In this open-access monograph Paul Weller explores how the movement known as Hizmet (meaning
service) is undergoing a period of transitions in Europe. Inspired by the teaching and practice
of the Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen Hizmet has been active in Europe (and other
continents) for several decades. It has always been subject to some degree of contestation
which has intensified following the July 2016 coup attempt in Turkey for which the current
Turkish government holds Fethullah Gülen and Hizmet as responsible - a claim they strongly
deny. In Turkey thousands of people associated with Hizmet have been imprisoned. In Europe
pressures have been brought to bear on the movement and its activities. In charting a way
forward Hizmet finds itself in a significant transitional period the nature and possible
future trajectories of which are explored in this volume. The book is informed by a
comprehensive literature review and a recent research project which includes primary research
interviews with key Hizmet figures in Europe and beyond. It contends that to properly
understand Hizmet in Europe one has to situate it in its interactive engagement both with its
diverse European national contexts and with Fethullah Gülen's teaching and practice.
