The Shi'ah Rebuts

Posted: July 13, 2007

Contents

Foreword

Preface
 
Introduction
 
Question 1: Which is correct, “wa ‘itratī” [and my progeny], or “wa sunnatī” [and my tradition]?
  
Question 2: What does “Shī‘ah” mean?
 
Question 3: Why is ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib (‘a) regarded as the wasī [executor of will] and successor of the Prophet (s)?
 
Question 4: Who are the Imāms?
 

Question 5: When invoking blessings [salawāt] on Muhammad (s), why do you also associate his progeny [‘a] to him by saying, “Allāhumma salli ‘alā Muhammad wa Āli Muhammad” [“O Allah! Bless Muhammad and the progeny of Muhammad”]?

Question 6: Why do you regard your Imāms as “infallible” [ma‘sūm]?

Question 7: In adhān [call to prayer], why do you say, “Ashhadu anna ‘aliyyan waliyyullāh” [“I bear witness that ‘Alī is Walī of Allah”] and give testimony to the wilāyah [guardianship] of ‘Alī (‘a)?

Question 8: Who is the Mahdī of Muhammad’s Progeny [Āl Muhammad] and why are you waiting for his advent?

Question 9: If the Shī‘ah are right, then why are they in the minority and why do most Muslims in the world not recognize them (as Muslims)?

Question 10: What is raj‘ah [“return”] and why do you believe in it?

Question 11: What is shafā‘ah [intercession], which you believe in?

Question 12: Is asking the rightful intercessors for intercession [shafā‘ah] tantamount to polytheism [shirk]?

Question 13: Is seeking help from someone other than God regarded as a kind of polytheism [shirk]?

Question 14: Is calling on someone tantamount to worshipping him and to polytheism?

Question 15: What is badā’ and why do you believe in it?

Question 16: Do the Shī‘ah believe in the tahrīf [distortion] of the Qur’an?

Question 17: How do the Shī‘ah view the Sahābah [Companions]?

Question 18: What is meant by “temporary marriage” [mut‘ah] and why do the Shī‘ah regard it as lawful?

Question 19: Why do the Shī‘ah prostrate on turbah [dried clay]?

Question 20: During ziyārah, why do the Shī‘ah kiss the doors and walls of the shrine of awliyā’ and seek blessings [tabarruk] whereby?

Question 21: Is according to Islam religion separate from politics?

Question 22: Why do the Shī‘ah regard the sons of ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib (‘a) (Hasan and Husayn (‘a)) as the sons of the Messenger of Allah (s)?

Question 23: Why do the Shī‘ah believe that caliphate [khilāfah] is a matter of appointment [tansīsī]?

Question 24: Is to swear by other than God regarded as a kind of polytheism?

Question 25: Is to resort to the divine saints [awliyā’] for mediation [tawassul] regarded as polytheism [shirk] and tantamount to innovation in religion [bid‘ah]?

Question 26: Is celebrating the birthday of the saints [awliyā’] of God a kind of polytheism and innovation [bid‘ah]?

Question 27: Why do the Shī‘ah perform the five daily prayers in three periods?

Question 28: What are the sources of Shī‘ī jurisprudence [fiqh]?

Question 29: Did Abū Tālib die a believer on account of which you visit [ziyārah] his shrine?

Question 30: Do the Shī‘ah think that Jibra’īl (Archangel Gabriel) has committed treachery when he conveyed the message [risālah] to Muhammad instead of ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib?

Question 31: What is the criterion of taqiyyah [dissimulation]?

Question 32: Why is the Ja‘farī school of thought [madhhab] stipulated in the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran as the official madhhab of the country?

Question 33: Do the Shī‘ah regard witr prayer as obligatory?

Question 34: Is the belief that great divine people [awliyā’] have supernatural power tantamount to polytheism [shirk]?

Question 35: Why is the station of Imamate [imāmah] higher than that of prophethood [nubuwwah]?

Question 36: What is the criterion for distinguishing monotheism or the Unity of God [tawhīd] from polytheism [shirk]?

Bibliography