Sunni theology may be characterized as more concerned with 'rational' aspects of the faith and Shi'ite theology with the 'mystical', in the sense that Sunni theology does not concern itself as much with esoteric questions as does Shi'ite theology. But here again Sufi doctrine, which is often combined with theology in the Sunni world, does provide an esoteric dimen-sion even in the exoteric domain. Also, Shi'ite theology is more sympathetic to the arts and sciences and the 'intellectual sciences' (al-'ulum al-'aqliyah) than is Ash'arite theology

Ideals and realities of Islam On page 179 Saturday, January 5, 2013 @ 4:45pm | Modified