Re: Challenge to Sunni and Shia folks !
Iconoclast, ruling a nation is a complex process. There are usually checks and balances in governing an ethical society. For example, the judiciary is independent and the justices have no term limits in the USA. The Senators and Congressmen represent the same nation in different ways. Districts are constructed in ways to make sure minorities have representation. The leader of the executive branch cannot remain in office for more than 8 years. Just like a table needs more than one leg these are all legs of a table and equally valuable in governing a society. Similarly, the Imams were suppose to be one of those legs.
Wrong, Imamate is not one leg of governance, its governance in all aspects social, economical and religious. Imam is ruler, highest cleric, law maker, chief executive, commander of army all at the same time. His word is supposedly the word of God.Its all the powers centred in one person. You cannot compare it with any form of governnace in existence today.
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There is a hadith that says Ali was to the prophet as Aaron was to Moses. So what was Aaron to Moses? According to the Torah, Moses appointed Aaron as the hereditary priest (Imam). As such, when Moses died Aaron did NOT become the leader. Aaron remained the Imam. Aaron's descendants can be seen hundreds of years later, still serving as Imams in the days of king Solomon and David too. It is only the century before Jesus was born that the Jews decided they did not want the hereditary Imams appointed by Moses anymore. The Jews believed they were the largest tribe and did not need the opinions of a small tribe of Aaron's children (known as Alay Imran) meddling in their affairs.
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Here you are going back on your earlier post where you cliamed that Islam was perceived as regional tribal diety bcoz of actions of Ummayyads who turned it into arab vs non-arab. Yet you yourself are giving examples from a religion which in itself has been very tribal one. Jewish God is God of Bani Israel, their book make a clear differentiation of "children" of Israel and other people. Islam is supposed to be religion of all humanity.