The Ruling on a Student of Knowledge Declaring a Specific Person a Disbeliever Without Referring to the Scholars
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
A questioner asks, saying: Honorable Shaykh, my question is: Is it permissible for a student of knowledge who has mastered the issues of takfir (declaring someone a disbeliever) to declare a specific person a disbeliever without consulting the scholars, relying on the knowledge he has regarding the issues of takfir?
The Shaykh:
The issues of takfir are serious. They are a slip of the foot and a cloud of understanding, and one must refer to the people of knowledge in them. One does not declare a person a disbeliever unless he is brought before the Shari'ah court and they examine the words and actions that necessitate his disbelief, and then he is declared a disbeliever. As for everyone declaring [others] disbelievers, this is not permissible. Yes.
The questioner:
Honorable Shaykh, is it permissible for a student of knowledge who is studying at this university?
The Shaykh:
In general terms, you say: Whoever does such-and-such, or says such-and-such, or believes such-and-such, is a disbeliever. As for specifying individuals, their case must be referred to the Shari'ah courts with proof against them. Yes.
A questioner asks, saying: Honorable Shaykh, my question is: Is it permissible for a student of knowledge who has mastered the issues of takfir (declaring someone a disbeliever) to declare a specific person a disbeliever without consulting the scholars, relying on the knowledge he has regarding the issues of takfir?
The Shaykh:
The issues of takfir are serious. They are a slip of the foot and a cloud of understanding, and one must refer to the people of knowledge in them. One does not declare a person a disbeliever unless he is brought before the Shari'ah court and they examine the words and actions that necessitate his disbelief, and then he is declared a disbeliever. As for everyone declaring [others] disbelievers, this is not permissible. Yes.
The questioner:
Honorable Shaykh, is it permissible for a student of knowledge who is studying at this university?
The Shaykh:
In general terms, you say: Whoever does such-and-such, or says such-and-such, or believes such-and-such, is a disbeliever. As for specifying individuals, their case must be referred to the Shari'ah courts with proof against them. Yes.
Source
الاستقامة على دين الله — alfawzan.live (43:09)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.