds on these themes in her essay “A Culture of Peace.”

On a similar note, this issue’s lead article speaks of a group’s commitment to peace and dialogue. Those committed to these values have accomplished a lot, though their efforts have been nearly halted by their opponents: “A marginal but adamant group, driven by hostility, aggression, anarchism, and slander, a group whose strength and extraordinary efficiency lie in its destructiveness and its bellicosity, has obstructed this awakening like fiends.”

The author, Fethullah Gülen, and the global educational movement he has inspired, Hizmet, have been attacked by the ruling elite in Turkey. The lead article narrates the obstacles and animosity Gülen has faced the last few decades. Despite these obstacles, he persisted on his path, establishing bridges of peace among different communities and overcoming bias to spread his message of mutual understanding. Now, he and Hizmet are victims of a global witch-hunt spearheaded by the Turkish government at the expense of the country’s prestige, international footing, and loss of the nation’s greatest civil society organization. Despite these slanderous attacks, Gülen vows not to “overshadow our time in this transient world by harming others, speaking evil words, or hurting others’ feelings; in the spirit of Yunus the poet, we will appeal to everyone to love one another.”

The witch-hunt mentioned above is clearly revealed in interviews, conducted by Professor Sophia Pandya of California State University Long Beach, with some of the Turkish volunteers of the Hizmet Movement who have fled Turkey for the United States. The title of her piece “Not Even Water!” – is a threat Turkey’s President Erdogan has made against Hizmet and capture the full extent of the government’s authoritarian crackdown against Hizmet. But like the rest of the world, even though 2016 has been a difficult year, we vow to move forward with hope in our hearts. As Martin Luther King Jr. liked to say, the moral arc of the universe is long, but it bends towards justice.

Submission – to use the dictionary definition – would be fulfilling the rulings, determinations, and decisions of an individual or a council comprised of various individuals who have been endorsed by the general public and are authorized to make decisions on different matters. These can be governmental institutions like the army and the police force, or civil society organizations. However, this does not mean that submission is to the individuals who are involved with the decision-making; especially for civil initiatives, no member has such a right to claim submission to themselves.

However, if the decision handed down is about a nationwide mobilization, then these decisions are crucial for collective success. As such, they should be obeyed. Under those conditions, consultation and submission are like the different faces of the same reality.

As mentioned in the question, matters accepted by a majority of a council may not seem reasonable to everyone and may not be accepted by everyone. To be absolved of responsibility before God, those who are members of the council can articulate the differences in their reasoning, refrain from rashly saying “yes,” and make a note of their opposition to decisions made. Actually, this is the real meaning of consultation. However, if a decision has been made on the issue at hand in spite of the opposition of some, then afterwards the opposing parties should not say a word against the decision and should conform to the decision. This kind of talk is back-biting, especially if the committee is convening to serve a lofty cause. Back-biting is a violation of the rights of a group that is serving the Truth and requires the one who back-bites to ask for forgiveness from each member of the council

Yes, we must respect decisions made through consultation. For example, imagine a consulting group decided to go someplace and then set out on their journey. Then, say, an accident took place on the road – may God prevent it. After the accident, those who had opposed the decision might be compelled to say things like, “Didn’t we tell you? If we had not gone, there would not have been an accident. We went, and this happened to us.” Not only is this criticism of fate, but it is also considered back-biting against the other friends.

The Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) determination on this matter is striking. He consulted with his Companions before the Battle of Uhud. His own view was to remain in Medina and fight on the defensive. However, as a result of the consultation, the decision was made to leave Medina and meet the enemy in the open. As a necessity of this decision, the Seal of the Prophethood went to Uhud. Sayyid Qutb’s excellent interpretation on this point is very appropriate: “When the Messenger of God set out for Uhud, if he had known not only that there would be 70 martyrs, but that Medina would be totally destroyed, he still would have gone in order to give the council its right.”

Yes, consultation has a very important place in Islam and the lives of Muslims. A destroyed Medina could be rebuilt, but if a principle of Islam had been destroyed, especially when its foundations were being laid down, it would have been impossible to reconstruct it. Consequently, everyone on a council should put forth his or her useful ideas to the group and they should enable everyone to understand those ideas. But then they should adhere to a decision even if it is contrary to their ideas.

The principles I have tried to present are related to submission to a decision. Another facet of this matter – which is just as important – are the responsibilities that fall on the shoulders of the decision-makers to ensure these decisions are acted upon. The Prophet’s life presents us many good examples from which we can derive general principles on this matter. Let’s take a bird’s-eye look at some historical events.

Arabs in the Age of Ignorance acted individually. Even the smallest incident could immediately cause families and tribes to fight against each other. It was impossible for the individuals of such a society to obey others.  At that time there were many tribes in Mecca and Medina, and all of them had become splintered. When they could not find anyone outside to fight with, they would draw their swords and fight with each other. To develop the concept of obedience amidst such a society, and to gather them around one leader, is proof of the Prophet’s apostleship. In my opinion, this matter has been overlooked by researchers who study the life of the Prophet. Yes, the Seal of Prophets turned warring tribes into a civilized community that listened to each other and obeyed authority.

During the same time period, Arabs never looked at slaves as human beings, especially if they were black. Due to this attitude, Bilal al-Habashi, may God be pleased with him, did not even have the right to enter the room where Umayya b. Halaf ate. In other words, people debated whether or not a slave was even a human being, and, if black, whether the slave was a human or an animal. Islam came and raised slaves to such a high level that Bilal was able to intervene in events among notable citizens and express his own views. He also had the same rights as any other person when it came to approaching the Prophet.

Zayd b. Haritha was the freed slave of the Prophet. The Messenger of God appointed Zayd b. Haritha commander of the army, even though there were aristocrats and war heroes such as Jafar b. Abu Talib, Abdullah b. Rawaha, and Halid b. Walid (ra) serving in this army. When sent to war, the nobles put aside their views from the Age of Ignorance and obeyed their commander.

Abdullah ibn Huzafetu’s-Sahmi related another event, this one from during the Age of Happiness. The Prophet gave a battallion to this great man and sent him some place. Understanding that one of those under his command was lacking in his understanding of obedience, Abdullah had a fire lit and gave the command, “Throw yourselves into the fire!” In view of this order, some wanted to immediately jump into the fire. Some held back saying, “We escaped this fire and pledged our faith to the Messenger of God. Are we going to throw ourselves into the fire now?” Upon returning from the campaign, they related this incident to the Prophet. He replied, “If you had entered that fire, you would have remained in it eternally!” Because this would have been suicide. Suicide is an act prohibited by God. “Where there is rebellion against God, there is no obedience to a creature.” In matters that are definitely unlawful, no one is to be obeyed.

For example, within this framework, it is very important to act in accordance with Bediuzzaman’s measure, “A brother cannot be a father to his brother; the state of a master cannot be assumed.”  This means that one should not use people like slaves and should not see one’s position as a means for pressuring others. Instead, a person should do work within the range of their capabilities. 

Yes, if these can be put into practice, none of the negative things implied in the question will take place. Here the incident that occurred between Ubay b. Kab and Ibn Abbas should amaze us. One day while Ubayy was mounting a horse, Ibn Abbas held the horse’s stirrup. In response to this behavior, Ubayy b. Ka’b said, “What are you doing? You are the son of the Prophet’s uncle.” Ibn Abbas replied, “We have been commanded to show respect to our seniors.” Then Ubayy held Ibn Abbas’s hand and kissed it. “And we have been commanded to treat the Prophet’s family like this,” he said.

I think that if this reciprocity is developed, the obedient ones will not say, “We obey,” with disagreeableness, nor will their superiors have to reprimand those who do not obey them. In short, consultation is prophetic; acting all by oneself and disregarding consultation is not. Submission is a natural result of consultation. Although God’s Messengers were strengthened by revelation, they acted with consultation. To the contrary, if we look at the many “pharaohs” throughout history – from Ramesses to Amenhotep, and Caesar to Napoleon, up to the even crazier Hitler, Stalin and Lenin – they were despotic apprentices to the devil, who made solitary decisions and executions.

We have tried to achieve this vastness in our souls for years. We have always wanted to recognize and accept people – not for the ill-temperedness they display due to certain exterior reasons, but for the spiritual immensity of their inner worlds, their silent spiritedness, their energetic harmony, and their continual openness to self-reform. And it was impossible for us to think otherwise. Such acceptance is required by the superior commands of faith, a testament to its universality. Indeed, while we have always tried to embrace our own faith completely, we have also regarded other religious thoughts and philosophical ideas as a natural part of our life. We have always sought coexistence. Our slogan has always been “accept everyone for who they are, and show respect.” And we have always tried to be faithful to this principle and have never condemned or abused anyone due to differences in religion, faith, sect, or opinion.

Though we have suffered various kinds of abuse, and were subjected to insults and degradation, we never responded. We never responded despite the fact that we had many legitimate reasons to do so. We endured various forms of abuse and humiliation, but we considered retaliation in kind as a cruel principle. We always believed the eternally inherent honor and privileges of being human should not be forsaken for temporary attributes like grudge, hostility, anger, and barbarity. Hoping to express these emotions without causing doubt or confusion, we even humbly bowed our heads and placed them on the ground, hoping to serve as steppingstones on the paths of those who we thought possessed good intentions. Such behavior for the sake of tolerance is a form of humbleness and submission; and while behaving in this manner, if we have unconsciously insulted our faith in any way and sinned, may God forgive us! We have continuously exclaimed, “Respect for all humanity.” We tried to live like shadows, to prevent being obstacles. We never anticipated anything from those whom we embraced with understanding, whose ideas we welcomed with respect. All we asked was mutual respect; this much we would expect simply out of our humble appreciation of their being human.

Indeed, we have never singled out anyone. As our hearts beat with love for the whole of humanity, we never demanded anything in return for our compassionate care. If we had made such demands, continuing our broad and sincere relations with all the nations of the world would have been impossible; ties based on expectations can never survive. But we want our relationships with others to last forever, and for that matter we chose to establish these relations on the belief that every human being is an example of God’s art.

We lived our lives accordingly, offering our love and respect to everyone (perhaps we have gone too far in showing our love, and some people mistook our kindness for hostile intentions). We showed kindness and displayed our humanity at every opportunity. We did not discriminate against anyone based on “worth”; we tried to live beyond such measures. We waited for the propitious moment when the eye of reason would convene and integrate with sound judgment. I believe that, as humans, we have a right to this basic expectation. Lesser expectations would be disrespectful to the honorable human being, whose potential exceeds that of the angels.

Indeed, for many years, while opening our fountains of deepest love, we’ve often been overwhelmed by the hope that our seeds of affection would germinate in lands of hatred, hostility, anger, and conspiracy. And many of those in our society that share this dream responded positively from their hearts:

Make a sound, my brave one, or don’t you hear me?
For years I have stood with you in my imagination.
I live with the hope that you will rise up and come…
My heart, shining with hope, awaits you.
At times it flies in the skies; at others it crawls on the ground…
Everywhere is in ruins, a festival for owls.
Bridges have fallen one by one and the roads are without travelers.
No one stops by anymore, the fountains have run dry…
Arise and come just like in the dreams!
Early one morning on your white horse,
While watching you in my spirit with my closed eyes.
Arise and come just like in the dreams!

Overcome by the magic of this splendid ideal, millions began to utter words of love. Though at first this love was only a trickle, in time it has transformed into a cascade. Now it is a symbol of revival for everyone.

This is another dimension of God manifesting His greatness. Sometimes, by allowing the weakest ones to fulfill great achievements, God shows that intermediary causes have no real significant value and reminds us of His sublimity in many different ways. What we have lived through was of a similar nature. It was as if the One of Eternal Power opened the gates to the hearts of others for ordinary, simple individuals like us, virtually bestowing upon us to become Solomon with his vast kingdom of love; and even if it was only temporary, the evil spirits of grudge, hostility, and conflict were so shocked that they became delirious with their evil desires.

Then, it was the time for the heroes of tolerance to speak. The Earth turned into pure gold in their hands; coal transformed into diamonds, and poison turned into sherbet. While they were satisfied with the willingness of society to reclaim its true nature, society also rejoiced at discovering its own spiritual depth and essence. Indeed, kindness converged with graciousness, and the souls, weary from years of bloodshed, tears, and the festering of evil, rejoiced at their good fortune. At last, everyone sat beneath open skies singing songs of love. Everywhere, light overwhelmed darkness, and the roars of hostility and animosity were replaced by the comforting ballads of love and brotherhood. Revenge and grudge idly awaited their fate, and hostility and resentment slowly shrank and faded away.

We were delighted and anticipated that those who were conscious of their humanity would adorn their souls with feathers from Gabriel’s wings, reach the heavens frequented by the angels, and raise a new voice composed of the divine. A new voice that would not allow the groaning of conflict, lies, slander, and defamation.

Disappointingly, however, a marginal but adamant group, driven by hostility, aggression, anarchism, and slander, a group whose strength and extraordinary efficiency lie in its destructiveness and its bellicosity, has obstructed this awakening like fiends. They have attempted to block this progress by swaying some people who were confused and undecided. They have attacked religious thought and defamed religious people. They have labeled everyone with an ideology; for them, some people were “religionists” – whatever that means – while others were members of a cult, thus sowing fears for fundamentalism, they ignited flames of discord.

Tyrants have oppression on their side,
but the innocent have God on theirs.
Persecuting people may be easy today,
but tomorrow they will certainly go before God.

We have remained silent; silence is the way we respond. Retaliation in kind is a tyrannous principle in our book. We do not fight back physically, nor do we reply to their curses. Acting without force against those who use force, and remaining silent before those who utter abuse: these are requirements of the covenant between us and our consciences. God never created us with teeth to bite, nor did He create us with claws to savage others. Each individual acts upon their character, and we consider acting violently as disrespectful to ourselves. Thus, we have swallowed our words when we could have spoken out loud.

While others have revealed the darkness in their souls, we are presented with the opportunity to praise God’s favors upon us.  We will not overshadow our time in this transient world by harming others, speaking evil words, or hurting others’ feelings; in the spirit of Yunus the poet, we will appeal to everyone to love one another. 

While doing so, we will remain loyal to these words, as written by Bediuzzaman: “I am forgiving all the troubles, tortures, and calamities I had to suffer for so many years. During my whole lifetime (of over eighty years), I have tasted nothing of the worldly pleasures. My life has passed on battlefields or in prisons or other places of suffering. I was placed on disciplinary segregation for months. They have treated me, at war tribunals, as if I were a savage. As for those who persecuted me, who banished me from one town to another, who tried to imprison me with many charges, and those who reserve a place for me in the dungeons: I forgive all of them.”

Indeed, I vow that as a believer I will share these emotions. I vow that I will not be upset with anyone or break away from them. I vow that I will welcome death with pleasure. I vow that I will accept the suffering from His Majesty as one with the loyalty that comes from His Beauty. And finally, I have no authority to speak on behalf of God’s rights, but with the regards to my violated personal rights, I vow that I will not demand them from anyone on the Day of Judgment.

In this issue, we are celebrating Black History Month with Laila Muhammad. The grandchild of Elijah Muhammad, the founder of the Nation of Islam, and the daughter of Warith Deen Mohamed, she is recognized more by association with her family, but she has continued her family’s incredible legacy of community work. In our interview with her, you will not only read about her family, but you will also encounter a social activist with common sense and compassionate vision. Anyone who is involved in any type of community work will benefit from her words. “We have to move forward,” Muhammad says, adding “collectively” at the end, with emphasis. This message is more relevant than ever at a time when our society is growing more polarized on multiple axes of race, religion, and gender.

Laila Muhammad’s message resonates with a book Justin Pahl reviews in this issue: Peace and Dialogue in a Plural Society, by Fr. Thomas Michel. Fr. Michel is a Catholic priest and a professor at Georgetown University who has been involved in interfaith dialogue with Muslims for many decades. He’s traveled and lived with Muslims in many countries including Indonesia, the Philippines, Turkey, the United States, and Europe. His research in this book focuses on the Hizmet Movement and how the movement’s educational and dialogue efforts around the world are contributing to peace in the plural society of the twenty-first century.

A complementary piece to the above themes is “The Age of Self-Awareness” by Caroline Halford. Halford writes, “The world became connected very quickly and with that came not only conflict, secrecy, and fear, but also progress, growth, and knowledge, or at least, attempts at these things.” This global plural society has stepped into an age of self-awareness in the twenty-first century, Halford argues. Whether our self-awareness will diminish into self-obsession or will allow us to be great, continuing the legacy of those who came before us, is up to us.

This issue’s lead article “Chaos and Flourishing Hopes” redefines our relationship with the past, the present, and the future. While some of us delve into the glorious days of our past, others, especially younger people, submit themselves to fanciful thoughts of the future, Fethullah Gülen writes. Yet according to Gülen, the best path is to implement “what is required in every stage of life,” after which we will perceive the past-future-present as “the three angles of a single unit, and we will be able to experience each period of time with its own depth. The golden ages of human history have always been experienced when the concept of time has been perceived as such.”

As he defines a perspective as a concept of time, Gülen also establishes a prescriptive approach to misfortunes and ordeals: “Going through such ordeals is how we can overcome the weariness caused by monotonousness. This is how we can always sense the pleasures and enjoyment to the same extent in the positive sense. This is in fact the transformation of difficulties and afflictions into spiritual prosperity.”    

Our immune system handles our body’s security. It’s equipped with the resources necessary to deal with different levels of security threats. This system walls off the body, but also has the equipment to hunt down any intruders. We can think of our immune system as a game of strategy, where defensive and offensive maneuvers are equally important. This game is not a simple, single-session one. It involves constant information gathering, weapon developing, and soldier training. In short, it involves constant change.

The body’s general defense mechanisms, called the innate immune system, can be considered the first line of defense, aimed at preventing bacteria or other pathogens (sickness-inducing factors) from entering the body in the first place. These include the skin (the walls of the castle), as well as mucus, tears, saliva, and acids (the boiling oils of the castle). Vulnerable entry points such as the respiratory system are covered with thick, sticky mucus, which traps pathogens and then disposes of them by way of sneezing or coughing. Other sensitive spots such as the eyes are constantly washed with tears. Tears are produced on top of the eye and drain into the bottom, near the nose, ensuring sterility.

The innate system also uses a mechanism called inflammation to handle pathogens that manage to breach the outer defenses. The main goal of inflammation is to prevent the pathogens that enter through the skin from reaching the blood. Inflammation is initiated by immune cells that are found within the injured tissue. These immune cells can be considered “patrol cells” and are found everywhere in the body, not just the blood. The moment these cells come across a foreign antigen (the molecular fingerprint of a cell or virus), they sound the alarm, triggering inflammation. Inflammatory precautions include blood clotting, macrophage migration, and increased blood flow to the area. Blood clotting occurs relatively quickly, since inactive clotting factors are already present and only need to be activated. This seals off the security breach, preventing more pathogens from entering. Macrophages are very large immune cells that migrate to the scene and capture any bacteria they encounter. Increased blood flow to the area both eases and accelerates the entrance of reinforcements, such as antibacterial proteins and other white blood cells. This is the reason for the swelling we see.

If all fails and the pathogens manage to enter the bloodstream, the body has no choice but to pull out the big guns: the adaptive immune system. The adaptive immune system is unique in that it knows its enemy and adapts accordingly, hence the name. Each type of pathogen has strong and weak spots. Some are resistant to antibacterial proteins, while others are resistant to being phagocytosed (being eaten alive!) by macrophages. During the first encounter, the adaptive immune system tries different methods of destroying the pathogen, and “records” the most effective method. It then stores the antigen of that specific pathogen. So, during the second encounter, the adaptive immune system already “knows” what to do and eliminates the pathogen almost immediately.

Now, let’s get into some detail.

There are many types of cells in the adaptive immune system. Each has a very specific role to play. Cytotoxic T cells are the ones responsible for destroying bacteria. One feature that distinguishes these cells from macrophages is the method of activation. Unlike macrophages, cytotoxic T cells only kill after being activated by another type of cell, the helper T cell. The helper T cells’ main purpose is to activate or suppress the immune response, like an on-off switch. They are so effective that without the secretions of these helper T cells, the adaptive immune system literally shuts down. The cytotoxic T cells also need a means of recognition. This role is fulfilled by antigen-presenting cells (APCs). When APCs find foreign antigens left behind in the blood by bacteria, they stick them on their own membranes. Then, they start handing them around to cytotoxic T cells, like police identifying bandits from WANTED posters. After obtaining these outlaws, cytotoxic T cells kill any of those bacteria they encounter.

A second difference between cytotoxic T cells and macrophages is how they kill. Rather than phagocytosing (eating alive) bacteria, they shove a tube-like protein into their membrane, allowing its insides to flow out and ultimately deflating and killing it.

After the body recovers from the sickness, most of the outlaws are destroyed. But a few are kept and stored in memory B cells. Memory B cells are like the immune system’s archives, in that they have long lifespans and are kept safe deep in the bone marrow. The file of each bacterium is kept in these cells, with its poster on the front for quick identification. Therefore, if the body encounters the bacteria again in the future, the immune system loses no time trying to identify them. The elimination process starts promptly, even before any signs of illness. This mechanism is, in fact, what makes vaccination possible. Dead or harmless pathogens are injected into the body so that their files can be created in our archives without the hassle of illness.

Unfortunately, bacteria also have a few tricks up their sleeves. Bacteria are single cells, and this enables them to change their genetic material without major consequences. These genetic changes also cause structural changes. Even though each bacterium is individual and independent, they get their strength from their large numbers. For example, imagine a population of 100 bacteria, all with different genetics. During an infection, our immune system uses a special tactic – for example, phagocytosis – to get rid of the bacteria. But one of these bacteria has a genetic feature – say, a strong cell wall – that gives it immunity from this tactic. So, while the other 99 bacteria get eradicated, this one bacterium survives. This bacterium then multiplies into 100 new bacteria with strong, phagocytosis-resistant cell walls. This forces our immune system to find new strategies to overcome the bacteria’s new defenses. Resistance in bacteria only gets stronger if provoked. This is the reason why excessive use of antibacterials is not recommended. While they may give temporary relief, they cause the bacterial population to grow more resistant.

Even though bacteria are skilled in the art of genetic mutation, there is another pathogen that is undoubtedly the master: The Virus.

Viruses are so tiny that it has been debated whether they should be considered living creatures or just molecular structures. They contain very little genetic material, which makes them extremely prone to mutation. They mutate so rapidly that it is impossible for our body to create files for them. Moreover, they do not need provocation to mutate, since mutation is a part of their life cycle. This is the reason why immunodeficiencies (weaknesses of the immune system) are one of the most notorious disease types. Most immunodeficiencies are genetic and/or viral. The immunodeficiency with probably the worst reputation is AIDS. AIDS stands for “acquired immune deficiency syndrome,” and is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The thing that makes this particular virus so notorious is the fact that it targets the very cells that allow the immune system to operate, the helper T cells. Without the secretions of the helper T cells, the entire adaptive immune system virtually shuts down. After that, even the simplest illness can lead to serious consequences.

The HIV virus is an external threat, whereas another immunodeficiency, multiple sclerosis (MS), is an internal one. MS is a disease where our immune system sees our own cells (especially nerve cells) as enemies. This results in the destruction of cells by none other than our very own immune system. Destruction of the nerve cells may cause various neurological symptoms such as weakness, visual problems, or even psychiatric issues. Although the exact mechanism causing this deficiency is unknown, genetics is thought to play a big role. As a result, there is currently no known cure for MS.

In sum, our immune system continuously plays an extremely sophisticated, microscopic strategy game, of which we are observers more than we are players. Even as observers, we cannot entirely understand the battle at center stage, let alone the struggle going on in the game’s dark corners. Our immune system develops new strategies to keep us safe from thousands of daily attacks on the body. We are not even aware of all these strategies and defenses, unless they fail and we fall sick. There is no apparent winner or loser of this ongoing game, which requires extensive knowledge, intelligence, and uninterrupted adaptability, alertness, and creativity. As fantastic as observing this collective performance is, one cannot also help but ask whether each and every one of these players (our immune system, bacteria, viruses, etc.) a master strategist, owning all of these wondrous attributes, or are they directed to make their moves by the same One Master Strategist, for us to watch in awe and reflect upon?