Compare And Contrast Sunni And Shia Muslims

These disagreements led to the development of three rival sects in the Muslim community. The Shi’ites supported Ali’s claim to the caliphate and believed that the position of caliph rightly belonged to the descendants of Ali. Those known as the Sunnis believed that the first three caliphs had been correctly chosen and supported the Umayyad Caliphate. The most militant followers of Ali formed the Kharijite (rebel) sects. Most of the 800 million Muslims of today are either Sunnis or Shi’ites.

One of the most famous religious splits in human history is the well known Sunni-Shia split. The Sunni-Shia split is highly divisive throughout the world, and predominantly in the Middle East. These sects share similarities, such as they all believe that Allah is the one true god, and Muhammad is his messenger. They also believe in the same five religious pillars that Muslims follow. Although these sects are very similar, there is one big schismatic difference that separates the two. This difference lies with the question of: “Who is the rightful successor of the Prophet Muhammad?” Through this 1,400 year conflict Most sunnis believe that Abu Bakr the Prophet 's closest companion is the true successor. In contrast most Shias believe that Ali, who was the prophet 's cousin and son in law is the true successor. Abu bakr was the rightful heir to lead Muslims after the Prophet’s death. Abu Bakr was arguably his closest confidant throughout their lives, and Abu Bakr understood the Messenger teachings the best. It can also be argued that that Ali would be the fourth caliph instead of the first because choosing a successor to the Prophet based on bloodline could be seen as committing idolatry according to Islamic teaching.

The division between the Shia and Sunni is rooted in disputes over the proper succession of leadership after the death of the Prophet Muhammad .The Shia maintain that the rightful successor of the Prophet was his cousin and son-in-law,

To start off, even though Sunni and Shia Muslims share the same religion, they disagree who should lead after Muhammad death. Sunni Muslims take up 85 to 90 percent of Muslims. Sunni Muslims believe Muhammad did not clearly

What I mean when I say totally different is that the Sunni branch is more optimistic while the Shia branch leans more towards pessimism. The Sunni branch is the largest and it takes up about eighty five percent of Muslims leaving the Shia branch with only fifteen percent. The main issue of the branches is that they didn't both agree on who should lead the community after Muhammad passed. The Sunni branch believed it should have been a group decision on who takes charge next, while the Shia did not agree with that and they thought that it should have went to Muhammad's cousin, Ali. The Shia is also all about free will and symbolism rather than determinism and literal attributes like Sunni. Its hard to believe groups like Al Qaeda that committed the nine eleven terrorism attacks are apart of the Sunni branch and not the Shia since we consider these attacks harshly negative and definitely not positive. Not all Muslims are terrorists though, that was just one example of the two different branches of Islam that I discussed. Above are the most important factors that influence the religion of Islam and the way of life of the Muslim

Before the discussion of the difference of the Shiites and Sunnis and why they split into these groups, it’s important to understand who exactly is Muhammad and why he is so important to Islam. To begin with, Islam was started by Muhammad when he was visited by the archangel Gabriel, where the archangel sent a message to Muhammad from Allah. Muhammad had the remarkable

Shia Islam: Shia Islam encompasses most Muslims who are not counted the Sunni. The division between Sunni and Shia, dates to the death of the prophet Mohammed when his followers were faced with the decision of who would be his successors as the leader of Islam’s. Shiites are those followed Ali, the closest relatives of Mohammed, as Muhammad’s successor. Today there are approximately 120 million Shiite Muslims in the world.

The Sunnis and Shiites are sects of Islam and the adherents of both are Muslims, all bound by the same Quran, the same Five Pillars of Islam — belief in one God, daily prayer, fasting, charity and hajj, or pilgrimage. Both revere the Prophet Mohammed, who founded Islam in 620. Sunni Muslims regard themselves as the orthodox and traditionalist branch of Islam.

As of 2009, Sunni Muslims constituted 87–90% of the world's Muslim population.[6] Sunni Islam is the world's largest religious denomination, followed by Catholicism.[7]

Just as the course notes mention, Sunni and Shi’ite are two sects of Islam, that contrary to popular belief can and do live in harmony with one another. For example, the Muslim Student Association on UNC”s campus is an organization for Muslim Students and includes members from both the Sunni and Shi'ite groups. As a member of this organization, it is not obvious to me who are the Sunni’s and who are the Shi’ite’s because, to be honest, it is not that obvious by just glancing over a person. A Sunni Muslim does not look physically different than a Shi’a Muslim; we are all Muslim, however, there is a difference between the two sects and those differences lay in the technicalities of religious practice. A technicality difference that I am aware

Both Islamic schools or groups (called Sunnis and Shiites)agree upon basic Islam pillars and fundamentals. they differ on minor Islam and historical issues. These differences appeared only after prophet Muhammad death (not murder). Some people (who are called later Shiites) called for Muslim ruling to be within Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) family and descendants and accordingly Ali Ibn Abou Taleb should by the first Muslim ruler after prophet Muhammad (PBUH) death. While the majority (who are called later the Sunnis) elected Abou Bakr (Prophet Muhammad closer companion and the first man entered into Islam faith) as the first

As Miguel elaborated, “Sunni and Shia Muslims pray differently; Sunni Muslims cross their arms while praying, while Shia Muslims keep their hands by their sides. Sunnis pray five times a day while Shias conglomerate their five prayers into three sectors” (Difference Between Shia and Sunni Namaz). This change is a result of each branches ideology. To elaborate, Shia Muslims reject any traditions from the first three caliphs after Muhammad’s death. They believe Ali, the fourth caliph, was the main caliph after Muhammad’s death. Nonetheless, all Muslims institute the Five Pillars of Islam, which are faith, prayer, fasting, alms, and pilgrimage, in everyday life then and

A religion that will employ great influence in a civilization of more than one and a half billion people. The Prophets death also had the opportunity to split the religion into two main branches the Sunni and Shi’a. The Sunni who are 80 percent of Muslims, and they believed that, Abu Bakr, Muhammad’s father-in-law, to the successor. As for the Shi’a who only make up 15 percent of the Muslims in the world, believed an imam, in their case Ali, cousin, and son-in-law, should be the successor; due to their blood relations. However, with their differences aside, they shared the common belief that Prophet Muhammad was a messenger of Allah. Both the Sunni and Shi’a also share the belief that there are five pillars of Islam: (1) the harmony of Allah and the prophethood of Muhammad, (2) the five obligatory prayers, (3) fasting, (4) charity, and (5) the pilgrimage to Mecca. Both branches oppose several kinds social change that is done by western ideas, and instead have the primary objective of the establishment of Islamic law as the sole basis of their government. The question still is who should have been the rightful successor of the Prophet Muhammad. Someone who is in blood relations or someone who was a close

Islam, ISIS, ISIL, Sunni Muslim, Shi’ite Muslim, 911, various terrorist attacks around the world. What do the aforementioned people have in common? Their belief in the Qur’an and Allah. How does this belief in Allah differ with Christianity’s belief in Father God? Who knew that taking down Al Qaeda, and murdering Saddam Hussein would lead to the formation of the violent Islamic State called Isil or Isis? We often hear news about Shiite and Sunni Muslims – what is the difference? Is there really a difference: both are considered monotheistic in nature, however, the “path” to the Almighty, tends to differ depending on the group or sect. What are the fundamental beliefs of Islam? What world view if any do Muslims ascribe? Islam, like Christianity, and Judaism are thought to have originated with Abraham. However, Islam insists its founder is the Honorable Elisha Muhammad, likewise, Judaism insist that Moses is its father, but if there was no Abraham, there would be no Moses. A Babylonian man who was from a paganistic polytheistic family is chosen by God and ordered to leave his country and go to a city which has foundations whose maker and builder is God (Hebrews 11:10). Abraham’s lineage stems from Ur, of the Chaldeans – the Persian Empire. He was Babylonian, and later declared Hebrew by the Almighty God – from this man comes three major religions: Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.

In conclusion, it is worth mentioning that despite the differences between the Sunni and the Shia Muslims, they share the main Islamic beliefs. They venerate the Prophet Mohammed, above everything else and regardless of their involvement in any particular group. They read the same Qur’an and follow the same Five Pillars of Islam. Most importantly, they accept each