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Show z B ELI SUM I I anu I EAUPHATE j - II , M mt ' n in A C"" Kifiv-i,.iu ni'i'T" i'rl- I -" f kill " i'iST ,jr -v-' -iyiM iiy. nl. Palace ot Dolma Oaghtcheh on the Bosporus. ,!k irr,paM,1,i.b tw..hf.!!,1!! P""t,h, Ba-1 of Cnllph Harun-nlJtnshld. Rushld -t. The dcnoslnif of tho sultan of wns n bonn fldo cnlP. nnd ln itttcr DUt, Turkey, not only from tho posit!' 3 j temporal ruler of the Turks but mPi tho far more powerful ono of Cnll , 0I Islnm, opens nn Interesting new i dig ter ln the history of Mohnnuncdn ;ow Tho step token by tho Turkish Nt loat nlists ln stripping the onco noinl scd. Powerful caliph of his power, nn r n' retirement to Mecca under the on of the king of Ucjnz, might concel folk 'cad to very Interesting dovclopm hllo for Pontics and religion nro ln ruble In tho Near East, n fact nail Western observers, far from tho : rjth cross-currents of the region, dc ocjj alwnys realize. Somo prevalent rhe conceptions about tho Mohamn kC(j faith seem to add confusion to : icc. discussions nbout the recent dci oj mcnts ln Turkey, hi. The easiest way to dispel son theso Illusions Is by pointing to sc striking likenesses between tho w nln- two newest among the major rclli , nn The term "Mohammedan," like ,ow term "Christian," Is a nickname. s j8 names wcro given, with contcmp jt Intent, It Is believed, by enemies It's religions. nn(j The term "Christian" was qi adopted by followers of tho Nazi j t0 The tonn "Mohammedan" novo: I his 'been adopted by tho followers c vlth Prophet. He sought to avoid th rom Ploymcnt of his own namo by si 1S( j Ing ontf the namo "Islam" by Fit, ho hoped Mohammedanism wou known. Ho further sought to If this word, meaning resignation, jjl. the Ave cardinal points of the vo.j faith. Tho first of theso polnti tho brief creed, "Theio Is no Oo pln. Allah, and Mohammed Is his pro; ome thcr four enjoined prayer, i lUgh of aims, tho fast of Ramadan an any grlmago to Mecca, the Another significant parallel be Christianity and Mohammcdanli nnj that both nro the religions of ml ting of pooplo of races alien to th 0f their founders. Christ was a own Mohammed was an Arab. It 1 ( n Mohammedanism modified by end Turkish temperament nnd nutlo: thcr that has clashed with western ci' Hon ln recent centuries. It," Most misleading of all tho tilt vlth about Mohammedanism, howovc oily the tacit assumption that the M to medan world Is a religious unit to long way off, the sects and g Bey. 'ado away. In reality thero an No great branches of Mohnmracda the the Sunnltcs and the Shlltes. A icse both thoso branches, and also ot tin' them, thero are sharply drawn i i to nBCS. ?lth Sultan Didn't Rule All. find Recent caliphs, who lmvo bee: In't sultans of Turkey, have claimed I'll Itual supremacy over tho Moha log- dan world of Borne 300,000,000 But ln uctual fact the sultan of T nee bad llttlo moro spiritual ascent lor- over tho Mohammedans outside Ti llko than the king of England tins ovc nde Episcopalians In the United State " fact thero would be no urgent ild. East problem at this moment hit )cr leadership been recognized on tin ore er jldo of tho Bosporus In Asia J enl A very Important difference but on the western mind nnd the Mt ero medun viewpoint bus, hitherto, edg eluded n spiritual nscendnncy in ers which would cut across nil Un der temporal power and Include oven Its rinx nations. Tho Mohammcdiu s n no priests. Islam Is one of the tor. pragmatic of religions. Hcrctofc Iny. a caliph did not rule ho was up caliph. A spiritual ruler up to an) has been incomprehensible to the I cm mind. And It remains to be hlg. whether tho radical step taken b Iter Turkish Nationalists In sotting caliph shorn of temporal powei bed tccompllsli n permanent change. Ing temporal rulers primarily, ci r,re. naturally havo sought to mlo b me. "word- Tho Mohammedan's religion nt mid I'iw go hand ln hand. Moluimme Pro- a lnw giver, not only In the h but nlso ln the Justinian sense, it?" are ns mnny codes of lnw i rap- Mohnmmedans as tlioiy nre sects ns many Hinds of lawyers ns the codes. Among the Sunnltes. the dox major division of Islam, the four schools of lnw. A Iliinullte I as soon ongnge n Mnlnklte lnwj u n Presbyteiinn congregation wui t llkoly to employ n Unitarian pro Tho very word "caliph" has lurement which dates hack to J hood days when ono lived among fantastic Arabian nights at the ' iWisimifSMiissft on of ycnra n renumg of the historical facts from nuout the cpllphnte furnishes no fewer ph of tl'rMI thnn tho Immortnl tales, chap- T,ie Early Caliphs, nlsm. When Mohammed died hls counselor, ltlon- Abu Bckr, tho companion of his flight, niilly or Hcglra, becamo cnllph, meaning, lit- d his orally, successor. Abu Bekr means wing '"father of tho virgin." Ho wns Mo- vably hnnimed's father-in-law. Tho second entsj cnllph, or successor, wns Omar, anoth- sepa- cr fnthor-ln-law of tho prophet, who that otartcd organizing armies and began many spreading Islam over ths map In a i not vcry literal sense. Omar was the first ms- to hear tho title Emir nl Moumcnln, iodan 'Trlnce of tho Faithful." many From tho first, All, husband of Mo- ,'clop- hammed's daughter, Fntlraa, considered consid-ered himself the logical successor to no of tho caliphate. Not until Abu Bekr and ivcral Omar had ruled, and another caliph, orld's Othman, hnd his dny and had been Elons. murdered as was Omar before him, did ) tho All becomo caliph. Both Certainly Mohammedanism can bo tuous termed emphatically a "man's re- )f tho Uglon." Yet at this early date two women wcro tho moving spirits In ilckly splitting It Into the Sunnlto and Shllto irene. divisions which have prevailed ever r has since. Ayesha, favorlto wife of the if tho prophet, always had been Jealous of e em- bis daughter, Futlma, and on the sue- jpply. cession of Fatlma's husband directed which oil her efforts upon an antt-AU party. Id bo Meantime Uie group which, all along, mako bad regarded Alt as tho legitimate sue- Imply ccssor, gained strength during his rule ) now but were kept busy fighting to hold i was tho sway Omar had established, id but When All's son and successor, Has phot" Ban, wns murdered, probably by ths giving hand of hls wifo at ' tho behest of id pil- Monwlynh, tills Moawlyah assumed the caliphate, removed its seat to Damns- twecn cus, nnd begnn tho sorlos ot rulers im Is known ns Ommladcs. Henceforth tho llllons Shlltes wcro alienated from the Sun- at of nltcs, or orthodox Mohammedans, bo- Jew; causo of their roverenco for All and s the Hassan, and their belief that tho first tho of the Ommladcs and his successors nnllty were usurpers and pretenders. Arabian flllza- nnd Persian Mohammedans Inclined- toward the Shllto faction, islons Iraq's First Rebellion, rr, Is Away back ln the days of the sue mam- ce&wr to Moawlyah the Inhabitants ot Seen Irn, rebelled tho same Iraq which roups only a year or so ago launched out 3 two ngaln on Its national course' after" nlsm, electing Emir Felsal as king. Felsal mong Is tho third son of tco Grand Sheriff itslde of Mecca. clcav- It was during another scries of call photcs, that of the Abbasld monarchs, thnt Hnrun-nl-Rashld ruled. And It a tho was after hls reign that the division splr- 01 the callphnto among hls three sons mine- made the callphato Into n sort of corn-souls, corn-souls, mission form of government. Ono son urkey wns to hold sway over Arabia and hincy Syria; nnothor In Persln nnd Turko-urkoy Turko-urkoy ftn md n third ln Asia Minor nnd !r tho tho BInck sen region, ss. In At nnothcr time, townrd the end of Nenr tho tenth century, Bngdnd, Cnlro nnd d his Cordovn, Spnln, nil wore tho scnts of soth- sepnrnto ruling caliphs; though this Ilnor. w'iib no nmtnble division, Each cnllph ween declared the other n heretic and held ilium- himself the lono bend of nil Islnm. I)ro. How Ahul Abhns, first of tho Abba-Islam Abba-Islam B'1 moiinrchs, hnd every living mnlo cs of of tho Ominlndes thrown Into prison, war- killed them all, and then gave a ban- i bus Quel on a great cloth thrown over their most bones, Is but one example of tho fan-ire fan-ire If tustlc cruelty of the centuries-long n't n strugglo to he cnllph. now The story of the cnllphnte would fill . Mos- has filled volumes. The assumption i seen of the title by the sultans of Turkey y the Is a modern nnd perhnps n minor up n chapter In the struggle to bo "Tho : will Successor" and thus to hold sway over , Be- this mighty force of Islam. Points of nit pi) s special Interest nre thnt force often y the hns played n major part ln assumption assump-tion of the role, thnt there hnvo been id his several caliphs both by mutuul agree- d was ,nent nnd nlso by rivalry, and thnt nc-Insnlc nc-Insnlc Quiring the title of cnllph by no means |