Amman Message

The Amman Message (Arabic: رسالة عمان‎) is a statement which was issued on 9 November 2004 (27th of Ramadan 1425 AH) by King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein of Jordan, calling for tolerance and unity in the Muslim world.[1] Subsequently, a three-point ruling was issued by 200 Islamic scholars from over 50 countries, focusing on issues of: defining who a Muslim is; excommunication from Islam (takfir), and; principles related to delivering religious edicts (fatāwa).[2]

Contents

Content

The Amman Message was delivered in Amman as a Ramadan sermon by Chief Justice Sheikh Iz-al-Din al-Tamimi in the presence of King Abdullah II and a number of Muslim scholars.[3] According to a report issued by the International Crisis Group, "The sermon stressed the need to re-emphasise Islam's core values of compassion, mutual respect, tolerance, acceptance and freedom of religion."[1] The next year, in July 2005, an Islamic convention brought together 200 Muslim scholars from over 50 countries who issued a three-point declaration (later known as 'Three Points of the Amman Message').[2] This declaration focused on:[4]

  1. The recognition of eight legal schools of thought (madhāhib) and the varying strains of Islamic theology viz.[5]
    1. Sunni Hanafi
    2. Sunni Hanbali
    3. Sunni Maliki
    4. Sunni Shafi'i
    5. Shia Ja`fari - which includes the Ithna 'Ashariyyah and the Isma'iliyyah
    6. Shia Zaydi
    7. Ibadi
    8. Zahiri
    • Forbade declaring an apostate of followers of following creeds/practices/thoughts:[5]
    1. Ash`ari creed
    2. real Tasawwuf practices
    3. true Salafi thought
  2. The forbiddance from pronouncing disbelief (Takfir) upon (or excommunicating) others recognized as Muslims
  3. The stipulations placed as preconditions to the issuing of religious edicts, intended to prevent the circulation of illegitimate edicts

Explaining why the message was issued, King Abdullah stated: "[W]e felt that the Islamic message of tolerance was being subjected to a fierce and unjust attack from some in the West who do not understand Islam's essence, and others who claim to be associated with Islam and hide behind Islam to commit irresponsible deeds."[6]

Conference & Declarations

Following are conferences & declarations[7]:

Fatwa's of the ulama

Following is the list of individual & organizations who have issued fatwa in relation of Amman Message (as per official website listing)[8]:

Sr No Name Title Country Sect Fiqh Endorsing Fatwa Website Image
1 Muhammad Sayyid Tantawy Grand Imam of Al-Azhar University Egypt Sunni Shafi`i Fatwa Official Website -
2 Ali Gomaa Grand Mufti of Egypt Egypt Sunni Shafi`i Fatwa -
3 Ali Bardakoğlu President of The Grand Council for Religious Affairs, Turkey Turkey Sunni Hanafi Fatwa Official Website
4 Ahmed Kuftaro Grand Mufti of Syria Syria Sunni Shafi`i Fatwa Official Website -
5 Said Abd Al-Hafiz Al-Hijjawi Grand Mufti of Jordan Jordan Sunni Shafi`i Fatwa - -
6 - The Islamic Fiqh Academy, Jeddah Saudi Arabia Sunni - Fatwa Official Website -
7 Yusuf al-Qaradawi Director of the Sunna and Sira Council Qatar Sunni Hanafi Fatwa Official Website -
8 Abdullah bin Bayyah Vice President of the International Union of Muslim Scholars Saudi Arabia Sunni Maliki Fatwa Official Website -
9 Muhammad Taqi Usmani Vice President of the Islamic Fiqh Academy Pakistan Sunni Hanafi Fatwa - -
10 Abdullah al-Harari al-Habashi Founder of the Islamic Association of the Islamic Charitable Projects Lebanon Sunni Shafi`i Fatwa - -
11 Ali Hosseini Khamenei Grand Ayatollah, Supreme Leader of Iran Iran Shia Jafari Fatwa Official Website
12 Ali Hosseini Sistani Grand Ayatollah Iraq Shia Jafari Fatwa Official Website
13 Mohammad Said Al-Hakim Grand Ayatollah Iraq Shia Jafari Fatwa Official Website -
14 Mohammad Ishaq Al-Fayyad Grand Ayatollah Iraq Shia Jafari Fatwa Official Website -
15 Basheer Hussain Najafi Grand Ayatollah Iraq Shia Jafari Fatwa Official Website
16 Hassan Ismail Al-Sadr Grand Ayatollah Iraq Shia Jafari Fatwa - -
17 Fazel Lankarani Grand Ayatollah Iran Shia Jafari Fatwa Official Website
18 Muhammad Ali Al-Taskhiri Grand Ayatollah
General Secretary of Forum for Proximity of the Islamic Schools of Jurisprudence
Iran Shia Jafari Fatwa - -
19 Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah Grand Ayatollah Lebanon Shia Jafari Fatwa Official Website
20 - Imam Al-Khoei Benevolent Foundation, United Kingdom United Kingdom Shia Jafari Fatwa Official Website
21 Muhammad bin Muhammad Ismail Al-Mansur
and
Humud bin Abbas Al-Mu'ayyad
Shaykh - Shia Zaidiyyah Fatwa -
22 Ibrahim bin Muhammad Al-Wazir General Secretary, The Islamic Unification and Works Movement, Yemen Yemen Shia Zaidiyyah Fatwa -
23 Ahmad bin Hamad Al-Khalili Mufti of the Sultanate of Oman Oman Ibadi - Fatwa -
24 Karīm al-Hussaynī The Āgā Khān IV, Imam of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims - Shia Ismaili Fatwa -

Reception

Tony Blair, while still Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, gave a speech in which he praised the Amman message and the gathering of numerous scholars, commenting that "This was a clear message that Islam is not a monolithic faith, but one made up of a rich pattern of diversity, albeit all flowing from the same fount."[2] Suhail Nakhouda, writing in the Amman-based Islamica, stated that the Amman message did little to effectively address ongoing problems: "There is no water, no pavements; the economy is bad, and many young people are out of work. Peoples' lives, as well as the images they see, stay the same." Nakhouda noted another objection that King Abdullah's message was likely to be dampened by his lifestyle, which is the subject of criticism.[1] The Grand Shaykh of the Azhar at that time, Shaykh Mohammed Sayyid Tantawi, called it:‘[T]he best resource for those who wish to travel along the straight path in their words and their actions, and in their spiritual and religious life’.

Not all names said to have signed the Amman Message have actually endorsed it in its entirety. For example, Hazrat Mufti Saheb declares some Sufis to be Kafirs.[1]

See also

References

External links