February 10 – 11, 2016, NY. Various member organizations across the country screened the documentary titled, “Love is a Verb”, which was given an award of “best documentary” during the Maryland International Film Festival in 2014.
“Love is a Verb” is a documentary which examines a social movement of Sufi-inspired Muslims that began in Turkey around 1960s and today it reaches across the globe. The group is called Hizmet – the Turkish word for service – or The Gulen Movement, was inspired by a leader and beloved teacher, Fethullah Gulen. In 2013, Time Magazine named him as one of the most influential leaders in the world.
In the documentary, Marcia Hermansen, Director of the Islamic World Studies, Loyola University of Chicago says, “This movement is not about individual enlightenment, this is about making the world a better place. But while making the world a better place, at the same time, this altruism is also transformative.”
The documentary has gained recognition in the U.S. and internationally in countries such as Bosnia, Iraq and Somalia. In the U.S. screenings have been done in Brooklyn, Elmsford, Berkeley, and Sacramento and many more.
