The ZamZam Cooler

Recently, the very popular and greatly influential Egyptian scholar, Yousef al Qaradhawi spoke briefly about his experience with Shi'ites. He also detailed some of his views on points relating to Shi'ite ideology and the manner in which Shi'a and Sunni groups can come closer together.

The noble Shaykh commands great influence; he regularly appears on al Jazeera broadcasts and even holds a syndicated question and answer program on the Qatari based outlet. Amongst Sunnis, Arab and non-Arab, he is held in high esteem and his followers appreciate his down-to-Earth approach through his television broadcasts and more importantly, through the Cairo-based site islamonline.net he helped found and is a regular contributor to.

However, Shaykh Qaradhawi's statements that I've linked above have surprised me. Raw, juvenile, and easily refutable-- his criticisms and anecdotes of Shi'a and their beliefs should never be spoken by someone of his intellectual caliber. These are the colloquial arguments of unschooled Sunnis who have only read and heard of Shi'as from the fiery preachers and writers whose agenda is to advance political or territorial disputes in sectarian guise. Polemical discussions should be discouraged at all levels, and the sensitivity of such discussions or implicit references should be recognized by the educated and learned on both sides, Shi'a and Sunni.

I have always dreamed that Muslim scholarship would return to its progressive pasts. I thought that maybe the sectarian tensions and political disenfranchisement of Muslims would be the perfect vehicle to motivate and accelerate that development. Muslim authorities would have and have had a stage of massive influence and sway, but Shaykh Qaradhawi's remarks have frustrated my dream and showed that its still too soon.

The Shaykh's solutions and suggestions to bring the two schools of thought closer together don't really represent anything significant at all. Aside from the strange baseless questions he posed to the Iranians (and why did he not quote their response, I imagine they said something), the suggestion that Shi'as should not preach their doctrine outside of purely Shi'a countries and Sunnis likewise in their countries hints at the real problem. Shaykh Qaradhawi is interpreting the two schools as rivals. Like two kids who don't get along and the only solution is to stay away from one another. Bandage solutions like this would deepen the wounds between Muslims because it would promote more ideological isolation on both sides, the misinformation and lack of mutual respect would further.

The general problem is that Sunni scholars don't understand Shi'as, never have and don't want to. They rely on bogus books and scholars, refuted and not of any authority in Shi'a scholarship, to convince a Sunni mass that this is just a misguided force of Iranians angry with Arabs for destroying their empire or that these were Jews who wanted to corrupt Islam from within. Simply, Sunni scholars have resorted to smear tactics to keep followers away from engaging in meaningful dialogue with the Shi'a and the study of their doctrine. Scholars like ar Razi and Ghazzali, magnificent in exegesis and ethical exposition, act like school kids in their descriptions of Shi'as, never properly engaging the subject matter.

I have a personal admiration for Sunnis in their protection of the Oneness of God and even to Sunni scholars for their emphasis and refinement of ritual, but simply put, Muslim unity will not be attained unless they are willing to accept Shi'as as brothers and not as rivals, which will only come if they agree to dialogue with Shi'as, and stop interpreting differences as challenges and in polemical terms. Shi'as are aggressive in polemics, I am quite aware of that, but not to the level imagined by the Sunni world. Sunni assumptions and fears of a Shi'a renaissance that would dedicate itself to a polemical campaign to convert Sunnis and spread Shi'ism is baseless and itself represents the immense disconnect between communities.

The Shi'a world in contrast, has made the necessary compromises and is very ready for a greater level of Muslim unity. Shi'as pray with, give zakat to and are obliged to protect Sunnis by the scales of Islamic jurisprudence. It is the Shi'a who have concentrated on the clear and present enemy of the Muslims--the hegemonic and former colonialists of the Muslims World, who ironically have aided the most to the current Shi'a-Sunni feud in their miscalculated surgery of the Middle East geographically and through misguided politically maneuvering of minorities and majorities. Hezbollah, Iran -- are the most well organized forces and likely the only voices of resistance who bear legitimate authority and again, form the crux of the parties who call for Muslim unity.

The list of Muslim countries that are quick to placate Western authority is overwhelmingly Sunni. I do not mean to characterize all Sunnis as supporters of their government's policies and their rulers-- No, rather I am proud of the loud dissatisfaction Sunnis have displayed and are continuing to display with their governments. However it is the passive and cautious approach of Sunni religious authority that slows everything down. I am sure that most of them might not approve of sectarian attacks, defensive or otherwise but their general level of silence isn't effective at stopping them either or promoting Muslim unity.

I should add that I don't mean to say that Shi'as are perfect as I know many of you will quickly point out. But at the level of religious authorities, the Shi'as scholars although probably at times overzealous and harmfully aggressive on a myriad of issues that affect Muslim unity; generally have been more progressive in promoting unity and have clearly made it more of a priority.

There is a lot to be said and I have rambled further than I wanted. Concluding I should point out that Shaykh Qaradhawi is more of a positive on Sunni-Shi'a relations than a negative. His lack of silence and at least desire to engage the issue at hand is commendable. However his views and comments aren't helpful and represent the irresponsible scholarship on the part of religious authorities that is the biggest impediment on Muslim unity.

Muslims will never be one monolith group. Theologically, historically-- on so many fronts we will never agree, its more likely that the end of time will come and go before we sort each other out. But we at least owe it to Islam, this great faith, to understand one another. And more importantly, to understand that there are no short cuts to unity.