The Ruling on One Who Makes Mistakes in the Names and Attributes

Question:
Or, Honorable Shaykh, may Allah reward you. What is the ruling on one who is upright in his worship and turns away from Allah, but regarding the Names and Attributes, he has doubts? If he dies in that state, is he a Muslim or one who has associated partners with Allah?

Answer:
No, he is not a disbeliever, but he is considered mistaken and misguided. He may be one who engages in figurative interpretation or follows this school of thought, because the prevailing school in the Islamic world today, and the one taught in universities abroad in Islamic countries, is the Ash'ari creed. He grew up with this and thought it was the truth. So this is considered an excuse; he is excused and not declared a disbeliever. However, this is considered misguidance and error, but it does not take him out of the circle of Islam, as long as he has not associated anything with Allah and has not committed any of the nullifiers of Islam.