Imams have a meaning more central to belief, referring to leaders of the community. In the Shi'a context, an imam is not only presented as the man of God par excellence, but as participating fully in the names, attributes, and acts that theology usually reserves for God alone. Main articles: Imamate in Shia doctrine and The Twelve Imams It may also refer to the Islamic scholars who created the analytical sciences related to Hadith or it may refer to the heads of Muhammad's family in their generational times. The term is also used for a recognized religious scholar or authority in Islam, often for the founding scholars of the four Sunni madhhabs, or schools of jurisprudence ( fiqh). The person that should be chosen, according to Hadith, is one who has most knowledge of the Quran and Sunnah (prophetic tradition) and is of good character. The position of women as imams is controversial. All mosques have an imam to lead the ( congregational) prayers, even though it may sometimes just be a member from the gathered congregation rather than an officially appointed salaried person. Friday sermon is most often given by an appointed imam. In everyday terms, an imam for Sunni Muslims is the one who leads Islamic formal ( Fard) prayers, even in locations besides the mosque, whenever prayers are done in a group of two or more with one person leading (imam) and the others following by copying his ritual actions of worship. Sunni Islam does not have imams in the same sense as the Shi'a, an important distinction often overlooked by those outside of the Islamic religion.

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