“Shared beliefs” does not mean they’re a monolithic group that all falls under the same authority. There are several sects of Islam, and Islam tends to be non-hierarchical (if often bad about separation of church and state). A fatwa is far less binding than one might presume – in some sects, it is completely non-binding, simply a statement of opinion, on the level of a local preacher declaring that flu shots are sinful. For the most part, Muslims choose which scholars to pay attention to.
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