Sunni and Shi'a

Fundamentally Sunni and Shi’a Muslims share the same beliefs the biggest variance is when it comes to who Muhammad’s successor was. Sunni Islamists believe that Muhammad did not designate a successor whereas Shi’a Islamists believe he did.

The Sunni people elected the father of Muhammad’s wife A’ishah, Abu Bakr to be Muhammad’s successor but the Shi’a people believe it should Muhammad’s son in law 'Ali ibn Abi Talib.

They have some different holidays and festivals and the significance of these holidays varies, for example Ashura is very important to Shi’a Muslims because it directly relates to ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib’s son who was the leader of their faction of Islam.

They also vary on their view of Imams the teachers. Sunni Muslims believe that these people just have really great, strong faith whereas Shi’a’s believe that these men are perfect examples of humanity and that they are the only ones who can interoperate the Qur’an correctly.

Sunni Islam is made of 90% Muslims and Shi'a Islam only 10%. This is important to remember because there is a lot of tension between the Sunni's and Shi'a's and it is insulting to refer to one group by the wrong term.

References:

• http://www.discoveringislam.org/sunnis_vs_shia.htm
• http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/comparison_charts/islamic_sects.htm
• http://www.diffen.com/difference/Shia_vs_Sunni

Image:

•  http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44172000/jpg/_44172912_baghdad_afp416.jpg

Shari’a

Shari’a law is the rules that all Muslims live by. It was developed by adopting aspects of the Qur’an, the Hadith which is the guidelines of Muhammad and Fatwas which were the rules of Islamic scholars.

Shari’s law is often seen as barbaric to people in Western society. It leaves a lot to interpretation and so one person or group may think that if a wife disobeys her husband she should be beaten and stoned others may say the teachings tell them to dismiss her. This wide gap of misinterpretation makes it difficult to judge.

All aspects of life are covered by Shari’a, it is split into four parts, worship, commercial dealings, marriage and divorce and punishment.

It is challenging for these ancient religions to adapt to an ever changing world. Many people associate Shari’a law with all of the things that the western world would call social injustices such as women wearing burqas and not being able to drive cars however it must be remembered that it is the interpretation of these laws that is being seen not the law its self.

We really have no say as to how another group or religion or country runs themselves it has been that way for thousands or years and it is accepted by that group, it is when people but there nose where it does not need to be that problems arise we have seen this through recent wars in the Middle East.

Shari’a in a modern world still holds a very important place in Islamic culture we see this through the defense of the peoples right to have there own system and whilst these extremist views need to find a more peaceful way to share there opinion they are still entitled to it.

Like all religions and opinions Islam is starting to change with the times and the way Shari’a is implemented will change to if the people in these communities want it to.

References:

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/beliefs/sharia_1.shtml
•  http://frontpagemag.com/2012/dr-hans-jansen/what-is-sharia/
•  http://muslimvoices.org/islamic-law/

Image:

•  http://c481901.r1.cf2.rackcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/sharia.jpg

Jihad

Jihad translates to struggle; it is based in three levels, personal, verbal and physical.

Personal refers to the internal struggle to rid ones self of all evil influences and the challenge of always putting Allah above everything else in your life including family, wealth and your own life.

Verbal jihad is striving for justice by using words and non-violent action we saw an example of this after the recent Anti-Islam video where thousands of Muslims took to the streets in peaceful protest, however we also saw physical jihad where people use physical force to defend Allah and their beliefs.

Every religion is entitled to defend itself to a point however there are always those small few who take it a step to far and example of this is “bedroom Jihad”. A small group of Muslims are deciding to fight through populating. One report was of a man from Singapore whose aim was to impregnate as many women as possible; this included two of his daughters. This man used his interpretation of the Qur’an to justify his views.

Like people who execute physical Jihad through suicide bombings there are only a small percentage thought the religion as a whole but unfortunately enough to give Islam a bad name.

References:

•  http://www.religioustolerance.org/isl_jihad.htm
• http://www.faithfreedom.org/oped/AyeshaAhmed60501.htm

Image:

• http://undhimmi.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/nigerian_muslims.jpg

Karbala; A Holy Site

Karbala, Iraq is a place of pilgrimage for many Shi’a Islamists because the tomb of Husayn, Muhammad’s grandson is there. Also the tomb of Husain is in Karbala and it is believed to be the site of the camp where he and his followers became martyrs for the Islamic faith after they were mascaraed.

Karbala is a very popular pace during the commemorations of Ashura.

References:

•       http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/places/karbala.htm

Image:

•       http://www.islamicbooks.info/H-21-Math'habs/Husain-1.gif