Istanbul, Turkey — Thursday, January 18, 2024, participants of the 4th International Short Course on Risale-i Nur from the UNIDA Gontor delegation attended the opening of the Risale-i Nur course held at the Istanbul Foundation for Science and Culture (IIKV) or İstanbul İlim ve Kültür Vakfı. The event started at 11:00 local time and was attended by Dr. Said Yüce, the Director of IIKV. Amidst the winter atmosphere and clear skies in the heart of Istanbul, the delegates were warmly welcomed by IIKV and engaged in lively discussions during the event.

Dr. Said Yüce, who had the opportunity to visit UNIDA Gontor as a speaker at the International Workshop on Science and Religion (IWOSAR) in September 2023, expressed his joy at welcoming the delegates. He conveyed his sentiments during the opening session, saying, “We are very pleased to welcome the delegates, and this is an honor. Yesterday, we visited UNIDA and were welcomed warmly, and now we welcome the UNIDA delegates here. We gained many benefits during our visit to UNIDA, and we hope you will also benefit greatly during your time here.”

Dr. Said Yüce’s welcome was followed by a speech from Dr. Asif Trisnani, Lc., M.Ag., representing the Rector of UNIDA Gontor. He expressed gratitude for the warm welcome from IIKV and expressed optimism that IIKV could play a crucial role in upholding Islamic civilization in the future, built on the foundation of knowledge civilization starting from studying Risale-i Nur.

In response, Dr. Said Yüce explained that IIKV had made various efforts to redirect the development of knowledge towards the rightful goals for the Islamic community, which involves getting closer to Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala. He emphasized the need for young generations with extraordinary enthusiasm for advocating Islam and a strong commitment to knowledge to preserve these efforts. He saw bright hope in the delegates from UNIDA Gontor visiting Istanbul to deepen their studies on Risale-i Nur.

He hoped that the participants would benefit greatly during the event, enabling them to actively contribute as builders of an ideal Islamic civilization in the future. “We see the youth coming here with a spirit of learning; hopefully, what they learn during this program will be a valuable asset for them in the future,” he expressed.

This delegation consisted of a total of 19 people, including 5 male participants, 10 female participants, and 4 supervising lecturers. Participants came from various backgrounds of faculties and study programs, ranging from Ushuluddin, Tarbiyah, Sharia, to Humanities. Through their participation in this program, it is hoped that they can deepen their studies on Ustadz Badi’uzzaman Said Nursi to understand various fundamental concepts of science related to the focus of each participant’s study.

After the opening ceremony concluded, the event continued with the exchange of souvenirs between IIKV and the UNIDA Gontor delegation, followed by a group photo session. Following the opening agenda, the delegates would proceed with their activities to deepen their studies on Risale-i Nur, taking place in two locations: IIKV for female participants and Hamidiye Kültür ve Egitim Vakfı for male participants. With the intensive Risale-i Nur study program, it is expected that the delegates will strengthen their foundations of faith, serving as the basis for understanding and developing knowledge, as taught by Ustadz Said Nursi, and eventually becoming influential figures in upholding a better civilization for humanity while maintaining the spirit of Islam, Iman, and Ihsan.