Introduction to Shi`i Islam

FACULTY: Moojan Momen, Peter Smith

Imam Husayn Shrine Karbila

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Shoghi Effendi states that the Baha’i Faith started as “a heterodox and seemingly negligible offshoot of the Shaykhi school of the Ithna-‘Ashariyyih sect of Shi‘ah Islam” (God Passes By xii). He also said that Baha’is “must strive to obtain, from sources that are authoritative and unbiased, a sound knowledge of the history and tenets of Islam--the source and background of their Faith” (The Advent of Divine Justice 75: 49). In this course we will focus on Shi‘ism, and, especially, on the Ithna-‘Asharíyyih (or Twelver) school of Shi‘ah Islam. We will also examine the history of this sect and its distinctive teachings. In particular, we will look at the split into Sunni and Shi‘ah in Islamic history, the history and doctrine of the Imamate, the Twelfth Imam, and the developments in Shi‘ism that led to the Babi and Baha’i Faiths. The primary text for this course is Moojan Momen, Introduction to Shi`i Islam (George Ronald or Yale University Press, 1985). New and second-hand copies can be obtained from Amazon. Second-hand copies can also be obtained from ABEbooks and Additall.

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You may join our online learning community either as an individual or as part of a study group (2 to 20 people). In either case, you can do all your work at home at any time of the day or night. We assign mentors to individuals and to groups to advise, encourage, assist, and answer questions. Groups are expected to meet every week or two for group discussions. Web-based forums connect all learners—individuals and members of a group--to the insights and perspectives of fellow students from all over the world.

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