ʿAqīda: The Imāmate

The Imāmate is studied here not as a slogan but as a doctrine with proofs. We work through ʿAllāma al-Ḥillī's al-Bāb al-Ḥādī ʿAshar and the relevant aḥādīth in al-Kāfī's Kitāb al-Ḥujja, reading the case for naṣṣ — the explicit appointment of the Imām — alongside the rational conditions of ʿiṣma and knowledge.

By the close of the term you should be able to state the proof for the necessity of the Imāmate, distinguish the textual from the rational arguments, and defend the position with its primary sources in hand. The course closes on the question of authority during the greater occultation and the role of the jurist.