And worthy of a separate post from that article is the news that many Iranians are starting to look to Grand Ayatollah Al-Sistani for religious guidance. Iraq is the traditional "Mecca" for Shi'ism, and much to the chagrin of his rival Iranian Ayatollahs, Al-Sistani has NEVER been much of a Mahdist:
On the Iranian front, an interesting development is occurring behind the scenes. Iranians are increasingly looking to Ayatollah Ali al Sistani for religious guidance, and eschewing Iran's theocratic leadership. “Some Iranians are intrigued by the more freewheeling experiment in Shi'ite empowerment taking place across the border in Iraq, where--Iraq's myriad problems aside--imams can say whatever they want in political Friday sermons, newspapers and satellite channels regularly slam the government, and religious observance is respected and encouraged but not required,” reported the Boston Globe. Sistani's quietist “school of thought...says Shi'ite leaders should stay out of government, and Sistani has stuck to it despite the great temptation to wade into the chaos of Iraqi politics.” This follows the news that SCIRI has dropped the “revolution” from its name, and is abandoning Iran and seeking religious guidance from Ayatollah Sistani as apposed to Iranian Supreme Leader Khameini.
Now Michael, once again.. are you unwilling to define this as "progress"?
Hawk |
