Hizmet, religious knowledge, and scientific education*

Abstract

The Gülen Hizmet movement is an international movement of volunteers organizing financial capital and human effort to serve the broader community. In the beginning, the movement was entirely populated by Turkish Muslims and, even today, most of its participants are motivated by religious faith. One of the values supported by the movement is that of education, especially in the sciences. But knowledge claims in science and in religion frequently come into conflict with one another. This paper describes the particular problem for the Hizmet movement in terms of doxastic-practice epistemology, outlining several ways in which potential conflicts can be dealt with. It closes with a suggestion for a particular method of resolution that respects the knowledge claims of both religion and science, but that requires some sacrifice.