The Muslims of the world have long been divided between Sunnis, who are the majority, and Shiites.— From Beirut to Jerusalem by Thomas L. Friedman
In the seventh century, shortly after the death of Islam's founder, the prophet Muhammad, a dispute arose over who should be his successor as spiritual and political leader, known as caliph.
One group, the majority, argued that Muhammad's successor should be appointed through the process of election and consensus by the elders of the community, as was the tradition of the desert. Sunna in Arabic means tradition, and those who held this view became known as the Sunnis.
A minority faction, however, argued that Muhammad's successors should come exclusively from his own family and their descendants. They insisted, therefore, that his first cousin and son-in-law—Ali—be appointed as leader of the community. Those who held this view became known in Arabic as the Shia, or "partisans," of Ali. The Shiites were clearly influenced by the notion of divine-right monarchy of pre-Islamic Persia (Iran).
The Sunnis eventually defeated the supporters of Ali and installed their own chosen caliphs. Nevertheless, the Sunni-Shiite split has continued down through the ages of Islam, and a whole body of theological and even cultural differences developed, distinguishing Shiites from Sunnis.
Summarizing these differences, Islam expert Edward Mortimer observed in his book Faith & Power: “Sunni Islam is the doctrine of power and achievement. Shi'ism is the doctrine of opposition. The starting point of Shi'ism is defeat: the defeat of Ali and his house … . Its primary appeal is therefore to the defeated and oppressed. That is why it has so often been the rallying cry for the underdogs in the Muslim world … especially for the poor and dispossessed.”
Moving…
All content on this blog from Tim McGhee has moved to the Tim McGhee Substack, and soon, Lord willing, will be found only on that Substack.
Saturday, August 10, 2019
The difference between Sunni and Shia
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Blog Archive
-
▼
2019
(371)
-
▼
August
(31)
- Unfamiliarity ≠ Inferiority
- Don't ride out a category 4 hurricane
- The way of the attached
- The reductionist nature of click rates
- Adjustments
- What makes students thrive or flounder
- Scriptural Evaluation of Salvation Invitations
- American Dream
- Don't be a beta power user
- Dying in a city without echoes
- Better than tuition-free
- The ‘most Christianising’ physical science
- Proximity in Productivity
- Christianity is nominal
- A grateful homage
- Casting the mould for domestic happiness
- A game plan for JCPenney
- Beirut’s version of the Second Amendment
- If the law of the jungle reigned
- Eternal implications of 3 universal currencies
- Why God has more than three possible answers to ou...
- The difference between Sunni and Shia
- Unalienable Rights
- Understanding power deficits
- 'Mental illness' vs. the Gospel
- Free speech is step 2
- Dividing time
- 400 Days
- Congress Updates
- When measurements are irrelevant
- Best- and worst-case scenarios for Boeing
-
▼
August
(31)
No comments:
Post a Comment