The Fatwa Department of Jordan is holding a competition this morning, where the winners are to be appointed as the new generation of Muftis.

At nine o’clock this morning, interested individuals were invited to hand in their applications at the department’s main branch in Al Urdon Street in Amman.

What does it take to become one of the city’s next Muftis? These are the department’s requirements:

1. The person must hold a Bachelor’s degree in Islamic Sciences and must have graduated at least five years ago.

2. The Bachelor’s must be from an accredited university.

3. The person must be a Jordanian national.

4. The person must be well-behaved.

Candidates will also be tested on the following:

Page 1: Jurisprudence and Personal Status

Page 2: Quran’s interpretation, Prophet's sayings, the unification of the holy books and explaining what Ajārūmīya is.

And then comes the interview, where candidates will be required to read parts of the Quran, where they will be expected it to recite it the “proper” way, before answering a series of general questions.

The Fatwa Department of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan was founded in 1921. However, a law was passed in 2006 in which the department was declared independent from the Ministry of Religious Endowments and other official bodies.

According to the Fatwa Department’s official website, the law determines the tasks and duties of the department as follows:

1. Supervising and organizing of fatwa affairs in the Kingdom.

2. Issuing fatwas on general and specific matters in accordance with the provisions of this law.

3. Preparing of the required research papers and Islamic studies on important matters and emerging issues.

4. Producing a periodic specialist academic journal concerned with the publication of reviewed academic research papers in Shari'ah and Islamic sciences and related fields.

5. Cooperating with scholars of Islamic law in the Kingdom and outside of it regarding fatwa affairs.

6. Offering opinions and advice in matters presented to it by state agencies.

This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition