Saudi Caliphs

[Sir John A.]

Is it possible for the Saudis to become Caliphs? I don't know how the Caliphate selection process works but what if they became caliphs?

[Cherico]

All you need is the guts to say your a Cailiph and enough power
so people wont laugh when you say it.

[carlton_bach]

I think it is slightly more complex than that, but the Saud have enough tame ulemas to make it stick. Technically, you need the consent of the Muslim community, but I think we can count the Shiites and Druze out of that from the start. So this would be a strictly Sunni phenomenon, and I can't see many state-sponsored hierarchies in other countries going along with it. I guess that may be the main reason they haven't done it - 'Custodian of the Holy Sites' is a pretty much uncontested honour because they evidently are. If they call themselves Caliphs, people might (I'd say certainly in their majority would) disagree, and there is little more pathetic than a non-recognised religious leader. Just ask the sedevacantists.

[ninebucks]

The Saudis rose to power as anti-Caliphatists, they'd lose all credibility to everyone after fighting a campaign to dismantle the Ottoman Caliphate, they then established one of their own.

There were other dynasties who were in favour of keeping the Caliphate alive, but they did not have the support of Arab intellectuals and, more importantly, the British.