HISTORY
THE MUSLIM WORLD AND AFRICA
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Question
[CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
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The Sunnis and the Shiites disagreed over who should be the leader of Islam.
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The Sunnis converted to Christianity
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The caliphs were unfair rulers
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The Shiites wanted to adopt Islam, but the Sunnis did not
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Detailed explanation-1: -Though the two main sects within Islam, Sunni and Shia, agree on most of the fundamental beliefs and practices of Islam, a bitter split between the two goes back some 14 centuries. The divide originated with a dispute over who should succeed the Prophet Muhammad as leader of the Islamic faith he introduced.
Detailed explanation-2: -Shiites believe that the rightful successor of Muhammad should have been his cousin and son-in-law Ali. Shiites follow divinely appointed leaders called Imams. Shiites highly worship Imams and believe that they are sinless and their authority comes from Allah.
Detailed explanation-3: -The Sunnis and the Shi’ites compose the two main branches of Islam, similiar to the way Christianity has two main branches (Catholicism and Protestantism). Shi’ites believe that Islam should be led by descendants of Muhammad, while Sunnis believe that the leader of Islam should be appointed by election and consensus.
Detailed explanation-4: -What were the main reasons for the split between the Sunni and the Shi’a? The future of Islam was placed in crisis after the death of Muhammad. Sunni’s claimed that following Muhammad’s example was sufficient to be caliph, while Shia’s believed that the successor to Muhammad should be part of his bloodline.