What the anti-christ will look like. Anti-chrsit part 2. The Mahdi- The Islamic Messiah. ‘The Coming is Near’: New Eerie Iran Propaganda Vid Trumpets Imminent Return of 12th Imam. “New evidence has emerged that the Iranian government sees the current unrest in the Middle East as a signal that the Mahdi–or Islamic messiah–is about to appear.”
So begins an ominous report by CBN’s Erick Stakelbeck detailing a propaganda video reportedly “approved at the highest levels of the Iranian government.” That video explains “all the signs are moving into place — and that Iran will soon help usher in the end times.” The Occultation. Twelver[edit] In Twelver Shia Islam, the largest branch of the Shia faith, the twelfth imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi, went into Occultation in 873.
The Occultation is split into the Minor Occultation and the Major Occultation. Minor Occultation[edit] The Minor Occultation (Ghaybat al-Sughra) refers to the period when the Twelver Shia believe the Imam still maintained contact with his followers via deputies (Arab. an-nuwāb al-arbaʻa). During this period, from 874-941, the deputies represented him and acted as agents between him and his followers. Shia believe that in 873, after the death of his father al-`Askari, the eleventh Imam, the 12th Imam was hidden from the authorities of the `Abbasid caliphate as a precaution. When believers faced difficulty, they would write their concerns and send them to his deputy. Shi'a tradition holds that four deputies acted in succession:
Muhammad al-Mahdi. Followers of Sunni Islam and other minority Shias believe that the Mahdi has not yet been born, and therefore his exact identity is only known to Allah.
Aside from the Mahdi's precise genealogy, Sunnis accept many of the same hadiths Shias accept about the predictions regarding the Mahdi's emergence, his acts, and his universal Caliphate. Sunnis also have a few more Mahdi hadiths which are not present in Shia collections. The messianic belief in Mahdi helped Shias to tolerate unbearable situations to the level that without it the Shia religion might not have been able to survive persecutions in the course of history. It also acted as a moderating force among them by postponing political activities until the future coming of the Awaited Mahdi.[5] Birth and early life according to Twelver Shi`a[edit] In the biographies of Mahdi written by Shi`is themselves, it is hard to draw a line between hagiographical and historical works. Most scholars say Al Mahdi was born in 869 AD. Period[edit] Twelver. Twelvers, Twelver Shī'ite or Imamiyyah (Imami Shi'a Islam) (Arabic: اثنا عشرية, Athnā‘ashariyyah or Ithnā‘ashariyyah; Persian: شیعه دوازدهامامی, pronounced [ʃiːʔe-je dævɑzdæh emɑmiː]) is the largest branch of Shī'ī (Shi'a) Islam.
Adherents of Twelver Shī'ism are commonly referred to as Twelvers, which is derived from their belief in twelve divinely ordained leaders, known as the Twelve Imāms, and their belief that the Mahdi will be the returned Twelfth Imam who disappeared and is believed by Twelvers to be in occultation. A majority of Shī'a Muslims are Twelvers. The term Shi'a Muslim may also be used to refer to Zaydis and Ismailis. People of the Twelver faith form a majority in Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan and Bahrain, and form a plurality in Lebanon and form a significant minority in Kuwait.
The Twelve Imams. The Twelve Imams are the spiritual and political successors to the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Twelver or Ithna-‘ashariyyah branch of Shia Islam and in Alevi Islam.[1] According to the theology of Twelvers, the Twelve Imams are infallible human individuals who not only ruled over the community with justice, but also were able to keep and interpret sharia and the esoteric meaning of the Quran.
Muhammad and Imams' words and deeds are a guide and model for the community to follow; as a result, they must be free from error and sin, and must be chosen by divine decree, or nass, through the Prophet.[2][3] It is believed by Twelver Shia Muslims that the Twelve Imams were foretold in the Hadith of the Twelve Successors. According to Twelvers, there is always an Imam of the Age, who is the divinely appointed authority on all matters of faith and law in the Muslim community. List of Imams[edit] See also[edit] [edit] ^ Jump up to: a b c "Shi'ite". References[edit] Encyclopædia Britannica Online.