Xahar, just out of curiosity where is your family from? Are you Sunni or Shia?
He's from Bangladesh, I believe. Which would imply Sunni.
I thought I remembered that he was from the Indian Sub-continent I just couldn't decide between Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Yes. I am a Sunni from Bangladesh.
If you're Sunni, what's your opinion on Shias?
I don't have any problem with them. Since the caliphate lost meaning long ago and was finally abolished, the dispute is rather pointless now.
From a Doctrine standpoint, what kind of difference is there between the various branches of Islam?
From what I remember, after the death of Muhammad (632 AD/CE), the caliph (successor, a position with both spiritual and temporal power) was Abu Bakr, Muhammad's father-in-law, and then was succeeded by Omar and Uthman. Many Muslims believed Muhammad's son-in-law Ali ibn Abu Talib should have succeeded. The supporters of Ali were the Shia. Ali took power after the death of Uthman, but a rebellion led by Muhammad's youngest widow Aisha (Abu Bakr's daughter) and by a Muslim general named Muawiyah. Muawiyah murdered Ali at a peace treaty and became caliph, founding the Umayyad dynasty.
From then on, Muslims divided between the side that favored the caliphs (Sunnis) and the side that favored putting Muhammad's descendants via Ali on the throne (Shia).
That's about right.
IIRC: Bangladeshi Muslims are 95% Sunni and 5% Shia.
Also on the subject of the caliphate, do many Sunnis want to resurrect the office of caliphate in some form?
