Religious Movements Among the Turks in Belgium

Abstract

This chapter examines Islamic movements and their organizations and activities among Turkish populations in Belgium. The groups being studied are as follows: the Diyanet, Milli Gorus, the Suleymanlis, the Nurcu Movement, the Gulen Movement, the Menzil Brotherhood, Shiism, and the Alevis. The chapter also includes the Ulkucu Movement, which engages with religious activities, although the movement is not a religious one. The chapter explains how these Islamic organizations mobilize Muslim communities by clarifying their historical trajectories and geographic and temporal variations in Brussels, Wallonia, and Flanders. All these organizations are nonprofit associations. These movements play roles in the organization of prayers and rituals. They also engage in convergent and divergent religious activities such as the founding of mosques, schools, youth and women's education, and the propagation of Islamic mysticism.