Islam was more than a private religion—it dictated social and political events. The successor to Muhammad would have powerful influence over society, government, and trade.
Many would say this is a dangerous place to put religion but that is the way it has been since the death of Muhammed.
Some people thought anyone with qualifications could take over. These were the followers of “the way” (sunna) of Muhammad, and they became known as Sunni Muslims. They insisted Muhammad’s father-in-law and friend Abu Bakr take control.
Others believed that only someone from Muhammad’s family would be the rightful leader. This camp favored Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, Ali ibn Abi Talib, and they became known as the shi’atu Ali (“party of Ali”), or Shiite Muslims.
https://www.imb.org/2019/05/24/difference-between-shiite-sunni-muslims/ said:
In the end, the majority Sunni sect got their way and Abu Bakr became the first official successor, or caliph, to the prophet Muhammad. Even so, the Shiites did not recognize Abu Bakr as legitimate and held fast to their conviction about their allegiance to Muhammad’s descendants whom they called Āl al-Bayt, the “family of the house.”
The Shiite-favorite Ali had two sons named Hasan and Husayn. After Ali and his son Hasan’s deaths, Husayn took over as the spiritual leader of Shiite Islam until AD 680 when he was killed by Sunni Muslims during a battle in Karbala, Iraq. This battle and the death of Husayn is a bitter memory for Shiite Muslims. Even centuries later, this martyrdom and the issue of rightful leadership over Islam is still the heart of the Sunni-Shiite divide.
Lutherans and Baptists are basically the same.
Wrong, and both groups would likely agree on that point. Neither is it true that all Muslims are the same. Of the over 1.5 billion Muslims in the world, around 85 percent of them are a sect called Sunni and 15 percent of them are a sect called Shia.
The split is an ancient one—1,387 years old, to be precise. But even today, it threatens the stability of the entire Middle East and offers context to many headlines we see in world news.
So how did this world religion end up with two major sects? It all started when Muhammad, the prophet and founder of Islam, died.
Dispute over Muhammad’s Successor
When Muhammad died in AD 632, a great dispute arose over who would claim his position as the leader of the new religion. Islam was more than a private religion—it dictated social and political events. The successor to Muhammad would have powerful influence over society, government, and trade.
“It all started when Muhammad, the prophet and founder of Islam, died.”
Some people thought anyone with qualifications could take over. These were the followers of “the way” (sunna) of Muhammad, and they became known as Sunni Muslims. They insisted Muhammad’s father-in-law and friend Abu Bakr take control.
Others believed that only someone from Muhammad’s family would be the rightful leader. This camp favored Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, Ali ibn Abi Talib, and they became known as the shi’atu Ali (“party of Ali”), or Shiite Muslims.
In the end, the majority Sunni sect got their way and Abu Bakr became the first official successor, or caliph, to the prophet Muhammad. Even so, the Shiites did not recognize Abu Bakr as legitimate and held fast to their conviction about their allegiance to Muhammad’s descendants whom they called Āl al-Bayt, the “family of the house.”
The Shiite-favorite Ali had two sons named Hasan and Husayn. After Ali and his son Hasan’s deaths, Husayn took over as the spiritual leader of Shiite Islam until AD 680 when he was killed by Sunni Muslims during a battle in Karbala, Iraq. This battle and the death of Husayn is a bitter memory for Shiite Muslims. Even centuries later, this martyrdom and the issue of rightful leadership over Islam is still the heart of the Sunni-Shiite divide.
Similarities and Differences in Religious Practice
Both sects maintain the foundational beliefs and practices of Islam. They uphold the Qur’an as the revelation of Allah and hold to Islam’s Five Pillars: giving to the poor, fasting during the month of Ramadan, practicing daily ritual prayers, taking the pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and professing that there is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet.
Shiite Muslims complete all five daily ritual prayers but squeeze them into three sessions instead of five. When they prostrate for prayer, Shiite Muslims place their face on a clay tablet called a turbah. Many of these tablets are inscribed with the names of Husayn or others from the prophet’s family. For Shiite Muslims, revering the “family of the house” brings you closer to God. Shiites also hold to ten obligatory acts beyond the basic Five Pillars.
The loss of Husayn and the leadership of Muhammad’s family cast an enduring hue of sadness over Shiite Muslims. They live in mourning, wearing black most of the year. One of the biggest Shiite holidays is the anniversary of Husayn’s death on the holiday named Ashura, the tenth day of the Islamic month of Muharram. On this day, Shiite Muslims in the Middle East and Asia parade in the street, chanting laments at the death of Husayn, wailing loudly and beating themselves. Some even flail themselves with chains and cut their own heads with swords.
The city of Karbala in Iraq is a pilgrimage site for Shiite Muslims, many of whom sell everything they own to visit this sacred battleground. In many locations, they even reenact the battle, believing that the recognition and reenactment of the battle at Karbala gets them closer to God. These commemorations are not limited to the Middle East. Shiite Muslims around the world—even in the United States—remember their troubled past and slain leader.
Sunni Muslims find the Shiite obsession with the house of Muhammad to be a false Islam that places undue veneration on the prophet’s family. Likewise, Shiite Muslims feel Sunnis are not true Muslims. Their sharp disagreements, unreconciled for centuries, result in a fractured Middle East and perpetually unresolved tension.
Third, remember that only the truth about Christ sets us free from bondage to sin. Many Muslims approach conversations confident in their ideas against the gospel. You may find your Sunni friends, for example, quick to attack basic Christian beliefs like the authenticity of the New Testament. Yet when we lovingly share the truth of Christ, they have the opportunity to receive freedom as the Spirit opens their hearts.
We celebrate that truth. It’s the truth of a sinless Savior who took the punishment for our sins so all who trust in him for salvation can be forgiven and received into the family of God. And it’s this good news that unites the church in a call to love, a call to go, and a call to proclaim its truth among all Muslims—Sunni and Shiite.
Iran’s Islamic revolution, which brought Shias to power in 1979, and the Sunni backlash have fueled a competition for regional dominance. This timeline highlights Sunni-Shia tensions in recent decades. 1979- 2017
The Sunni-Shia divide: Where they live, what they believe and how they view each other
https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/how-saddam-husseins-execution-contributed-to-the-rise-of-sectarianism-in-the-middle-east/
https://online.ucpress.edu/currenthistory/article-pdf/113/767/339/390227/curh_113_767_339.pdf
ISIS and Gadaffi:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-libya-security-insight/gaddafis-home-town-falls-to-islamic-state-in-anarchic-libya-idUSKBN0O610M20150521 said:
So far, Islamic State has not gained territory as quickly in Libya as it did in Iraq and Syria, where it portrays itself as defenders of Sunni Islam in sectarian wars against governments led by Shi’ite Muslims.
Libyans are overwhelmingly Sunni Muslims, and their divisions tend to be tribal and regional rather than sectarian. Islamic State fighters have had to compete with rival Libyan militant groups who resent the presence of outsiders.
But Sirte, where homes were looted by Misrata rebels after Gaddafi’s fall, is fertile ground. Many residents feel they were losers in the revolution and harbor resentment towards the Misrata fighters.
“Before the revolution life was so much better. We had electricity, security. Schools were always open,” said Mohammed Ali, a student living in a suburb near the power plant.
“They (Islamic State) are fine. They leave you alone unless you fight them,” he said.
He said he had seen Tunisians and other foreigners joining the group, and also Gaddafi loyalists. That would be a similar pattern to Iraq, where former officers from secular dictator Saddam Hussein’s army have supported Islamic State.
•Is it much more subtle than that?
Yes. It basically comes down to the fact that sharing is becoming less of an apparent viable option. Due to overpopulation and the resultant climate change.
I don’t care what others have to say on this but simply a greater demand upon resources caused by overpopulation and polluting industries, coupled with the resulting increased desertification and nutrient starvation by loss of actual indigenous foods are all linked to and from the resulting climate change which in turn makes refugees of the indigenes.
