'The Supposed Spiritual Authority of the Caliph' [‎7r] (2/10)

The Supposed Spiritual Authority of the Caliph.
From Foreign Office to Sir R. Wingate, No. 1472, dated Srd Decethher 19.1 S".
Chief Political Officer at Baghdad has suggested that when Turkish Government
abandon teiupoial soveiei^nty over Iraq they should at the same time renounce all
claim to spiritual sovereignty, for example, in regard to pre-war functions of
Sheikh-ul-Islam.
I should be glad to receive your general observations on this proposal, and
also information as to the practical jurisdiction, if any, of the Sheikh-ul-Islam in
kgypt, and whether question has ever been opened or mentioned in any document.
From Sir E. Wingate to Foreign Office, No. 189 (? 4), dated 17th December 1918.
Office of Sheikh-ul-Islam does Hot exist in Egypt, although the title was given
colloquially to Rector of Azhar University, an Egyptian appointment. After the
grant of autonomy to Mahomet All Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. , the idea prevailed that the appointment
of cadis for Egypt was reserved to the Sultan of Turkey, There was apparently no
written authority for this idea, which was disputed by-Ismail Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. ; but since 1890
appointment of Grand Cadi has been made by the Sultan. Nury Effendi, last
Grand Cadi, arrived in 1912 with firman A Persian word meaning a royal order or decree issued by a sovereign, used notably in the Ottoman Empire (sometimes written ‘phirmaund’). which was subsequently registered in Egypt.
He left this country in 1914 on the outbreak of war with Turkey, since when the
functions of Grand Cadi have been discharged by the two Egyptian cadis. Eormal
renunciation of all claims.to spiritual authority by the Sultan of Turkey would seem
to involve his relinquishment of Caliphate ; and to press for this might be regarded
as a contravention of our principle of not interfering in religious matters. Never
theless we should, I consider (? offer, omitted) firm resistance, and if necessary obtain
guarantees against, all actual manifestations of this authority—whether by appoint
ment and confirniation of cadis or otherwise—in non-Turkish territories.
NOTE BY D R . T. W. ARNOLD, C.I.E., L ITT .D.
The difficulty stated in this telegram would appear to be based on a misunder
standing as to the position of the Caliph in the Muhammadan world and the nature
of the office of the Shaikh-ul-Islam.
The Caliphate represents an ideal of the unity of the whole body of Muslims.
According to theory, the Caliph is the successor (or, representative) of Muhammad in
all his functions, governmental and religious (except that of the prophetic mission,
which is held to have ceased with the life of Muhammad himself). The duties of the
Caliph are defined by Mawardi (a great Muslim jurist who died in 1058), as follows :—
(a) The defence of the faith, (b) the decision of legal disputes, (c) the preservation of
public safety, (d) the punishment of wrong-doers, (e) the defence of the frontiers, (/)
warring against those who refuse to accept Islam or to submit to Muslim rule, (g) the
collection and administration of taxes, (h) the payment of salaries, (i) the appointment
of competent officials, and (j) personal attention to the details of government. These
principles, of course, represent only an ideal, and in practice most of these functions
were delegated to officials who by theory were supposed to derive their authority from
the Caliph. , . • p
In all this there is no reference to any spiritual authority, nor m fact has the
Caliph ever possessed any spiritual authority whatsoever. Muslim technology makes
the same distinctions between secular, religious and spiritual, as are current in
Europe, and the corresponding words dunyawl, dim, and ruhanl are found in Arabic,
Persian and Turkish. As in Christian literature, so in Islamic literature, the
W ord " spirit " (ruh) is used in two distinct references, (i) psychological, for the
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