I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. To clarify church teachings and practices I want to say a few things. The church does not feel threatened by the preaching of other Faiths. We are taught to honor the religions of the world and not to contend with them. Acts 5:38. Our church employs a lay clergy. The leaders both local and general are not called to authority for their scholarly attainments, as valuable as those are. One of the articles of the church states: 5 We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof. This is the premise of my inquiry. In Christianity there are innumerable sects and denominations, including so called non-denominational. I know nothing practically of Islam but I am assuming that there is a like diversity of sects. My problem with all of that is that God (Ala) could not have called all of these various preachers. Whether Christian or Muslim, the various preachers are all in more or less conflict with each other. God (Ala) surely teaches one truth and could not have called any two men that are in conflict one with another. God's Prophets are all in agreement in what is true doctrine, right? So the question I have is this: Who is the authority in Islam to expound doctrines and teach the way? And what gives them authority or precedence over all the rest of those who preach? And I might add, who is the final word on matters of debate in Islam, and of course where do they receive authority? My question is not a matter of contention, but of sincere interest as to how this might be answered. With love and respect, Steven E Knudson