The principle of excusing one another in matters of disagreement
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Question:
The questioner: We hear a lot, Honorable Shaykh, the saying: "We excuse one another in what we differ on, and we unite in what we agree on." Those who say this phrase argue that we should not refute scholars who make a minor error, nor should we split the ranks; they call for the unity of the ranks. I ask for clarification of the truth in this matter?
Answer:
This principle splits the ranks; it does not unite them. Because covering up a wound over corruption is not a cure. The cure is that we clarify the error of the one who errs and the truth of the one who is correct, and we refute the doubts so that the ranks unite upon the truth.
There is no benefit in gathering while there is disagreement in beliefs, and disagreement in schools of thought and ideas. This is not beneficial. This is like those who are all under one roof, but their hearts are divided.
So it is necessary to unite the word upon the truth. It is necessary that we clarify. We do not excuse one another in what we differ on. Rather, we clarify the error from the truth. The one who errs returns to the truth. And the one who is correct praises Allah and asks Him for steadfastness. This is necessary; this is the cure. As for covering up the wound over corruption, as the poet says: "If the wound is covered over corruption, the negligence of the doctor is revealed in it." It is necessary that we clarify what harms the Muslims, the deviant ideas, and the misguided ideas, and we encourage gathering upon the truth, upon the Book and the Sunnah, because the Muslims cannot gather upon anything other than this. Allah the Exalted said: "It is He who supported you." He is the one who said, Allah the Glorious and Exalted, to His Prophet:[Al-Anfal 8:62-63] And what unites the Muslims is nothing but gathering upon the Book and the Sunnah, and upon tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and the correct creed. As for gathering the innovator with the Sunni, with the Shi'ah, with the grave-worshipper, with the innovator—does this work? This is a gathering, not a cure. So we must... and gather upon the truth, even if its people are few, for in it is good and in it is blessing. So the first , Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2629Sahih (Darussalam), as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us.
So the criterion is not the multitude and the gathering; the criterion is the truth and the correct. Even if the people of truth are few, in them is good, and in them is blessing.
The questioner: We hear a lot, Honorable Shaykh, the saying: "We excuse one another in what we differ on, and we unite in what we agree on." Those who say this phrase argue that we should not refute scholars who make a minor error, nor should we split the ranks; they call for the unity of the ranks. I ask for clarification of the truth in this matter?
Answer:
This principle splits the ranks; it does not unite them. Because covering up a wound over corruption is not a cure. The cure is that we clarify the error of the one who errs and the truth of the one who is correct, and we refute the doubts so that the ranks unite upon the truth.
There is no benefit in gathering while there is disagreement in beliefs, and disagreement in schools of thought and ideas. This is not beneficial. This is like those who are all under one roof, but their hearts are divided.
So it is necessary to unite the word upon the truth. It is necessary that we clarify. We do not excuse one another in what we differ on. Rather, we clarify the error from the truth. The one who errs returns to the truth. And the one who is correct praises Allah and asks Him for steadfastness. This is necessary; this is the cure. As for covering up the wound over corruption, as the poet says: "If the wound is covered over corruption, the negligence of the doctor is revealed in it." It is necessary that we clarify what harms the Muslims, the deviant ideas, and the misguided ideas, and we encourage gathering upon the truth, upon the Book and the Sunnah, because the Muslims cannot gather upon anything other than this. Allah the Exalted said: "It is He who supported you." He is the one who said, Allah the Glorious and Exalted, to His Prophet:
It is He who supported you with His help and with the believers (63) And brought together their hearts. If you had spent all that is in the earth, you could not have brought their hearts together; but Allah brought them together.
هُوَ الَّذِي أَيَّدَكَ بِنَصْرِهِ وَبِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَأَلَّفَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِهِمْ لَوْ أَنفَقْتَ مَا فِي الْأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا مَّا أَلَّفْتَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِهِمْ وَلَٰكِنَّ اللَّهَ أَلَّفَ بَيْنَهُمْIslam began as something strange
ما بدأ الإسلام غريبةand it will return to being strange as it began
وسيعود غريبا كما بدأSo the criterion is not the multitude and the gathering; the criterion is the truth and the correct. Even if the people of truth are few, in them is good, and in them is blessing.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، محاضرات في العقيدة والدعوة-20-الفئة الضالة ومنهجها|صالح الفوزان|العام|كبار العلماء — youtube.com (56:46)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.