'FETÖ wolf in sheep's clothing, Gülen not a religious scholar'

Speaking at the emergency meeting of the Religious Council, the head of the Presidency of Religious Affairs (DİB), Mehmet Görmez, talked about the July 15 coup attempt, the Gülenist Terror Organization (FETÖ), as its perpetrator and the terrorist organization's leader, Fethullah Gülen. "It grieves me to say that this treacherous group has deceived people by abusing the name of God almighty and the prophet. They have misled people by seemingly helping people all around the world while actually being a wolf in sheep's clothing," Görmez said.Görmez claimed that FETÖ cannot be regarded as an Islamic congregation and that the organizations activities are un-Islamic. "FETÖ, which exploits religion and the people's religious sentiments, steals the nation's donations and children, hijacks Islam's fundamental values and concepts and cannot be considered a religious group," Görmez said, adding: "Whereas ethics is a fundamental value of Islam, this organization resorted to unethical practices, including deception, hypocrisy, lies, violations of privacy and blackmail. Such acts, however, have absolutely nothing to do with Islam." Dealing with the deceitful nature of FETÖ, Görmez said that Gülenists have disguised themselves as "supporters of moderate Islam, interfaith dialogue, tolerance and compromise" and later bombed state institutions, including the Presidential Palace and Parliament and fired on unarmed civilians.

Touching on FETÖ leader Gülen, Görmez said: "The leader of this organization cannot be treated as a religious scholar and guide. This individual, who identifies himself as the imam of the universe and senior leaders of the organization as imams, should be treated according to the maxim: Whoever kills an innocent, it is as if they have killed humanity itself." Görmez asserted that the leader of such an organization that has wreaked havoc while brutally slaughtering innocent people is un-Islamic and devoid of humanity.

He signified the dangers of being a mindless drone of any person or group. "FETÖ members proved that being a mindless zealot and drone can lead an entire nation to destruction. A system of education that teaches individuals to surrender their will to their leader, sheikh, teacher or imam and expects them to consider their orders and instructions above all else has nothing to do with religion or Islam," Görmez said.

Emphasizing the importance of justice and composure, Görmez asserted: "This is the time to think about what happened in a calm, collected manner. The nation's honorable resistance shall assume its rightful place in history if it is crowned with justice. The current situation can only be overcome with justice, as opposed to vengeance."

As a side note, Görmez called faculties of theology and their scholars to be more involved in matters regarding Gülenists and to revise the educational system of their faculties accordingly.