Islam: Hierarchy of priesthood?

[azazyel]

My question is, "is there a religious hierarchy in Islam?" Now, I know that there is a religious hierarchy in most religions, the heads being Pope for Catholicism, the Dali Lama for Buddhism and I am sure there are heads of most other religions but I haven't been able to find one for Islam. I have hear the terms Imam, Mullahs, Ayatollah, etc., but I haven't found how they work into the structure of Islam.

Is there an absolute structure or is it based mostly off factioned interpretation.

 

[Pepsei]

Originally posted by: azazyel
My question is, "is there a religious hierarchy in Islam?" Now, I know that there is a religious hierarchy in most religions, the heads being Pope for Catholicism, the Dali Lama for Buddhism and I am sure there are heads of most other religions but I haven't been able to find one for Islam. I have hear the terms Imam, Mullahs, Ayatollah, etc., but I haven't found how they work into the structure of Islam.

Is there an absolute structure or is it based mostly off factioned interpretation.

sounds interesting, search for it and post the result.

 

[Ameesh]

look what i found on the first search of google

 

[Gamer X]

Hi,I am a moslem.There is no hierarchy in Islam;terms like Imam and so on are people
who have studied religion thoroughly and so we ask them about matters of religion.
There is no Imam who has a superior rank to other Imam or so.The term "Imam"
essentially means someone who leads the prayer; even when a group of friends gather
for a prayer,they call whoever leads the prayer Imam.

 

[Stark]

🙂

 

[azazyel]

Thanks Ameesh, I probably didn't get that because I used the actual terms. I gotta remember to start small.

Now, if there is no structure the what is the purpose of these functions? I got that Imam means "faith" but is sort of a priest, and a Mullah is also a priest, and an Ayatollah is like a religious government leader? I am just a little shaky on this. Do the people just elect these people as their spiritual leaders?

 

[Stark]

you might want to research the history of the caliphs (person acting in Muhammad's place). part of it is there hasn't been one since the 1920s.

 

[yllus]

Originally posted by: azazyel
Thanks Ameesh, I probably didn't get that because I used the actual terms. I gotta remember to start small.

Now, if there is no structure the what is the purpose of these functions? I got that Imam means "faith" but is sort of a priest, and a Mullah is also a priest, and an Ayatollah is like a religious government leader? I am just a little shaky on this. Do the people just elect these people as their spiritual leaders?

Basically, they are all assumed positions created for the purposes of hegemony and have no real belonging in Islam.

Mullah: Mullahs are Islamic clergy who have studied the Qur'an and the Hadith and are considered experts on related religious matters in this religion. Mullahs are considered to be able to give direction and make judgments based on their religious studies.

"Mullah" derives from Urdu mulla through Persian, originally from Arabic mawla, meaning "master, friend".

Imam: An Arabic word meaning "Leader". The ruler of a country might be called the Imam, for example. The common everyday use of the word is for a person leading Muslim congregational prayers. In this meaning Imam is not required to be a cleric.

Ayatollah: A high title given to major Shia clergymen. The word means 'sign of God', and those who carry the title are experts in Islamic sciences such as jurisprudence, ethics, philosophy and mysticism, and usually teach in schools (hawza) of Islamic sciences. A handful of the most important Ayatollahs are accorded the title Grand Ayatollah, or Marja al-taqlid ("object of emulation").

I would go as far as to say that all of the people who wield power over others via these positions are directly contradicting the will of Islam's last prophet, Muhammed.

 

[azazyel]

Thanks yllus, that was great. Man, this is a confusing religion.

 

[azazyel]

Now, I have been hearing Imam quite a bit in the news but is this a mistake or are these people really considered Imam. I know the news has constantly misinterpreted Jihad but it just seems like this wouldn't be an easy mistake.

While, the definition is:

"an Arabic word meaning "Leader". The ruler of a country might be called the Imam, for example. The term, however, has important connotations in the Islamic tradition."

And some are thought of as:

"The common everyday use of the word is for a person leading Muslim congregational prayers. In this meaning Imam is not required to be a cleric."

It seems weird that the Shia Imams are shown as:

"The Shia interpretation is that the Quran clearly says that only God can appoint an Imam and no one else has the power to designate one. The incident of Ghadeer-e-Khum is referenced as when Muhammad declared Ali as the leader of the community after him.

According to the Twelve-Imam Shiite dogma, imam is a divine status, greater than the status of a Prophet"