mujtahid

Mr. Saedi said he couldn't disclose whether Mr. Sadr has attained the stature of mujtahid, or learned cleric, which would convey the authority to issue fatwas, or edicts.

Shiite Cleric Sadr Returns to Iraq Sam Dagher 2011

Montazeri, although he is respected because he is a mujtahid [the highest rank achievable in Shia religious training], does not have much of a following here.

Ali A. Rizvi: An Exclusive Interview with a Pro-Ahmadinejad Cleric in Qom, Iran 2009

You on the other hand live in Qom, and are a few years shy of being a religious scholar at the highest (mujtahid) rank.

Ali A. Rizvi: An Exclusive Interview with a Pro-Ahmadinejad Cleric in Qom, Iran 2009

The late Shaheed Muttahari, who was considered to be ... well, you can think of him as number 2 to Imam Khomeini, also suggested the idea of having a mujtahid council.

Ali A. Rizvi: An Exclusive Interview with a Pro-Ahmadinejad Cleric in Qom, Iran 2009

My impression is that the Iranian Shia fundamentalists, presumably including their mujtahid leadership, believe that the ensuing war would hasten the way toward the Last Day when the Twelth Imam, The Mahdi, would reappear to cleanse the world of evil.

Politicians and Critics Sean 2008

In which case, the question becomes, who should be a mujtahid (one who applies ijtahid)?

Regarding Ijtihad JDsg 2006

In which case, the question becomes, who should be a mujtahid (one who applies ijtahid)?

Archive 2006-09-01 JDsg 2006

But his entire monarchy was formulated solely to help the British stem a tide of unrest, initiated by a fatwa issued by the grand mujtahid of Karbala which declared that it was wrong for Muslims to be governed by non-Muslims.

Think Progress » VIDEO: Schmidt’s Shame 2005

He clung to the notion that the Safavid ruler was sacred and infallible, and disputed openly with members of the Shi’ite religious establishment who had begun to articulate the idea that in the absence of the hidden twelfth imam, true temporal authority rightly belonged to the mujtahid, who merited emulation by the faithful.

1642-66 2001

Was it not, he might well ponder, this same _Sh_áh Abbás the Great who had been arrogantly addressed by another mujtahid as “the founder of a borrowed empire,” implying that the kingdom of the “king of kings” really belonged to the expected Imám, and was held by the _Sh_áh solely in the capacity of a temporary trustee?

The Promised Day Is Come 1897-1957 Shoghi Effendi 1927