Ibadi Theology and Christian Engagement

Thompson, Andrew David

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-30398-3_4

Andrew David Thompson²

Part of the book series: Christianities of the World ((CHOTW))

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Abstract

This chapter focuses on the arrival of Ibadi Islam in Oman and highlights some of the distinctive theological markers of the Ibadi school of Islam. In particular we look at the economic and political context before moving on to theological sources which potentially shape Ibadi attitudes towards Christians. We look at the influence of leading Ibadi scholar Nur al-Din and Ibadism today.

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Notes

1.
Until the mid-twentieth century ‘Oman’ was used to refer only to the interior. Hence, after the defeat of Imam Ghalib, Sultan Said bin Taimur called himself Sultan of Muscat and Oman.
2.
Interview with DL 2014.
3.
McBrierty, V. & Al-Zubair, M. (2004). Oman: Ancient Civilization: Modern Nation. Dublin: Trinity College Press.
4.
Jones, J. & Ridout, N. (2012). Oman, Culture and Diplomacy. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. Page 45.
5.
Who was this theologian? Is the al-Tahi tribe known to be Christian? Where did they come from?
6.
Wilkinson, J.C. (1979). “The Origins of the Omani State”. Arabian Peninsula: Society and Politics. Hopwood, D. (ed). London: George Allen & Unwin. Pages 76–83.
7.
Jones, J. & Ridout, N. (2012). Oman, Culture and Diplomacy. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. Page 48.
8.
Ibid., page 48.
9.
Landen, R.G. (1967). Oman since 1856: Disruptive Modernization in a Traditional Arab Society. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Page 42.
10.
Ibid., page 44. The eminent Ibadi scholar Wilkinson suggests that the term was used as a joke label. Wilkinson, J.C. (2010). Ibadism: Origins and Early Development in Oman. Oxford: OUP. Page 153.
11.
Ibid., page 44.
12.
Ibid., page 45.
13.
I am indebted to Khuri who provides a comprehensive overview of Omani history in Khuri, F.I. (1990). Imams and Emirs: State, Religion and Sects in Islam. London: Saqi Books.
14.
Skinner, R.F. (1992). Christians in Oman. London: The Tower Press. Page 19.
15.
Ibid., p. 103.
16.
Al-Farsi, S. (2013). Democracy and Youth in the Middle East: Islam, Tribalism and the Rentier State in Oman. London: I.B. Tauris. Page 47.
17.
Badger, G.P. (trans). (2010). History of the Imams and Seyyids of Oman by Salil Ibn Razik. Whitefish, Montana: Reprint by Kessinger Publications. Wilkinson, J.C. (2010). Ibadism: Origins and Early Development in Oman. Oxford: OUP.
18.
Landen, R.G. (1967). Oman since 1856: Disruptive Modernization in a Traditional Arab Society. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
19.
Al-Farsi, S. (2013). Democracy and Youth in the Middle East: Islam, Tribalism and the Rentier State in Oman. London: I.B. Tauris. Page 53.
20.
Said b Sultan (ruled 1806–1856) separated the roles of Ruler and Imam, allowing his uncle Said b Ahmad to continue as Imam after he (Said b Sultan) became Ruler. It’s true that the British often called him ‘Imaum’ (sic), but wrongly. I haven’t seen evidence that he ever called himself Imam. Official British correspondence called him Sultan from about 1839. (Personal correspondence from Stuart Laing. 2019).
21.
Funsch, L.P. (2015). Oman Reborn: Balancing Tradition and Modernization. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Page 91.
22.
Skeet, I. (1992). Oman: Politics and Development. London: Macmillan. Page 158.
23.
Herb, M. (1999). All in the Family: Absolutism, Revolution, and Democracy in the Middle Eastern Monarchies. New York: State University of New York Press. Crystal, J. (1995). Oil and Politics in the Gulf: Rulers and Merchants in Kuwait and Qatar. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Gause, F.G., III. (1994). Oil Monarchies: Domestic and Security Challenges in the Arab Gulf States. New York: Council on Foreign Relations Press. Netton, I.R. (1986). Arabia and the Gulf: From Traditional Society to Modern States. London: Croom Helm.
24.
Zwemer, S. & Cantine, J. (1938). The Golden Milestone: Reminiscences of Pioneer Days Fifty Years Ago in Arabia. New York: Fleming H. Revell Company. Page 58.
25.
Landen, R.G. (1967). Oman since 1856: Disruptive Modernization in a Traditional Arab Society. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Page 392.
26.
Khuri, F.I. (1990). Imams and Emirs: State, Religion and Sects in Islam. London: Saqi Books. Page 116.
27.
Landen, R.G. (1967). Oman since 1856: Disruptive Modernization in a Traditional Arab Society. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Page 61.
28.
Ibid., page 61.
29.
Ibid., page 63.
30.
Khuri, F.I. (1990). Imams and Emirs: State, Religion and Sects in Islam. London: Saqi Books. Page 116.
31.
Ibid., page 87, for a fuller explanation of this doctrine.
32.
Ibid., page 117.
33.
Alston, R. & Laing, S. (2012). Unshook Till the End of Time. A History of Relations Between Britain & Oman 1650–1970. London: Gilgamesh Publishing. Page 151.
34.
Khuri, F.I. (1990). Imams and Emirs: State, Religion and Sects in Islam. London: Saqi Books.
35.
NA/AC, 1895. 13: 9–10.
36.
Khuri, F.I. (1990). Imams and Emirs: State, Religion and Sects in Islam. London: Saqi Books. Page 117.
37.
Ibid., page 118.
38.
The al-Khalili family are still the leading theologians of Ibadism in Oman. The Grand Mufti today is from the al-Khalili tribe.
39.
Al-Farsi, S. (2013). Democracy and Youth in the Middle East: Islam, Tribalism and the Rentier State in Oman. London: I.B. Tauris. Page 7.
40.
Beasant, J. (2013).Oman: The True Life Drama and Intrigue of an Arab State. Edinburgh & London: Mainstream Publishing. Page 129.
41.
Ibid., page 129.
42.
A more tempered portrayal of Sultan Said is found in Alston and Laing, where they state that the ‘Sultan was not necessarily the cynical and uninterested ruler he has sometimes been made out to be’. Instead they argue that he was ‘strongly influenced by his wish to sustain Oman as a tribally organised society, and by long practised financial prudence’. Alston, R. & Laing, S. (2012). Unshook Till the End of Time. A History of Relations Between Britain & Oman 1650–1970. London: Gilgamesh Publishing. Page 251.
43.
Ibid., page 129.
44.
Sirhan, I.S. (trans by Ross, E.C.) (1984). Annals of Oman. Cambridge: The Oleander Press. Page 114.
45.
Nasir, J.J. (1986). The Islamic Law of Personal Status. London: Graham Trotman. Page 9.
46.
Albayrak, I. & al-Shueli, S. (2015). “The Ibadi Approach to the Methodology of Qur’anic Exegesis.” Muslim World. Vol 105, No 2. Page 163.
47.
Ennami, A.K. (2008). Studies in Ibadhism. Muscat: Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs.
48.
Landen, R.G. (1967). Oman since 1856: Disruptive Modernization in a Traditional Arab Society. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Page 372.
49.
Albayrak, I. & al-Shueli, S. (2015). “The Ibadi Approach to the Methodology of Qur’anic Exegesis.” Muslim World. Vol 105, No 2. Page 193.
50.
Ibid., page 166.
51.
Ibid., page 165.
52.
Bird, C. (2010). The Sultan’s Shadow. One Family’s Rule at the Crossroads of East and West. New York: Random House. Page 175. This quote is taken from a historical study of Oman’s rule in Zanzibar and is set against the discussion of the awkward attempts of the Omanis and Swahilis to socially integrate.
53.
Al-Khalili, A.H. (2002). The Overwhelming Truth: A Discussion of Some Key Concepts in Islamic Theology. Muscat: Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs. Ennami, A.K. (2008). Studies in Ibadhism. Muscat: Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs. Al-Salimi, A. (2014). Early Ibadi Theology: Six Kalam Texts by ‘Abd Allah b. Yazid al Fazrai (Islamic History and Civilization Series). Leiden: Brill Academic Publishers. Al-Salimi, A. & Madelung, W. (2011). Early Ibadi Literature: Abu l-Mundhir Bashir b. Muhammad b. Mahbub. Kitab al-Rasf fi l-Tawhid, Kitab al-Muharaba and Sira. Morgenlandes: Harrassowitz Verlag.
54.
Limbert, M. (2010). In the Time of Oil: Piety, Memory and Social Life in an Oman Town. Stanford: Stanford University Press. See the chapter on “Becoming Bahlawi” pp. 134–164.
55.
Bird, C. (2010). The Sultan’s Shadow. One Family’s Rule at the Crossroads of East and West. New York: Random House. Page 161.
56.
Al-Maawali, M.S.S. (2016). Articles on Ibadi Studies. Oman: Self-published.
57.
Thomas, D. (1992). Anti-Christian Polemic in Early Islam. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
58.
Ennami, A.K. (2008). Studies in Ibadhism. Muscat: Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs. Al-Khalili, A.H. (2002). The Overwhelming Truth: A Discussion of Some Key Concepts in Islamic Theology. Muscat: Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs. Al-Salimi, A. & Madelung, W. (2011). Early Ibadi Literature: Abu l-Mundhir Bashir b. Muhammad b. Mahbub. Kitab al-Rasf fi l-Tawhid, Kitab al-Muharaba and Sira. Morgenlandes: Harrassowitz Verlag.
59.
Crone, P. & Zimmermann, F. (2001). The Epistle of Salim ibn Dhakwan. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
60.
Custers, M.H. (2008). Al-Ibadiya. A Bibliography. Volume 1. Ibadis of the Mashriq. Muscat: Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs.
61.
Wilkinson, J.C. (1987). The Imamate Tradition of Oman. Cambridge: CUP. Wilkinson, J.C. (2010). Ibadism: Origins and Early Development in Oman. Oxford: OUP.
62.
Hoffman, V.J. (2012). The Essentials of Ibadi Islam. New York: Syracuse University Press.
63.
Gaiser, A.R. (2010). Muslims, Scholars, Soldiers. The Origin and Elaboration of the Ibadi Imamate Traditions. Oxford: OUP.
64.
Al-Salimi, A. & Madelung, W. (2011). Early Ibadi Literature: Abu l-Mundhir Bashir b. Muhammad b. Mahbub. Kitab al-Rasf fi l-Tawhid, Kitab al-Muharaba and Sira. Morgenlandes: Harrassowitz Verlag.
65.
Landen, R.G. (1967). Oman since 1856: Disruptive Modernization in a Traditional Arab Society. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Pages 96–97.
66.
Ghazal, A. (2015). “Omani Fatwas and Zanzibari Cosmopolitanism: Modernity and Religious Authority in the Indian Ocean.” Muslim World. Vol 105. No 2. Page 242.
67.
Ibid., page 243.
68.
Al-Nabhani, Y. (1901). Hadha Kitab Irshad al-Hayan fi Tadhir al-Muslimin min Madaris al-Mubashshirin. Beirut.
69.
Ghazal, A. (2015). “Omani Fatwas and Zanzibari Cosmopolitanism: Modernity and Religious Authority in the Indian Ocean.” Muslim World. Vol 105. No 2. Page 244.
70.
Ibid., page 246.
71.
Ibid., page 248.
72.
Ibid., page 248.
73.
Ibid. See chapter on Christianity in Oman.
74.
Ibid., page 250.
75.
Leonard, D.R. (2015). “The Origins and Contemporary Approaches to Intra-Islamic and Inter-Religious Coexistence and Dialogue in Oman”. The Muslim World. Vol 105, No. 2.
76.
Ibid., page 275.
77.
Francesca, E. (2014). Ibadi Theology: Rereading Sources and Scholarly Works. Hildesheim. Zurich, New York: Olms-Weidmann.
78.
Floor, W. (2015). Muscat: City, Society and Trade. Washington, DC: Mage Publications. Pages 112–113.
79.
Landen, R.G. (1967). Oman since 1856: Disruptive Modernization in a Traditional Arab Society. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Page 50.
80.
Albayrak, I. & al-Shueli, S. (2015). “The Ibadi Approach to the Methodology of Qur’anic Exegesis.” Muslim World. Vol 105, No 2. Page 171.
81.
Ibid., page 175.
82.
Ibid., page 176.
83.
Interview SAS 2015.
84.
Landen, R.G. (1967). Oman since 1856: Disruptive Modernization in a Traditional Arab Society. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Pages 39 and 52.
85.
Ibid., page 50.
86.
Ibid., page 47.
87.
Jones, J. & Ridout, N. (2012). Oman, Culture and Diplomacy. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
88.
Al-Nami, A.K. (2007). Studies in Ibadhism. London: Open Minds. Page 45.
89.
Brown, J. (2014). “The Essentials of Ibadi. Book Review”. Journal of Shi’a Islamic Studies. Vol VII. No 3, pp. 353–355.
90.
Hoffman, V.J. (2012). The Essentials of Ibadi Islam. New York: Syracuse University Press.
91.
Limbert, M. (2010). In the Time of Oil: Piety, Memory and Social Life in an Oman Town. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
92.
Ibid., page 100.
93.
Ibid., page 99.
94.
Interview DL 2014.
95.
Jones, J. & Ridout, N. (2012). Oman, Culture and Diplomacy. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. Page 42.
96.
Khuri, F.I. (1990). Imams and Emirs: State, Religion and Sects in Islam. London: Saqi Books. Page 120.
97.
Al-Farsi, S. (2013). Democracy and Youth in the Middle East: Islam, Tribalism and the Rentier State in Oman. London: I.B. Tauris. Page 8.
98.
A comment made by the principal of the College for Islamic Sciences in Muscat.
99.
Brown, J. (2012). Mainly Uphill. A Bishop’s Journey. Sleaford, UK: Clearprint. Pages 175–176.
100.
Ibid., page 316.
101.
ASS 2015.
102.
Khuri, F.I. (1990). Imams and Emirs: State, Religion and Sects in Islam. London: Saqi Books. Page 73.
103.
Comment made by a resident in Muscat in a private email to the author.

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St Andrew’s Church, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Andrew David Thompson

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Thompson, A.D. (2019). Ibadi Theology and Christian Engagement. In: Christianity in Oman. Christianities of the World. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-30398-3_4

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-30398-3_4
Published: 01 November 2019
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-30397-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-30398-3
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