In this address, delivered on behalf of the Harmonide Hudson Association and the Turkish-German Refugee Network (TGRN), President Bayram Türkoğlu greeted the representatives, ladies and gentlemen, young people and children. Echoing the call of the current president – “No pause, keep moving forward” – he reminded us that perseverance is part of our shared journey: our cause is just, our struggle is united, and together we continue on the path of truth.
President Türkoğlu then turned to the essence of Islam. The faith, he emphasised, does not begin only with the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him); it reaches back to Adam and is completed in Muhammad. The Qur’an, he noted, does not use labels such as Judaism or Christianity for the earlier monotheistic peoples; all of them received the same divine message of tawḥīd, the oneness of God. The teachings of Moses and Jesus and the revelations given to them are therefore in essence one: service to Allah.
From this perspective, “Islam as a role model” means living the faith as a way of being – not merely a set of rules, but an example guided by the Prophet’s wisdom. By accepting God as Creator, recognising every human being as His servant and aligning our daily conduct with the divine commands, we become living reflections of Islam, with the promise of reward in the hereafter.
Speaking to the Turkish community in Europe, President Türkoğlu recalled a long history of movement – from the opening of Anatolia in 1071, to the sieges of Vienna in the seventeenth century, to the labour migration that began in the 1960s. This presence, he said, is neither accidental nor merely material; it carries a divine mandate. Our task is twofold: to understand how Europe perceives Islam, and to convey its true essence through our own conduct. By living the faith authentically, we become positive reflections of Islam for our neighbours and foster dialogue, respect and mutual enrichment.
He closed with a prayer that Allah not let us falter and that the spirit of Turkey, rooted in the heart of Islam, flourish anew. May our united effort continue to bring strength, compassion and service.
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