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A MESSAGE FROM AN ANSWER GIVEN BY EMINENT SCHOLAR YUSUF AL-QARADAWI
The
question by a brother was, "Respected scholars of Islam, as-salamu `alaykum.
We all know that there are differences between the Shiites and
Sunnis. However, to what extent do they differ in opinion? Can such
differences be overlooked? What should they give priority to?"
And the
response by specifically Yusuf Al-Qaradawi himself (not by another
scholar) was as follows,
"Wa `alaykum
as-salamu wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.
In the
Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise
and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His
Messenger.
Dear
questioner! Thank you for your question and the confidence you place
in our service. We pray to Allah to enable us render this service
purely for His Sake.
Islam
calls for unity and solidarity. Both Sunnis and Shiites are required
to work together and try to overcome their points of difference or
forget about them, simply because the Ummah is facing a plight and
both parties are targeted by one enemy.
Here, we’d
like to stress the fact that at a time when the enemy of Islam
encroaches the Muslim Ummah, elements of enhancing unity should
dominate and disputes between different Muslim groups and sects are
to be avoided.
Hence,
Muslims should beware of all routes and channels that may lead to
divisions, differences and conflicts among them. They should abide
by the Qur’an and Sunnah, which are the assured means of salvation.
Almighty Allah says: (And hold fast, all of you together, by the
covenant of Allah and be not divided among yourselves; and remember
with gratitude Allah’s favor on you; for ye were enemies and He
joined your hearts in love, so that by His Grace, ye became
brethren; and ye were on the brink of the pit of Fire, and He saved
you from it. Thus doth Allah make His Signs clear to you: That ye
may be guided. ) (Aal `Imraan 3: 103)
In our day
and age, it is more important to stress points of agreement rather
than points of disagreement and to try to bring a bridge between the
Sunnah and the Shi`ah without compromising any Islamic values,
because what unites Muslims is much greater than what disunites
them.
In this
regard, the eminent Muslim scholar Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi states:
It is
important for the Sunnis to concentrate on the points of agreement,
not difference, when having dialogues with the Shiites especially
that the points of agreement are on the fundamental issues of
religion, while the points of difference have to do with the minor
ones.
Points of
Agreement
1. They
believe in Almighty Allah, the Day of Judgment, Prophet Muhammad
(peace and blessings be upon him) as the Seal of Prophets who was
sent by Almighty Allah (to mankind and jinn) to complete the
Heavenly Messages sent before him. Believing in all that Prophet
Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent with is part of
having faith in all the Heavenly Books and all Allah and His
Messengers (peace and blessings be upon them). Allah Almighty says:
(The Messenger believeth in that which hath been revealed unto him
from his Lord and (so do) believers. Each one believeth in Allah and
His angels and His scriptures and His messengers—we make no
distinction between any of His messengers—and they say: We hear, and
we obey. (Grant us)Thy forgiveness, our Lord. Unto Thee is the
journeying) (Al-Baqarah 2: 285). These are the pillars of faith on
which both groups agree on.
2. They
believe in the Glorious Quran as Allah’s illuminating Book that
guides to the right path. Allah Almighty says: (We have, without
doubt, sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it (from
corruption)) (Al-Hijr 15: 9). [Message in this verse refers to the
Glorious Quran.] There is no difference between the Sunnis and
Shiites concerning the Quran being Almighty Allah’s word. It is on
this Book that religious scholars depend in holding comparative
dialogues with people of other religions, concluding juristic
opinions, guidance, etc. Allah Almighty says: (So judge between them
by that which Allah hath revealed, and follow not their desires, but
beware of them lest they seduce thee from some part of that which
Allah hath revealed unto thee. And if they turn away, then know that
Allah’s Will is to smite them for some sin of theirs. Lo! And truly
most men are rebellious. Is it a judgment of the time of (pagan)
ignorance that they are seeking? Who is better than Allah for
judgment to a people who have certainty (in their belief)?) (Al-Maidah
5: 49-50)
According
to this verse, Allah Almighty warned the Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him) against succumbing to the desires of the
People of the Book or other misled people when it came to judging
between them, lest they might cause him to deviate from some part of
what Allah revealed to him. This indicates that all that Allah has
revealed should be followed by Muslims.
3. Both
groups also agree that Muslims are to abide by the Five Pillars of
Islam, i.e., to testify that there is no god but Allah and that
Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) is His Messenger, to
perform the specified prayers, to give zakah, to observe fast in the
month Ramadan, and to perform pilgrimage. The difference in opinion
between the two groups regarding some rulings pertaining to these
pillars is something that is quite normal. It is like the scholarly
difference in opinion among the Sunni schools themselves, such as
the Hanbali, Hanifi, and Maliki schools.
Relevant
books on the different juristic points of view, like Nail Al-Awtar
by Imam Ash-Shawakani (may Allah have mercy upon him), refer to
eminent scholars of jurisprudence from among the Sunnis and Shiites
on equal footing. Reading one of these books, one does not feel that
there is a crucial difference between the Shiite schools and the
Sunni ones. This does not apply only to the acts of worship, it
includes also transactions.
It is true
that the Shiites do not recognize the Sunni reference books on the
Prophetic hadiths, such as Al-Muwatta&undefined; by Imam Malik, Imam
Ahmad’s Musnad, Sahih Al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, Sunnan Abu Dawud,
Sunan Ibn Majah, Sunnan Ad-Daramy. However, most of the authentic
hadiths referred to in these books were also regarded as authentic
by the Shiites through one of two ways: regarding them as Prophetic
hadiths reported by other chains of reporters agreed upon among them
as trustworthy, or regarding them as points of view (not Prophetic
hadiths) peculiar to their Shiite imams.
Anyway,
the most important point to be taken into account is that there is a
great deal of agreement between the Sunni jurisprudence and the
Shiite one. This is because both depend on the same sources, the
Qur’an and the Sunnah, and also because their aims in conducting
research on religion are similar, that is, establishing Allah’s
justice and mercy among people.
Furthermore, if we are to make serious researches on the Sunni
opinions, we will find that some Shiite views that seem eccentric to
us have been also adopted by some Sunni scholars."
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