Salam,
I endorse my Shaykh Faridov to represent Ahlul-Sunnah in a debate on Imamah.
Some things on that very long SC thread caught my attention, such as their mod saying this:
((Secondly, nothing is going to get resolved in any such debate, and so nothing good can come out of it. A 1400 year debate isn't going to get resolved in a couple of weeks over the internet, and no Sunni reading the debate here is going to get persuaded by any arguments you could bring. There is more danger that some Shias who have been brought up/converted on the 'Then I was guided' arguments will start to have doubts, than any Sunnis being convinced by any arguments from the Shia side. This is one of the reasons they want these debates.
Aside from that, you are also quite prone to doubts, so I'm not sure it would be a good idea to get involved in debates, at this point anyway.))
What does this show? Weakness of position? Weakness of beliefs? Why don't you strike us with your strongest `Aqli-n-Naqli arguments and cause us to doubt?
A mod says:
((I personally won't endorse anyone. It's not my business, what kind of request is this? ))
What do you mean "What kind of request is this?" This is a polite request for you to step up and have an intelligent debate and represent your sect's official stance on Ghadeer, Thaqalayn, Manzailah, Tayr and whatever else you think is solid evidence for `Ali's divine leadership.
Which is followed by:
((I am going to request that we close this forum during the Holy Month of Shahr Ramadan Kareem))
I see where this is going, so you're dragging this out until Ramadan to use it as an excuse to escape. Believe it or not, this is not the first time I've seen Shia use Ramadan as an exit.
A Shia struggling for the light says:
((I believe Sunnism is largely based on opposition to the merits of Ahlulbayt and their exalted status.))
This is refuted by the fact that we narrated many chains for many of `Ali's major merits. Is this how you're going to start the debate? If this is the quality of the arguments you'll be presenting then you'll fail I assure you.
He says:
((...Say: No wage do I ask for it except for the love of (my) near kin...42:23.
That verse is a sufficient proof of the Wilayah of the family of Mohammad but it takes a submitting and wakeful heart to accept the verse.
Would love to see how Farid would twist and turn to avoid it's clear meaning.))
We can prove that it doesn't mean what you think, we can also prove that your interpretation of it is ridiculous. I mean how silly of a faith this is (as pre your interpretation), when our Prophet (saw) addressed the Kouffar but didn't ask them to worship Allah, or believe in his oneness, or have good morals and treat others well, BUT (according to you) his only request was for the Kouffar to love his family.
So four pages and not ONE Shia has been endorsed by two people to begin the debate.