138 r Mark S. Wagner
the Kuhlānī Synagogue emboldened those opposed to his rule. This sug-
gestion, in turn, leads to the conclusion that the synagogue controversy
hastened the end of the Zaydī imāmate in Yemen.^58
Appendix: The Problem of the Synagogue Waq f
In Islamic law, the establishment of a waq f (a pious endowment) depends
on its founder performing an act pleasing to God (qurbah). Whether or
not a non-Muslim is capable of performing acts pleasing to God, and
therefore is able to establish a waq f, is a debatable point. Among Sunnī
jurists, the idea that a non-Muslim might establish a waq f to benefit the
poor or his progeny was inoffensive. Indeed, non-Muslims in the Otto-
man Empire appeared before Sharī ̔ah courts to establish waq fs.^59 Never -
theless, the possibility that a non-Muslim house of worship, an institution
devoted to the propagation of unbelief (kufr), might be considered waq f
property posed a problem for Sunnīs. Therefore, it is illegal to designate
a synagogue as a waq f.^60
The Zaydī law manuals disagree on the issue of whether non-Muslims
could establish waq fs. (Both agree that non-Muslim houses of worship
cannot be waq fs). The Sharh al-azhār stipulates as one of the five prereq-
uisites for a person who wants to establish a waq f that he must be a Zaydī
Muslim.^61 A commentary adds: “for [establishing a pious endowment] is
a deed pleasing to God and unbelievers never perform acts pleasing to
God” (li-annahu qurbah wa-lā qurbah li-kāfir).^62 In contrast, the Bahr al-
zakhkhār argues that non-Muslims can establish other types of waq fs. It
explained:
A waq f may be established for the ahl al-dhimmah, for they perform
deeds pleasing to God (fīhim qurbah), as God said, “God did not
forbid you.. .” (Q 60:8) but not for their churches and synagogues
and its servants... [and] not for the Torah and the Gospels due to
their having been abrogated. (italics added).^63The nineteenth-century jurist Muhammad b. ̔Alī al-Shawkānī, whose
influence was still felt among jurists in twentieth-century Yemen, explains
why the establishment of waq fs must be limited to Muslims:
As for the stipulation of Islam [for the founder], it has been estab-
lished that a waq f is an act pleasing to God that calls for a great