Like dozens of nations around the world, Turkey’s population of minority Christians suffers from injustice and persecution. And as in many countries that have been affected by the recent Arab Spring, Turkey’s trend of persecution is a result of the growing Muslim influence in its society.
Turkish Christians — especially converted Muslims — are often discriminated against, even by members of their own families. Although public preaching is technically permitted, preachers risk being harassed by the police. And while the distribution of Bibles and Christian literature is also permitted, open distribution of these materials can sometimes spell trouble for those who are brave enough to attempt it.
What few people know, however, is that an even darker force is at work behind the scenes, in a nation that has historically been known as one of America’s greatest Middle Eastern allies.
Something sinister is going on in Turkey…and its menacing shadow is reaching across the continents to directly affect the United States.
A Dangerous Coup
Disturbing reports over the past several years have revealed that Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey’s Islamic Prime Minister, is a strong follower of Fethullah Gulen, an Islamic imam. While outwardly appearing to be a tolerant Muslim, Gulen himself, however, is a believer in the Islamist Nur movement, which calls for Islamic domination worldwide.
A self-proclaimed prophet, Gulen has even delivered sermons calling for Turkey — and the world — to become Islamic states and to implement sharia law throughout the globe. Gulen’s fundamental belief system also includes the notions that Muslims are permitted to lie to “infidels” and that total secrecy is acceptable.
In accordance with those tenets, Erdogan and his ruling party, the AKP, has effectively managed to conceal an agenda of advancing Islamic rule, which has been in place since Erdogan was elected Prime Minister in 2003.
In July 2011, four of Turkey’s top military commanders — secularists who opposed Turkey becoming an Islamic state — all resigned from their posts, having reportedly been coerced into resignation by the AKP. The AKP has also reportedly been responsible for plots to discredit more than 400 people, including 58 journalists and 250 military personnel, who have attempted to make the truth known about its intentions.
In an attempt to further control Turkey’s media, Gulen and the AKP have acquired nine of the country’s leading newspapers, and television and radio stations. Gulenists have also taken over the Turkish police force.
Now, in what has become known as “the Gulenist plot,” plans have been underway to transition Turkey away from being a pro-American, pro-Israel nation, and instead forming ties with Russia, Iran, Hamas, Hazbollah, and Syria.
Gulen and the United States
To escape growing suspicion in Turkey about his true intentions, Gulen moved to the United States in 1998. He now resides in Pennsylvania, where he oversees an international network that controls more than 75 percent of the schools and universities in Turkey, as well as hundreds of schools in countries around the world — including the United States. In Gulenist schools, where many teachers and administrators are imams, children are often taught with an indoctrinating “spin” of Islamic superiority.
But Gulen’s worldwide influence from his Pennsylvania residence is not America’s only concern. As a perceived U.S. ally with the second-largest army in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Turkey’s metamorphosis into an Islamic state could mean a dangerous future for the United States.
A Call for Prayer
While not yet publicly known, Turkey has become one more country that has fallen to radical Islam. CFI is encouraging all Christians to pray regularly for this dangerous situation:
• Pray that the intents of those who seek harm to others will be revealed. Left unchecked, the Gulenist plot will destroy millions of innocent lives in the United States and around the world. Pray that the plans of those who are secretly plotting Islamic domination would fail, and that light would be shed onto this evil darkness.
• Pray for the persecuted church in Turkey. As radical Islam continues to spread, Christians will undoubtedly become the targets of more intense harassment and persecution. Pray for the safety of Turkish believers, and pray that the Gospel would spread throughout the nation.
• Pray that the lifesaving message of Jesus Christ would change the hearts and lives of countless Muslims in Turkey.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Ephesians 6:12