Examining Newman's Opinions about the Reasons for the Expulsion of Aḥmad ibn Muhammad ibn Khālid Barqī from Qum

Introduction
Considering the higher status of Qum Hadith school, its performance has always had a great impact on the views and behaviors of contemporary and later hadith scholars. One of these actions that occurred during a period of the Qum school was the expulsion of a number of muḥaddiths on the accusation of ghuluww (exaggeration) or quoting from ḍu'afā (weaknesses), and it is important to investigate this issue because this move is important due to the existence of many traditions entered by the expelled people in the traditional collections and Shi'a authenticity has brought consequences such as denial and doubt in accepting some concepts and content reached by these people throughout the history of hadith transmission, and caused Orientalists including Newman to research and express their opinion in this regard. Therefore, scientific investigation and conclusion in this regard is necessary and important in the field of Shia hadith research.
Materials and methods
Most of the Shia muḥaddith scholars and Rijalis have raised this point as the main reason related to the issue of his expulsion from Qum, based on what Najāshī said about Aḥmad Barqī regarding his characteristic of quoting the ḍu'afā and trusting the Marāsīl. Also, some people believe that some scientific, political and economic affiliations of Aḥmad Barqī to the currents opposed to the Ash'ari government were the main reason for this action. Newman also in his book, the Formative period of Twelver Shi'ism; Hadith as Discourse between Qum and Baghdad, in addition to its discussions, examined this issue as a thought-provoking event in that era and considered the above words as a possibility and a weak reason in this regard. Newman considers the ignorance of the nascent Shiite community of Qum at that time about the issue of the absence of the 'Asr Imam (as) and their religious beliefs regarding the early appearance of the absent Imam (as) while he is still a young person, the basis for the non-acceptance and non-acceptability of Aḥmad Barqī's work and, accordingly, Aḥmad Ash'ari's action in expelling him from Qum. In this research, taking into account the historical evidence as well as numerous traditions from the innocents (pbuh) over many years in the field of raising awareness and preparing the Shia community to accept the issue of the absence of the last Imam (as) and related issues, Newman's theories were reviewed in this regard. In this research, the non-scientific nature of Newman's theory will be determined by the descriptive and analytical method and by referring to the historical evidence and traditionals in the field of raising awareness of the ghaybat issue by the innocents (pbuh).
Results and findings
At first, by studying Aḥmad Barqī's biography in Imamiya's Rijali books, we notice a series of inconsistencies in the quoted statements about his personality. Therefore, with a more detailed and reflective look, the causes of these differences in the traditions about the character of Aḥmad Barqī, as well as the events that happened regarding his expulsion, should be investigated. Another point worthy of consideration is that the breadth of historical and literary knowledge of Aḥmad Barqī caused him to be accused of quoting weak people like other historians before him. Because when a muḥaddith turns to historical traditions, he will quote from many people to complete his work, and this is where those who do not agree with some of his traditions for various reasons such as belief, political, etc. they accuse him weaken; Therefore, for this reason that it is rare to find a historian in that era who was immune from the attacks of the scholars and therefore according to this article, one of the important reasons for the dismissal of Aḥmad Barqī should be considered the difference in his intellectual foundations with Aḥmad Ash'ari. Aḥmad Ash'ari's opposition to this kind of comprehensive and extensive approach of Aḥmad Barqī to hadiths was one of the main reasons for this action. Another important issue was the training of experts in the field of bureaucracy and matters related to the area and land surveying in that era, and this type of behavior and action of Aḥmad Barqī in training this people, having the ability and skill in calculating matters related to land and real estate, Considering the situation of the people of Qum at that time and their basic problems due to the pressures of the central government on collecting taxes from the land and how to calculate it, as Newman also mentions in several cases, it can be considered as one of the important factors. And he stated the groundwork in the matter of his expulsion from Qum by Aḥmad Ash'ari. And in general, the differences between the intellectual and religious, economic and political foundations between Aḥmad Ash'ari as the elder of Qummiyun and Aḥmad Barqī as one of the mawālī of this family can be considered as the foundation and one of the main causes in the case of Aḥmad Barqī's expulsion from Qum; According to Ash'ari, the factors that caused the disruption of the religious, political and economic integrity of the Shiite community of Qum in that sensitive situation, which later, after misunderstanding this decision, he took action to compensate for it.
Conclusion
Newman considers the ignorance of the Shiite community of Qum about the issue of the absence of the 'asr Imam (as) and their religious beliefs regarding the early appearance of the absent Imam (as) while he is still a young person, as the basis for the non-acceptance and non-acceptability of the work of Aḥmad Barqī and, accordingly, Aḥmad Ash'ari's action in expelling him from Qum. . By drawing the ecological environment of that society, he considered the issue of their acceptance of Aḥmad Barqī's return after the failure of his religious beliefs and, accordingly, the understanding of the importance of his work at that time to preserve the Shia society under siege with those harsh political and social conditions, as the reasons. However, considering the existing historical evidence and the numerous traditions received from the Prophet (pbuh) and Imams (as) in the matter of raising awareness, as well as his intellectual and practical groundwork for the Shia community during the years of the Imams' presence in order to correctly understand and accept the absence of the absent Imam (as), this theory of his is not acceptable.