The Essentials of Ibāḍī Islam

When writing about Islamic sectarian diversity, the vast majority of authorspay attention only to Sunni and Shi‘i Islam. Yet there exists a third groupdrawn from the earliest conflicts that rent the Muslim ummah apart: the Ibadis.If they are mentioned at all, it is usually little more than a footnote remarkingthat this group is the remnant of the Khariji secession in 657. Yet this thirdgroup – today predominant in Oman and Zanzibar, with populations also inAlgeria, Libya, and Tunisia – played an important political and theologicalrole in the immediate post-Prophetic period. Due to this word’s negative connotation,however, Ibadis do not refer to themselves as Kharijis, a group historicallyviewed as religious extremists by other Muslims. Instead, “Ibadi”comes from the enigmatic Abdullah ibn Ibad/Abad who died early in theeighth century, although, as the author notes, it is likely that his successor Jabiribn Zayd played a more important role in founding the group.Addressing the dearth of English-language resources on Ibadi beliefs, ValerieJ. Hoffman has written The Essentials of Ibāḍī Islam in “an attempt tointroduce Ibadi Islamic theology to students and scholars of Islam” (p. 4) – atask in which she succeeds admirably. Her book is primarily a translation ofa theological primer and supplementary text, preceded by a short introductionon the origins and history of Ibadi Islam to orient the readers and prepare them ...