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The Islam religion was founded by Mohammed in the seventh century. In 622 he founded the first Islamic state, a theocracy in Medina, a city in western Saudi Arabia located north of Mecca. There are two branches of the religion he founded.
The Sunni branch believes that the first four caliphs--Mohammed's successors--rightfully took his place as the leaders of Muslims. They recognize the heirs of the four caliphs as legitimate religious leaders. These heirs ruled continuously in the Arab world until the break-up of the Ottoman Empire following the end of the First World War.
Shiites, in contrast, believe that only the heirs of the fourth caliph, Ali, are the legitimate successors of Mohammed. In 931 the Twelfth Imam disappeared. This was a seminal event in the history of Shiite Muslims. According to R. Scott Appleby, a professor of history at the University of Notre Dame, "Shiite Muslims, who are concentrated in Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon, [believe they] had suffered the loss of divinely guided political leadership" at the time of the Imam's disappearance. Not" until the ascendancy of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1978" did they believe that they had once again begun to live under the authority of a legitimate religious figure.
Another difference between Sunnis and Shiites has to do with the Mahdi, “the rightly-guided one” whose role is to bring a just global caliphate into being. As historian Timothy Furnish has written, "The major difference is that for Shi`is he has already been here, and will return from hiding; for Sunnis he has yet to emerge into history: a comeback v. a coming out, if you will."
The Sunni branch believes that the first four caliphs--Mohammed's successors--rightfully took his place as the leaders of Muslims. They recognize the heirs of the four caliphs as legitimate religious leaders. These heirs ruled continuously in the Arab world until the break-up of the Ottoman Empire following the end of the First World War.
Shiites, in contrast, believe that only the heirs of the fourth caliph, Ali, are the legitimate successors of Mohammed. In 931 the Twelfth Imam disappeared. This was a seminal event in the history of Shiite Muslims. According to R. Scott Appleby, a professor of history at the University of Notre Dame, "Shiite Muslims, who are concentrated in Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon, [believe they] had suffered the loss of divinely guided political leadership" at the time of the Imam's disappearance. Not" until the ascendancy of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1978" did they believe that they had once again begun to live under the authority of a legitimate religious figure.
Another difference between Sunnis and Shiites has to do with the Mahdi, “the rightly-guided one” whose role is to bring a just global caliphate into being. As historian Timothy Furnish has written, "The major difference is that for Shi`is he has already been here, and will return from hiding; for Sunnis he has yet to emerge into history: a comeback v. a coming out, if you will."
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In 2014 Professor Cole summed up the differences between Sunni and Shiite this way: Shiites are more like traditional Catholics in venerating members of the holy family and attending at their shrines. Contemporary Salafi Sunni Islam is more like the militant brand of Protestantism of the late 1500s that denounced intermediaries between God and the individual and actually attacked and destroyed shrines to saints and other holy figures, where pleas for intercession were made
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What was the origin of the Sunni-Shiite split?
The divide is traced to 632 A.D., when the Islamic Prophet Muhammad died and a debate emerged about who should be his successor. Both sides agreed that Allah is the one true God and that Muhammad was his messenger, but one group (which eventually became the Shiites) felt Muhammad's successor should be someone in his bloodline, while the other (which became the Sunnis) felt a pious individual who would follow the Prophet's customs was acceptable. "The original schism between Islam's two largest sects was not over religious doctrine. It was over political leadership," Robin Wright, a joint fellow at the non-partisan U.S. Institute of Peace and the Woodrow Wilson Center, said.
What do Sunnis and Shiites have in common?
Both Sunnis and Shiites read the Quran, the sayings of the Prophet. Both believe Prophet Muhammad was the messenger of Allah. And both follow the five tenets of Islam: They fast during Ramadan, pledge to make a pilgrimage to Mecca, practice ritual prayer (which includes five prayers each day), give charity to the poor, and pledge themselves to their faith. Their prayer rituals are nearly identical, with slight variations: For example, Shiites will stand with their hands at their sides, Sunnis will put their hands on their stomachs.They also both believe in Islamic law but have different applications for it.
What are the differences between Sunnis and Shiites?
Their beliefs over who should have succeeded the Prophet Muhammad is the key theological difference between the two. Sunnis also have a less elaborate religious hierarchy than Shiites have, and the two sects' interpretation of Islam's schools of law is different. Shiites give human beings the exalted status that is given only to prophets in the Quran, often venerating clerics as saints, whereas Sunnis do not.
How many of each sect are there?
The great majority -- upwards of 85 to 90 percent -- of the world's more than 1.6 billion Muslims are Sunnis. Shia constitute about 10 to 15 percent of all Muslims, and globally their population is estimated at less than 200 million. Whereas Sunnis dominate the Muslim world, from West Africa to Indonesia, the Shiites are centrally located, with a vast majority in Iran, predominance in Iraq and sizable populations in Syria, Lebanon and Yemen.
The divide is traced to 632 A.D., when the Islamic Prophet Muhammad died and a debate emerged about who should be his successor. Both sides agreed that Allah is the one true God and that Muhammad was his messenger, but one group (which eventually became the Shiites) felt Muhammad's successor should be someone in his bloodline, while the other (which became the Sunnis) felt a pious individual who would follow the Prophet's customs was acceptable. "The original schism between Islam's two largest sects was not over religious doctrine. It was over political leadership," Robin Wright, a joint fellow at the non-partisan U.S. Institute of Peace and the Woodrow Wilson Center, said.
What do Sunnis and Shiites have in common?
Both Sunnis and Shiites read the Quran, the sayings of the Prophet. Both believe Prophet Muhammad was the messenger of Allah. And both follow the five tenets of Islam: They fast during Ramadan, pledge to make a pilgrimage to Mecca, practice ritual prayer (which includes five prayers each day), give charity to the poor, and pledge themselves to their faith. Their prayer rituals are nearly identical, with slight variations: For example, Shiites will stand with their hands at their sides, Sunnis will put their hands on their stomachs.They also both believe in Islamic law but have different applications for it.
What are the differences between Sunnis and Shiites?
Their beliefs over who should have succeeded the Prophet Muhammad is the key theological difference between the two. Sunnis also have a less elaborate religious hierarchy than Shiites have, and the two sects' interpretation of Islam's schools of law is different. Shiites give human beings the exalted status that is given only to prophets in the Quran, often venerating clerics as saints, whereas Sunnis do not.
How many of each sect are there?
The great majority -- upwards of 85 to 90 percent -- of the world's more than 1.6 billion Muslims are Sunnis. Shia constitute about 10 to 15 percent of all Muslims, and globally their population is estimated at less than 200 million. Whereas Sunnis dominate the Muslim world, from West Africa to Indonesia, the Shiites are centrally located, with a vast majority in Iran, predominance in Iraq and sizable populations in Syria, Lebanon and Yemen.
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In terms of backstory - and so touching on the origins of it, rather than many of the modern day elements to their differences - the year 632 AD (11 AH) is where it all begins. It was in that year the prophet Muhammed died, and a schism came about as 2 main groups of Muslims disputed who should succeed Muhammed as leader of the Muslim community. One group supported the ascension of Abu Bakr - a friend of Muhammed's, and father of his wife Aisha - to leader (caliph). This group supporting Abu Bakr and his method of selection as leader became the Sunnis. Another group - who became the Shiites - was opposed to Abu Bakr's becoming caliph after Muhammed's death (and the method through which he was chosen), and instead believed Muhammed's son-in-law/cousin, Ali ibn Abi Talib, should succeed him as caliph; Abu Bakr and Ali ibn Abi Talib represent more than just themselves in this split; the manner and method of their being designated the rightful successors to Muhammed are at the root of the dispute, as well. While Sunnis believed the Quran endorsed a public consensus in who should be caliph, the Shiites believed such a decision was ordained by Muhammed himself and even commanded by God - not a matter of public consensus among Muslims, but God's command alone and, to an extent, divine right.
Things continued to diverge from there, and many caliphs that came after Abu Bakr (who did manage to become the first caliph after Muhammed) continued to be sources of conflict and disputes. The roles of imams, various religious practices and interpretations and more are also areas in which Shiites and Sunnis disagree. But as far as how the split originated and where it first arose, Muhammed's death in 632 was essentially the start. The division into these two denominations of Islam happened after the death of Prophet Muhammad, when there was contention as to who would be his successor. Some people (Sunnis) believed that only someone who is capable enough should be given this responsibility while others believed that the leadership should stay with only members of Prophet's family(Shias).
Things continued to diverge from there, and many caliphs that came after Abu Bakr (who did manage to become the first caliph after Muhammed) continued to be sources of conflict and disputes. The roles of imams, various religious practices and interpretations and more are also areas in which Shiites and Sunnis disagree. But as far as how the split originated and where it first arose, Muhammed's death in 632 was essentially the start. The division into these two denominations of Islam happened after the death of Prophet Muhammad, when there was contention as to who would be his successor. Some people (Sunnis) believed that only someone who is capable enough should be given this responsibility while others believed that the leadership should stay with only members of Prophet's family(Shias).
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SUNNI MUSLIMS:
● They are the largest denomination of Islam comprising of 75-80% of the world's muslims. Derived from the word "Sunnah" which means "one who follows the traditions and actions of Muhammad that are recorded in hadiths".
● They believed that there is no basis in Islam for a hereditary spiritual class of leadership as it is not a birthright, but a trust that is earned, which may be given or taken back by the people. They accepted Abu-Bakr, who was a close friend and adviser to the Prophet, as the first Caliph ("Khalifa": head of the Islamic state).
● The primary hadiths Al-Kutub Al-Sittah (the six books), in conjunction with the Quran, form the basis of all jurisprudence methodologies within Sunni Islam.
SHIA MUSLIMS:
● The second largest denomination. Derived from the word "Shīʻatu ʻAlī (شيعة علي), meaning "followers", "faction", or "party" of Muhammad's son-in-law Ali, whom the Shia believe to be Muhammad's divine successor.
● They believed that the leadership should stay with members of the Prophet's family. "Ahl-al-Bayt" or "People of the Household" (of the Prophet).
They appoint Imams, who hold special political and spiritual authority over this community, and whose authority is infallible because he is appointed by God himself
● They are the largest denomination of Islam comprising of 75-80% of the world's muslims. Derived from the word "Sunnah" which means "one who follows the traditions and actions of Muhammad that are recorded in hadiths".
● They believed that there is no basis in Islam for a hereditary spiritual class of leadership as it is not a birthright, but a trust that is earned, which may be given or taken back by the people. They accepted Abu-Bakr, who was a close friend and adviser to the Prophet, as the first Caliph ("Khalifa": head of the Islamic state).
● The primary hadiths Al-Kutub Al-Sittah (the six books), in conjunction with the Quran, form the basis of all jurisprudence methodologies within Sunni Islam.
SHIA MUSLIMS:
● The second largest denomination. Derived from the word "Shīʻatu ʻAlī (شيعة علي), meaning "followers", "faction", or "party" of Muhammad's son-in-law Ali, whom the Shia believe to be Muhammad's divine successor.
● They believed that the leadership should stay with members of the Prophet's family. "Ahl-al-Bayt" or "People of the Household" (of the Prophet).
They appoint Imams, who hold special political and spiritual authority over this community, and whose authority is infallible because he is appointed by God himself