Traditions of Western Religion Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Traditions of Western Religion - Research Paper ExampleAll the worlds major religions contain sects within it some comingle with comfortableness while others seem to share only mistrust and disdain. Much as Catholics and Protestants fought bloody battles for centuries, Sunni and Shiite Muslims are fighting territorial and political battles throughout the Middle East. This intelligence will first address the similar history of all Muslims then the circumstances of the split. It will concentrate on Sunni, Shia, the Druze, a Shiite off-shoot belief and Wahhabism, a derived function of Sunni. The final section explores the contemporary conflicts of Islams two of import sects. The central belief of all Muslims is that the Prophet Muhammad, who died in 632 AD, was Allahs (Arabic for God) messenger. His revelations are recorded in the Quran and are followed by Muslims of all descriptions who also look to sayings of Muhammad, hadith, for inspiration and guidance. The concepts of justice , goodness and piety are essential to Islamic practices and belief system. Furthermore, all Muslims are direct to live their lives according to the five pillars of Islam (1) shahadarecital of the creed There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is His Prophet (2) salatfive obligatory prayers in a day (3) zakatgiving alms to the poor (4) sawmfasting from sunrise to sunset during the month of Ramadan and (5) hajjmaking a pilgrimage to Mecca once during a lifetime if wizard is physically and financially able. (Blanchard, 2009) The chief role of Muslim religious leaders is to interpret sharia, or Islamic law. There are no strict codes or wording of laws such as westerners are accustomed. Rather, for both Shiite and Sunni Islam, sharia allows for wider legal interpretations to fit the circumstance and great flexibility for sentencing. The Sunni/Shiite split occurred near the beginnings of the Islamic religion. The main disagreement concerns the Prophet Muhammads successor and the type of leadership that would guide Muslim society. The long-standing and significant dispute centers on whether the leader(s) should be a direct descendant of the Prophet or could be a qualified, virtuous and devout person who would adhere to the customs of Islam. This issue was initially decided when Abu Bakr, a friend of the Prophet, was selected by community leaders to be the successor, or Caliph. While most Muslims accepted Bakr, a minority supported Ali ibn Abi Talib, a cousin of the Prophets and his son-in-law. Bakr was conjoin to Fatima, the daughter of the Prophet. The term Shiat Ali translates to Alis helper. Another important distinction that relates to modern times is the amount of reverence paid to the respective leaders of the two Islamic sects. Sunni Muslims give exalted status only to the prophets of the Quran and not to present day leaders. Shiites bestow imams with this lofty status. The Sunnis religious hierarchy is not adorn as elaborately, as highly esteemed and is n ot as politically powerful as the Shiite leadership. Because of this distinction, Sunnis tend to be more accommodating in permitting come in people to serve as spiritual leaders. Sunni religious leaders, as opposed to Shiites, have historically been subject to control by the state. Shiite leaders have enjoyed greater autonomy. (Blanchard, 2009) The Druze is a fairly populous yet little known yet sect of Islam because they want it that way. This mysterious group, numbering nearly one million in Syria alone, has endeavored for many centuries to shield their cultural lives from outsiders and keep their religious views secret. Druze prefers to live in isolation. They are