Ali Jaber

Childhood in Medina

Born in Jeddah with a twin brother, Salem, he was five when his father moved the family to Medina to be near its circles of learning. His father died when Ali was eleven, and he was raised by his mother and maternal uncle. He began memorising the Quran at the Princess Munira Mosque under Sheikh Rahmatullah Qari, and was then sent to the institute of the Charitable Society for Quran Memorisation, run by Sheikh Khalil ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Qari. There he completed the Quran at fifteen, in 1389 AH (1969), alongside Muhammad Ayyub, the future imam of the Prophet's Mosque. He also recited to Sheikh Bashir Ahmad Siddiq.

Education

He graduated from the College of Sharia at the Islamic University of Medina in 1396 AH (1976) with distinction. There he kept close company with Sheikh Abdulaziz ibn Baz, then president of the university, and with Sheikh Muhammad al-Mukhtar al-Shinqiti. At the Higher Judicial Institute in Riyadh he earned a master's degree (1400 AH) on the jurisprudence of Abdullah ibn Umar, then a doctorate (Ramadan 1407 AH, May 1987) on the jurisprudence of al-Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr.

Appointed a judge in Maysan, near Taif, he declined the post out of religious scruple. He then became a lecturer at the College of Education in Medina, a branch of King Abdulaziz University, and from 1410 AH a professor of comparative fiqh at the university's main campus in Jeddah.

Imam of the Grand Mosque

Imam of Al-Ghamama Mosque in Medina from 1394 AH (1974), at 21, and later of Al-Sabq Mosque, he became King Khalid's personal imam at his palace in Taif in 1401 AH. That same year the king took him to Mecca and had him lead the Grand Mosque's night prayers from the 23rd night of Ramadan (July 1981), before appointing him an official imam. In 1403 AH he asked to be relieved of the post so that he could return to Medina and his mother. From 1406 to 1409 AH (1986-1989) he was again assigned to lead the Tarawih and Tahajjud prayers at the Grand Mosque, notably alongside Abdul Rahman Al-Sudais.

Recitation and legacy

In 1983, during an eight-month stay in Ottawa, Canada, he recorded his complete studio recitation of the Quran in the reading of Hafs, which Saudi Arabia's Holy Quran Radio went on to broadcast for years; he also recorded recitations for Saudi television. His powerful, highly melodic style left its mark on generations of imams who imitated it.

Weakened by a long illness in his last years, he died in Jeddah after several operations. His funeral prayer was held at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, and he was buried in al-Sharai cemetery.