Sunni Shiah Unity Resources

compiled by Sheila Musaji

originally published 1/23/2003 updated 8/7/2009
(note: updating will be completed during the next week)

A Call for Shia Sunni Dialog: Why and How, Abdul Malik Mujahid http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/a_call_for_shia_sunni_dialog_why_and_how/

A Charter for Muslim Unity, Isa Othman http://quranwasunnah.com/Muslim-Unity.htm

A Great Step Towards Shia-Sunni Unity in India http://indianmuslims.in/a-great-step-towards-shia-sunni-unity/

A Plea for Unity, Sheila Musaji http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/a_plea_for_unity/

Achieving Islamic Unity, Mohammed al-Hilli [url=http://www.shianews.com/hi/articles/islam/0000011.php]

Imam Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim Calls for Unity http://www.newspress.com/Top/Article/article.jsp?Section=WORLD&ID=564687461234902802

AL-AZHAR VERDICT (Fatwa) ON THE SHIA  http://www.geocities.com/ahlulbayt14/azhar.html  -  Summary:  1) Islam does not require a Muslim to follow a particular Madh’hab (school of thought). Rather, we say: every Muslim has the right to follow one of the schools of thought which has been correctly narrated and its verdicts have been compiled in its books. And, everyone who is following such Madhahib [schools of thought] can transfer to another school, and there shall be no crime on him for doing so.  2) The Ja’fari school of thought, which is also known as “al-Shia al- Imamiyyah al-Ithna Ashariyyah” (i.e., The Twelver Imami Shi’ites) is a school of thought that is religiously correct to follow in worship as are other Sunni schools of thought.

Yusuf al-Qaradawi’s Approach to Shia-Sunni Dialogue, Yoginder Sikand http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/yusuf_al_qaradawis_approach_to_shia_sunni_dialogue/

Yusuf al-Qaradawi makes clear that Shia are Muslims http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?cid=1119503544230&pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE

Yusuf al Qaradawi Makes Clear That Shia are Muslims http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?cid=1119503544230&pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar%2FFatwaE%2FFatwaE

Al-Sadr calls for Sunni Shia unity http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1192296/posts

American Muslims call for Sunni Shia unity http://www.arabamericannews.com/newsarticle.php?articleid=4526

American Muslim Leaders Sign ‘Code of Honor’ to Promote Intrafaith Harmony http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/muslim_leaders_sign_code_of_honor_to_promote_intrafaith_harmony/ 

American Muslims Transcend Sectarianism, Hasan Zillur Rahim http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/american_muslims_transcend_sectarianism/

AMMAN CONFERENCE STATEMENT - Eight Schools of Islamic Law - Fatwa http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/statement_of_the_international_islamic_conference_in_amman/  -  Summary:  Based on the fatwas provided by these great scholars (who included the Shaykh Al-Azhar; Ayatollah Sistani and Sheikh Qaradawi), in July 2005 CE, H.M. King Abdullah II convened an international Islamic conference of 200 of the world’s leading Islamic scholars ‘Ulama) from 50 countries. In Amman, the scholars unanimously issued a ruling on three fundamental issues (which became known as the ‘Three Points of the Amman Message’):  They specifically recognized the validity of all 8 Mathhabs (legal schools) of Sunni, Shi’a and Ibadhi Islam; of traditional Islamic Theology (Ash’arism); of Islamic Mysticism (Sufism), and of true Salafi thought, and came to a precise definition of who is a Muslim.  Based upon this definition they forbade takfir (declarations of apostasy) between Muslims.    Based upon the Mathahib they set forth the subjective and objective preconditions for the issuing of fatwas, thereby exposing ignorant and illegitimate edicts in the name of Islam.  These Three Points were then unanimously adopted by the Islamic World’s political and temporal leaderships at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit at Mecca in December 2005. And over a period of one year from July 2005 to July 2006, the Three Points were also unanimously adopted by six other international Islamic scholarly assemblies, culminating with the International Islamic Fiqh Academy of Jeddah, in July 2006. In total, over 500 leading Muslim scholars worldwide as can be seen on this website [click here to see the entire list] unanimously endorsed the Amman Message and its Three Points.  This amounts to a historical, universal and unanimous religious and political consensus (ijma’) of the Ummah (nation) of Islam in our day, and a consolidation of traditional, orthodox Islam. The significance of this is: (1) that it is the first time in over a thousand years that the Ummah has formally and specifically come to such a pluralistic mutual inter-recognition; and (2) that such a recognition is religiously legally binding on Muslims since the Prophet (may peace and blessings be upon him) said: My Ummah will not agree upon an error (Ibn Majah, Sunan, Kitab al-Fitan, Hadith no.4085).

The specific item in this statement is as follows:  1) Whosoever is an adherent of one of the four Sunni Schools of Jurisprudence (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’i and Hanbali), the Ja’fari (Shi’i) School of Jurisprudence, the Zaydi School of Jurisprudence, the Ibadi School of Jurisprudence, or the Thahiri School of Jurisprudence is a Muslim. Declaring that person an apostate is impossible. Verily his (or her) blood, honour, and property are sacrosanct. Moreover, in accordance with what appeared in the fatwa of the Honourable and Respectable Shaykh al-Azhar, it is not possible to declare whosoever subscribes to the Ash’ari creed or whoever practices true Sufism an apostate. Likewise, it is not possible to declare whosoever subscribes to true Salafi thought an apostate. Equally, it is not possible to declare as apostates any group of Muslims who believes in Allah the Mighty and Sublime and His Messenger (may Peace and Blessings be upon him) and the pillars of faith, and respects the pillars of Islam and does not deny any necessary article of religion.

Are All Shia Really Going to Hell?, Dr. Robert D. Crane http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/are_all_shia_really_going_to_hell/

Austrian Muslims Rally for Sunni Shia Unity http://www.islam-online.net/English/News/2006-02/26/article04.shtml

Bahrain March for Sunni Shia Unity http://chanad.weblogs.us/?p=463

Beware: USA & Allies Stoking Shia-Sunni Divide, K Gajendra Singh http://uruknet.info/?p=m31577&s1=h1

Bombing of Golden Mosque: Information Warfare, Psy-ops and the Power of Myth, Mike Whitney http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17078.htm

BOOK REVIEW:  Muqtada al-Sadr, the Shia Revival, and The Struggle For Iraq (Patrick Cockburn), Jim Miles http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/book_review_muqtada_al_sadr_the_shia_revival_and_the_struggle_for_iraq_patr/

British Muslims March for Sunni Shia Unity http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200602/s1578534.htm

CAIR Condemns Attack on Shia Procession in Pakistan http://www.cair-net.org/default.asp?Page=articleView&id=1988&theType=NR

Call for 1st National Sunni-Shia Dialogue December 25, 2006 in Chicago, Abdul Malik Mujahid http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/1st_national_shia_sunni_dialogue_in_america_on_december_25th_in_chicago/

Comparison Chart of Sunni and Shia Islam http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/comparison_charts/islamic_sects.htm

Creating A Sunni/Shia Divide, Conn Hallinan http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2007/04/23/creating_a_sunnishia_divide.php

Ahmed Deedat on Sunni Shiah Unity http://www.inminds.com/unity.html

Destruction of Al-Askari Shia Shrine a Great Sacriledge http://www.iviews.com/Articles/articles.asp?ref=IV0602-2927

Dialogue Between Sunnis and Shias, Muhammad Zakir Khan Azmi http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/dialogue_between_shias_and_sunnis/

Don’t Let Iraq’s Sunni-Shia Conflict Spread Through the Mideast, Ted Galen Carpenter http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=6355

Efforts to Provoke Sunni Shia War in Iraq http://tharwaproject.com/index.php?option=com_keywords&task=view&id=2318&Itemid=0#Editorial:_Efforts_To_Provoke_Sectarian_War

Exploiting the Sunni Shia Rift [url=http://www.archives2005.ghazali.net/html/leila_montour.html]

Freedom of Religion in Christian, Buddhist, Sunni, and Shi’a Jurisprudence: The Role of ‘Ilm al ‘Adl, Dr. Robert D. Crane http://www.theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/freedom_of_religion_in_christian_buddhist_sunni_and_shia_jurisprudence_the_/

German Muslims Protest Mosque Bombings, Call for Sunni Shia Unity http://www.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu-234/0602250850161144.htm

Great Middle East Power Games, Sumaya Ghannoushi http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/the_great_middle_east_power_games/

Historical Sunni Shia Relations http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_Shi’a-Sunni_relations

Imam Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim Calls for Unity http://www.newspress.com/Top/Article/article.jsp?Section=WORLD&ID=564687461234902802

Indonesia Hosts Sunni-Shiite Meeting http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&cid=1175008823282&pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout

The Importance of Shia-Sunni Dialogue, Maulana Waris Mazhari (tr. Yoginder Sikand) http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/the_importance_of_shia_sunni_dialogue/

Interview with Maulana Wahiduddin Khan on Intra-Muslim Sectarian Dialogue, Yoginder Sikand http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/interview_with_maulana_wahiduddin_khan_on_intra_muslim_sectarian_dialogue/

Interview with Maulana Kalbe Sadiq, VP of the All-India Muslim Personal law Board, Yoginder Sikand http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/interview_with_maulana_kalbe_sadiq_vp_of_the_all_india_muslim_personal_law_/

Iraqi Religious Shiite and Sunni Religious Leaders: A Fatwa Against Sectarian Violence  http://www.analyst-network.com/article.php?art_id=2592

Iraqi Sunni and Shia Hold Joint Prayers for Unity http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/5B734325-F816-4BE2-8D06-7E13346BCA52.html

Iraqi Sunnis Helping Shias Rebuild Bombed Shrine http://www.islam-online.net/English/News/2006-02/27/article01.shtml

Iraq’s Most Influential Shia Leader Calls for Unity, Halt to Violence http://www.newspress.com/Top/Article/article.jsp?Section=WORLD&ID=564687461234902802

Iraq’s Real Holy War, Vali Nasr [url=http://www.geocities.com/emorseraf/iraqs_real_holy_war.htm]

Imam Khomeini on Sunni Shiah Unity http://www.shiachat.com/forum/index.php?/topic/43325-imam-khomeini-on-shiasunni-unity/ 

Let Us Understand Each Other, Abdul Hadi Abdul Hameed Saleh [url=http://www.oneummah.net/understand/]

MAKKAH DECLARATION on the Iraqi Sectarian Situation - Fatwa http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/makkah_declaration_on_the_iraqi_situation/

MPAC Calls on Muslim Leaders to Emphasize Unity After Attacks in Detroit http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/mpac_calls_on_us_muslim_leaders_to_emphasize_unity_after_anti_shia_attacks_/

MPAC statement on anti-Shia violence http://www.mpac.org/home_article_display.aspx?ITEM=661

Muslim Leaders Encourage Unity After Michigan Vandalism http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070111/LIFESTYLE04/701110356/1003/METRO

New Rand study suggests exploiting Sunni, Shia and Arab, non-Arab divides to promote US policy, Abdus Sattar Ghazzali http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/new_rand_study_suggests_exploiting_sunni_shiite_and_arab_non_arab_divides_t/

The Next Sunni-Shia War, Yahya Birt http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/the_next_sunni_shia_war/

The Origins of the Sunni/Shia split in Islam, Hussein Abdulwaheed Amin http://www.islamfortoday.com/shia.htm

Our Real Enemy, Hesham Hassaballa http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/our_real_enemy/

The Politics of a Fatwa, Yaqub Shah http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/wahhabism_in_the_service_of_western_imperialism_the_politics_of_a_fatwa/

Pakistan’s Shia-Sunni divide http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3045122.stm

Politics, Not Faith Behind Shia-sunni Divide in Iraq, Parvez Ahmed http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/politics_not_faith_behind_shia_sunni_divide_in_iraq/

QUR’AN:
-  O people, We have created you from a male and a female and made you into races and tribes so that you may know each other. Surely the most honored of you in the sight of God is the one who is the most righteous of you” (49:13).

RESOLUTION OF THE SUNNI SHIA DIALOGUE TO SAVE LIVES http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jgti1wvE5ac (see also:  Communique of the Sunni Shia dialogue to Save Lives http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/communiqu_of_the_shia_sunni_dialogue_to_save_lives/

Reviving the Shi’ah Intellectual Heritage in Islam, Christoph Marcinkowski http://www.isn.ethz.ch/news/sw/details.cfm?ID=16362

Maulana Kalbe Sadiq’s Theology of Islamic Ecumenism, Yoginder Sikand http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/shia_sunni_dialogue_maulana_kalbe_sadiqs_theology_of_islamic_ecumenism/

Sectarian Strife in the House of Islam, Yoginder Sikand http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/sectarian_strife_in_the_house_of_islam/

Shaikh Mahmood Shaltoot of Al Azhar on Permissibility of Following Shiah Madhabs - Fatwa http://www.ummah.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-23351.html

Shia-Sunni students find common ground on campus http://www.dailyfreepress.com/news/muslims-find-common-ground-on-campus-1.586702

Shia Mosque Bombing: Whose Bombs Were They?,  Mike Whitney http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_532.shtml

Shia-Sunni Unity for World Peace, Tanveer Jafri http://www.globalpolitician.com/24665-islam-sunni-shia

Ayatollah Sistani calls for an end to sectarian bloodshed http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/02/03/iraq.cleric.ap/index.html?section=cnn_latest

Sistaining Democracy, Ibrahim Mansour http://www.theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/sistaining_democracy/

Split Within Islam Must End, Abdullah al Rahim http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/the_split_within_islam_must_end/

Shia-Sunni Dialogue: Maulana Kalbe Sadiq’s Theology of Islamic Ecumenism, Yoginder Sikand http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/shia_sunni_dialogue_maulana_kalbe_sadiqs_theology_of_islamic_ecumenism/

Shia cleric blames U.S. forces for massacre http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1448002.cms

Shia resources collected by Abdul Haq Godlas [url=http://www.uga.edu/islam/shiism.html]

Sunni-Shia and U.S. Middle East Politics http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/212B6227-F9D3-445B-ACC6-61B53B2EE70A.htm

Sunni & Shia:  I’m “Sushi”, Dr. Hesham A. Hassaballa http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/sunni_shia_im_sushi/

Sunni and Shi’a - Allied Forces, Samia van Hattum http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/sunni_and_shia_allied_forces/

Sunnis and Shias: The Battle the U.S. Wants to Provoke, Naomi Klein 2004 http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,1186445,00.html

Sunnis and Shias Rally After Ashura Bombings http://iwpr.net/?p=icr&s=f&o=168242&apc_state=heniicr2004 

Sunni misconceptions about Shias, Shahid Athar http://www.islamicity.com/articles/articles.asp?ref=IC0402-2224

Sunni or Shia, Fault Line Runs Between Haves and Have Nots http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,934264,00.html

Sunni Shiah Unity, Sheila Musaji http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/sunni_shia_unity/

Sunni-Shiah Unity, Dr. Shahid Athar http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/shia_sunni_unity/

Sunni Shia: Divide and Rule, a Theory http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=4&theme=&usrsess=1&id=146068

Sunni Shia Unity Declaration http://www.islamwomen.org/EngIw/HomePage/HPDetails8.aspx?id=1270

Sunni-Shia: The Battle the U.S. Wants to Provoke, Naomi Klein http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,1186445,00.html

Sunni Shia Labels Irrelevant in the U.S.  http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/gwinnett/stories/0417gwxiraq.html

Sunni v Shia, Zaki Chehab http://www.newstatesman.com/200702120009

Sunni Versus Shia Myth http://www.williambowles.info/ini/ini-0156.html

Time to start mending the torn fabric of the Muslim Ummah: The Shia-Sunni Divide, Dr. Javeed Akhter http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/time_to_start_mending_the_torn_fabric_of_the_muslim_ummah_the_shia_sunni_di/

To Save Iraqi Democracy Bush’s War Will Target Shias Too, Muqtedar Khan http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/to_save_iraqi_democracy_bushs_war_will_target_shias_too/

Top Sunni and Shia scholars urge unity http://wpherald.com/articles/3227/1/Islamic-nations-unite-to-prevent-sectarian-conflict/Top-Islamic-clerics-and-scholars-urge-Muslim-unity.html

Ugly Sectarianism is Getting Out of Control, Yasin Aljibouri http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/ugly_sectarianism_is_getting_out_of_control/

Unity and Diversity:  Islam, Muslims and the Challenge of Pluralism, Dr. Jeremy Henzell-Thomas http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/unity_and_diversity_islam_muslims_and_the_challenge_of_pluralism/

Unity between Shi‘as and Sunnis http://www.muslimnews.co.uk/paper/index.php?article=2959

U.S. Muslims Strive For Sectarian Peace http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/07/national/main2766596.shtml

VIDEO Discussion of Sunni Shia Relations in the U.S.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jgti1wvE5ac

VIDEO:  The Difference Between Sunni and Shia, Abdal Hakim Murad http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMhgt3JRqeU

Wahhabism in the Service of Western Imperialism: The Politics of a Fatwa, Yaqub Shah http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/wahhabism_in_the_service_of_western_imperialism_the_politics_of_a_fatwa/

Why is the U.S. Picking a Fight With Iraqi Shias? http://www.islamonline.com/cgi-bin/news_service/middle_east_full_story.asp?service_id=10786

Who Benefits?, Dahr Jamail http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/who_benefits/

SHIA RESOURCES:
Aga Khan Foundation http://www.akdn.org
Institute of Ismaili Studies, U.K.  http://www.iis.ac.uk
List of Shia Organizations http://www.shia.org/framorgs.htm
Shiah Search Engine http://www.shiasearch.com/index.htm
Universal Muslim Association of America http://www.umaamerica.org/