Schools of Islamic theology

Schools of Islamic theology are various Islamic schools and branches in different schools of thought regarding aqidah (creed). According to Muhammad Abu Zahra, Qadariyah, Jahmis, Murji'ah, Muʿtazila, Batiniyya, Ash'ari, Maturidi, Athari are the ancient schools of aqidah.

The main split between Sunni and Shia Islam was initially more political than theological, but over time theological differences have developed. Still, differences in aqidah occur as divisions orthogonal to the main divisions in Islam along political or fiqh lines, such that a Muʿtazili might, for example, belong to Ja'fari, Zaidi or even Hanafi school of jurisprudence.

Aqidah is an Islamic term meaning "creed" or "belief". Any religious belief system, or creed, can be considered an example of aqidah. However this term has taken a significant technical usage in Muslim history and theology, denoting those matters over which Muslims hold conviction. The term is usually translated as "theology". Such traditions are divisions orthogonal to sectarian divisions of Islam, and a Mu'tazili may for example, belong to Jafari, Zaidi or even Hanafi school of jurisprudence. One of the earliest systematic theological school to develop, in the mid 8th-century, was Mu'tazila. It emphasized reason and rational thought, positing that the injunctions of God are accessible to rational thought and inquiry and that the Qur'an, albeit the word of God, was created rather than uncreated, which would develop into one of the most contentious questions in Islamic theology.

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