BEIRUT & DOHA (IslamOnline) - The Islamic world lost two prominent scholars Wednesday - Sunni Sheikh Muhammad Saleh ibn 'Uthaimeen, and Shiite Imam Mahdi Shams al-Din.
Renowned scholar Sheikh 'Uthaimeen passed away Wednesday evening in Makkah. His funeral will take place today (Thursday) in Makkah after Asr prayer.
Qatari Prince appointed Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi to give the eulogy for Sheikh Uthaimeen.
Imam Muhammad Mahdi Shams al-Din, president of the most influential Shiite grouping in Lebanon, passed away at the age of 67 after a long battle with lung cancer.
After being extensively treated for the disease in France, al-Din was transferred to a hospital in Beirut a week prior to his passing.
His funeral will commence after Jumauh prayers on Friday in an informal gathering.
Islamic institutions will be closed Thursday in respect for the deceased.
Imam Shams al-Din was considered a top scholar in religion and Islamic thought, as well as a devoted Lebanese leader. He was well known for his extensive knowledge of Islam, as well as his broad interpretations of other religions, and was known for his fair and balanced interest in the sunna.
He was appointed to the Shiite presidency in 1994, and had approximately 40 published works in Islamic Fiqh and political thought, including "The Order of Administration and Law in Islam," published when he was 21.
Al-Din is believed to have been born in Madinat Al Najf, Iraq in 1933, remaining a student of religious science there for 35 years. Later, he became a professor there before leaving for Lebanon in 1969.
