Rabi' al-Madkhali

Sheikh
Rabi' bin Hadi al-Madkhali
Personal life
Born1933 (1933)
Jarradiyah, Samtah Governorate, Saudi Arabia
Died (aged 92)
Madinah, Saudi Arabia
Notable works
  • Al-`Awaasim mimaa fi Kutub Sayyid Qutb min al-Qawaasim (A refutation of Sayyid Qutb’s writings)
  • Manhaj al-Anbiya fi al-Da'wa ila Allah (The methodology of the prophets in calling to Allah)
EducationIslamic University of Madinah
Known forMadkhalism
OccupationIslamic scholar,[1]
University professor[2]
Websitehttp://rabee.net/
Religious life
ReligionIslam
JurisprudenceHanbali
CreedAthari
MovementWahhabism
Muslim leader
Disciple of

Rabi' bin Hadi 'Umayr al-Madkhali (Arabic: ربيع بن هادي عمير المدخلي, romanized: Rabiʿ bin Hādī ʿUmayr al-Madkhalī; 1933 – 9 July 2025) was a Saudi Arabian Islamic scholar and professor at the Islamic University of Madinah, where he headed the Sunnah Studies Department.[3][2][4] He remained active throughout his life in the field of Islamic scholarship and daʿwah. He is most widely known for founding the Madkhali movement.[5] U.S. policymakers and senior advisors to the U.S. Department of State have also reportedly advised the U.S. government to fund al-Madkhali and his strain of thought.[6]

Biography

Education and career

Rabīʿ al-Madkhali began seeking knowledge in his village Banu Shabil from Ahmad bin Muhammad Jabir Al-Madkhali and Muhammad bin Jabir Al-Madkhali after he turned eight years old.[7] His teacher before his study at the 'Ma’had al-’Ilmi' in Samtah was Nasir Khalufah Mubaraki (one of Abdullah ibn Muhammad Al-Qar’awi's students). After completing several classical Islamic texts with him, he started his education at the Ma’had al-’ilmi in Samtah. The most notable of his teachers were: Hafidh ibn Ahmed Ali al-Hakami, Muhammad bin Ahmad Al-Hakami, Ahmad bin Yahya Al-Najmi, Muhammad Aman Al-Jami' and Muhammad Saghir Al-Khamisi.[8]

In 1961, he entered the Faculty of Sharia at Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University in Riyadh for two months and then switched to the Faculty of Sharia at the Islamic University of Madinah, where his teachers included former Mufti of Saudi Arabia, Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz, Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani, Abdul-Muhsin Al-Abbad, Muhammad Amin Al-Shanqiti, Saleh Al-Iraqi and Abdul-Ghaffar Hasan Al-Hindi.[8] He graduated four years later with excellence. After working at the University, he returned to complete his higher education. He received his master's degree after publishing his thesis, ″Between imams Muslim and Daruqutni″ and achieved his doctorate with distinction with his dissertation. After completing his Doctorate at Umm al-Qura in 1980, Madkhali returned to the Islamic University of Madinah where he taught at the Faculty of Hadith and later became the head of the Department of Sunnah in the Department of Higher Studies. He held the chair until his retirement in the mid-1990s.[9]

Having been an opponent of the House of Saud[10][11] but then having turned strongly pro-establishment by the early 1990s, the Saudi government promoted al-Madkhali to lead a countermovement against growing criticisms of the Kingdom's socioeconomic ills, late deliveries of farm subsidies and normalization of ties with Israel on the condition of a Palestinian state.[12] After the Gulf War had concluded, Madkhali distributed a booklet justifying the decision of the Saudi Arabian government to allow the presence of U.S. troops on Arabian soil and criticizing rival controversial radical cleric Safar Al-Hawali for the latter's opposition to the government's decision.[13] In 2016, he issued a fatwa calling upon "the Salafis of Libya" to rebel against the UN-recognized Government of National Accord in favor of Khalifa Haftar, who has been described as "Libya's most potent warlord".[14]

Reception

He was praised by fellow scholars such as Ibn Baz, Ibn Uthaymin,[15] al-Wadi'i and al-Albani, who described him as the "imam of criticism and praise" (Arabic: إمام الجرح والتعديل, romanized: Imam al-Jarḥ wa al-Tad’īl), although he himself later rejected the title.[2][16][17][18] He has also received praise from other contemporary Salafist scholars such as Saleh Al-Fawzan, and the former Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia.[1][19] Roel Meijer notes that some analysts view Madkhali's followers as having an obsession with his defense and continuously cite scholarly praise of him as a mechanism "for maintaining, defending and enhancing this authority", which is contested by Madkhali's detractors.[20]

Ibn Jibreen criticized him, saying: "Rabi' al-Madkhali's statements regarding al-Jarh wal-Ta'dil are not acceptable, as he has errors in his books that demonstrate his ignorance or disregard of what he says!..Therefore, their statements about one another are not to be accepted, and we must strive to make peace between them."[21]

Political scientist Gilles Kepel has described Madkhali as being the perfect example of pro-regime "court scholars" in the Middle East, as opposed to more radical trends within the Salafist movement.[22] In contrast to his early opposition to the Saudi Arabian government, Madkhali is now considered one of the Saudi royal family's staunchest defenders.[9][10][23][24][25] While politically quietest within his own country, Madkhali has supported violent conflict in other areas, having called on Muslims both inside and outside Indonesia to participate in the Maluku sectarian conflict.[26][27][28][29]

Analysts and policymakers in the US noted that while covertly backing figures like Madkhali could serve as a short-term countermeasure against militant groups. In a report by CTC Westpoint, an academic institution at the United States Military Academy, Jarret Brachman and William McCants wrote: wrote:

The U.S. could discretely fund mainstream Salafi figures like Madkhali who are effective in siphoning off support from jihadis and who do not advocate violence (e.g. by paying for publications, lectures, new schools).[6]

Madkhali's source of religious authority within the Salafist movement is unclear. He has not been involved with official religious bodies of the Saudi government, does not belong to the significant line of 20th-century Salafist scholars including Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz and Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani, and has been described as below the level of contemporaries such as Muhammad ibn al Uthaymeen or Saleh Al-Fawzan.[30]

Students

Rabiʿ was known for his works in "al-Jarh wa at-Ta'dil" (criticism and praise). His teachings became widely spread in Salafi circles. His known students include:

Works

Al-Madkhali's collected works

Rabīʿal-Madkhali had authored over 30 works in the field of Hadith and Islamic sciences, much of which has been compiled into a 15 volume set In 1984,[33] the book which brought him fame in the Saudi religious field, 'Manhaj Al-Anbiyah Fi Da’wah Ila Allah' (The Methodology of the Prophets in Calling to Allah), caused controversy over Al-Madkhali's criticisms of the Muslim Brotherhood and their methods in Muslim missionary work.[34] According to Lacroix, Al-Madkhali prioritized correcting Islamic creed and following scholars who hold that abandoning obligations isn't disbelief unless denied-an idea linked to early Murji'ah views,[35] whereas the Muslim Brotherhood's initial focus was on political reform.[34] Some observers state that Al-Madkhali is most noted for his works against Islamic thinker Sayyid Qutb.[36] Of his four books on Sayyid Qutb, 'Adhwa Islamiyyah ala aqidat Sayyid Qutb wa fikrihi' is considered the most important.[37] His other authorships include:

  • “Bainal-Imāmain Muslim Wad-Daruqutnī” – “Between the Two Imams: Muslim and Ad-Dar Qutni.” And this was one large volume which was the thesis of his Magistrates degree.
  • “An-Nukat ‘Ala Kitāb Ibn Salāh” – “Points Upon the Book of Ibn Salāh.” Published in 2 volumes and it was his PhD thesis.
  • “Manhajul-Anbiyā’ Fid-Da’wah IlAllāh Fīhī Al-Hikmah Wal-‘Aql” – “The Methodology of the Prophets in Calling to Allāh: In it was Wisdom and Intellect”
  • “Manhaj Ahlus-Sunnah Fī Naqd Ar-Rijāl Wal-Kutub Wat–Tawā’if” – “The Methodology of The People of Sunnah in Criticism of Men, Books, and Groups.”
  • “Kashf Mawqif Al-Ghazālī Min As-Sunnah Wa-Ahlihā” – “Exposing Ghazālī’s Position Regarding the Sunnah and Its People.”
  • “Makānatu Ahlil-Hadīth” – “The Position of the People of Hadīth”
  • “Manhaj Al-Imām Muslim Fī Tartībi Sahīhihī” – “Al-Imām Muslim's Method in Ordering his Sahīh.”
  • “Adhwā’ Islāmiyyah ‘Alā ‘Aqīdah Sayyid Qutb wa Fikarihī” – “The Illumination of Islām Regarding the Creed of Sayyid Qutb and his Ideas.”
  • “Matā’in Sayyid Qutb fī As-hābi Rasūlillāh SallAllāhu Alaihi wa Sallam” – “The Slanders of Sayyid Qutb Upon the Companions of the Messenger of Allāh (H).”
  • “Al-Hadd Al-Fāsil Bainal-Haqq Wal-Bātil” – “The Distinct Separation Between Truth and Falsehood,” which was part of critical dialogue between him and Bakr Abū Zaid
  • “Jamā’ah Wāhidah Lā Jamā’āt; Wa Sīrat Wāhid Lā ‘Asharāt” – “One Jamā’ah – Not Many Jamā’ahs; and One Path – Not Tens of Paths,” which was part of a critical dialogue with ‘Abdur-Rahmān ‘Abdul-Khāliq.[1]

Death

Rabīʿal-Madkhali died in Madinah on 9 July 2025, at the age of 92. His janazah was performed after Fajr, at the Prophet's Masjid in Madinah on 10 July. It was led by Khaled al-Muhanna, an imam of the Prophet's Mosque.[38][39] His will stresses adherence to the Quran, Sunnah, and the path of the early generations as essential for the Ummah’s success.[40]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Abdul-Wahid, Abu Khadeejah (5 February 2018). "Biography of Ash-Shaykh Al-Allāmah Rabī' Ibn Hādī Al-Madkhalī and the Praise of the Scholars for him". Abu Khadeejah : أبو خديجة. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Sheikh Rabi’ Ibn Haadi ‘Umayr Al Madkhali. The Muslim 500: The World's Most Influential Muslims
  3. ↑ "Rabee Ibn Haadi 'Umayr Al-Madkhali". The Muslim 500. 30 May 2018. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
  4. ↑ Trauthig, Inga Kristina; Eyre, Guy Robert (29 October 2023). "'Quietist' Salafis after the 'Arab revolts' in Algeria and Libya (2011–2019): Between insecurity and political subordination". Mediterranean Politics. 30: 78–101. doi:10.1080/13629395.2023.2272474. ISSN 1362-9395.
  5. ↑ Saad, Mohamed (5 September 2024). Conditional Inclusion: Resource Distribution and Islamist Moderation During the Arab Uprisings. Ethics International Press Limited. p. 54. ISBN 9781804417744.
  6. 1 2 Brachman, Jarret M.; McCants, Willam F. (February 2006). "Stealing Al-Qa'ida's Playbook". Studies in Conflict and Terrorism. 29 (4): 317. doi:10.1080/10576100600634605. S2CID 109531443.
  7. ↑ Meijer, R., "Politicizing al-jarh wal-ta'dil p.377
  8. 1 2 Roel Meijer, "Politicizing al-jarh wa-l-ta'dil: p.377.
  9. 1 2 Lacroix, pg. 212.
  10. 1 2 George Joffé, Islamist Radicalisation in Europe and the Middle East: Reassessing the Causes of Terrorism, pg. 317. London: I.B. Tauris, 2013.
  11. ↑ Stephane Lacroix, Awakening Islam, pgs. 102 and 212. Trns. George Holoch. Cambridge: President and Fellows of Harvard College, 2011.
  12. ↑ Sherifa Zuhur, Saudi Arabia, pg. 66. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2011. ISBN 9781598845716
  13. ↑ Mansoor Jassem Alshamsi, Islam and Political Reform in Saudi Arabia: The Quest for Political Change and Reform, pg. 111. London: Routledge, 2010. ISBN 9781134126538
  14. ↑ International Crisis Group, Addressing the Rise of Libya's Madkhali-Salafis, pg. 14. Brussels: United States Department of Justice
  15. ↑ Roel Meijer, Politicizing al-jarh wa-l-ta'dil p.380 & 386
  16. ↑ Roel Meijer, Global Salafism: Islam's New Religious Movement, pg. 49. New York: Columbia University Press, 2009.
  17. ↑ Omayma Abdel-Latif, "Trends in Salafism." Taken from Islamist Radicalisation: The Challenge for Euro-Mediterranean Relations, pg. 74. Eds. Michael Emerson, Kristina Kausch and Richard Youngs. Brussels: Centre for European Policy Studies, 2009. ISBN 9789290798651
  18. ↑ Meijer, "Politicizing," pg. 380.
  19. ↑ Abdul-Wahid, Abu Khadeejah (5 February 2018). "Biography of Ash-Shaykh Al-Allāmah Rabī' Ibn Hādī Al-Madkhalī and the Praise of the Scholars for him". Abukhadeejah.com. Archived from the original on 5 March 2021.
  20. ↑ Meijer, "Politicizing," pg. 381.
  21. ↑ شريط الأسئلة السنية لعلاّمة الديار اليمنية، أسئلة شباب الطائف
  22. ↑ Gilles Kepel, The War for Muslim Minds: Islam and the West, pg. 253. Cambridge: Belknap Press, 2004. Trns. Pascale Ghazaleh. ISBN 0674015754
  23. ↑ Stephane Lacroix, pg. 212.
  24. ↑ NATO Science for Peace and Security, Suicide as a Weapon, pg. 18. Amsterdam: IOS Press, 2007. ISBN 9781586037956
  25. ↑ Natana DeLong-Bas, Wahhabism: Oxford Bibliographies Online Research Guide, pg. 8. Oxford University Press, 2011.
  26. ↑ Noorhaidi Hasan, Laskar Jihad, pg. 151. Ithaca: Cornell Southeast Asia Program, 2006.
  27. ↑ Muhammad Najib Azza, "Communal Violence in Indonesia and the Role of Foreign and Domestic Networks." Taken from Conflict, Community, and Criminality in Southeast Asia and Australia, pg. 25. Eds. Arnaud De Borchgrave, Thomas M. Sanderson and David Gordon. Washington, D.C.: Center for Strategic and International Studies, 2009.
  28. ↑ Andrew T. H. Tan, A Handbook of Terrorism and Insurgency in Southeast Asia, pg. 149. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2007.
  29. ↑ Rohan Gunaratna, Inside Al Qaeda: global network of terror, pg. 201. Volume 3 of the University of St Andrews' Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence series. London: C. Hurst & Co., 2002.
  30. ↑ Roel Meijer, "Politicizing al-jarh wa-l-ta'dil: Rabi b. Hadi al-Madkhali and the transnational battle for religious authority." Taken from The Transmission and Dynamics of the Textual Sources of Islam: Essays in Honor of Harald Motzki, pg. 377. Eds. Nicolet Boekhoff-van der Voort, Kees Versteegh and Joas Wagemakers. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 2011.
  31. ↑ Abu Khadeejah (22 November 2016). "Is Shaikh Al-Allāmah Abdullah Al-Bukharee an 'Ālim (a Scholar)? Shaikh Ubaid Comments on Shaikh Rabee, Muhammad Ibn Hadee and Abdullah Al-Bukharee". AbuKhadeejah.com. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  32. ↑ "Who Did You Study Under? - Abu Hakeem Bilal Davis". Salafi Audio UNLIMITED. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  33. ↑ Zafiri, K., "Thabt mu'allafat al-shaykh Rabi b. Hadi al-Madkhali" [Meijer says to see this book in 'Politicizing al-jarh wa-l-ta'dil' p.380].
  34. 1 2 Lacroix p.212
  35. ↑ "سائل يقول: هل في نفي العمل الذي يختص بالأركان الأربعة يعتبر نفي جنس العمل ويكون مرجئاً؟ وهل جنس العمل محصور في الأركان الأربعة عدا الشهادتين؟". العلامة الشيخ ربيع بن هادي عمير المدخلي (in Arabic). Retrieved 29 April 2026.
  36. ↑ Allen, Lisa M. (2011). "The Philosophy of Sayyid Qutb Will Persist as Al Qaeda's Intellectual Heritage". Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses. 3 (6): 7–9. ISSN 2382-6444. JSTOR 26350986.
  37. ↑ Roel Meijer, Politicizing al-jarh wa-l-ta'dil p.386
  38. ↑ الوسط, بوابة. "وفاة الشيخ ربيع المدخلي و«أوقاف طرابلس» تنعيه". alwasat.ly (in Arabic). Retrieved 10 July 2025.
  39. ↑ "سبب وفاة الشيخ ربيع المدخلي وموعد جنازته وسيرته الذاتية الكاملة - النصر الإخباري" (in Arabic). 9 July 2025. Retrieved 10 July 2025.
  40. ↑ "The Will of Shaykh al-'Allāmah Rabīʿ ibn Hādī ʿUmayr al-Madkhalī (may Allah have mercy on him)". Rabee (in Arabic). 10 July 2025. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
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