The Ash'ari Creed and the Ruling on Praying Behind an Ash'ari

Question:
This questioner asks: What is the Ash'ari creed, and is it permissible to pray behind an Ash'ari?

Answer:
The Ash'ari creed is the one that leads back to Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari. Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari was a Mu'tazili at first; he was initially among the Mu'tazilah.
Then he turned away from the Mu'tazilah school and adopted the school of the Kullabiyyah. The Kullabiyyah are the followers of Sa'id ibn Kullab, Muhammad ibn Sa'id ibn Kullab. He used to interpret the attributes, but his approach was milder than that of the Mu'tazilah. Then Allah guided him in the end, and he returned to, or adopted, the creed of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him), and he abandoned the interpretation of the attributes. So he renounced his original school and adopted the school of the people of the Sunnah. However, his followers adopted his old school; they adopted his old school and did not adopt his final school, which agreed with the people of the Sunnah. Therefore, they are called the Asha'irah, and this designation is incorrect, because the appropriate name for them is the Kullabiyyah, because al-Ash'ari (may Allah have mercy on him) abandoned this matter, and one who abandons a school is not attributed to it. So the correct expression is to call them the Kullabiyyah, because they follow the school of Kullab in interpreting the attributes, or interpreting many of the attributes. They affirm some of them, yes, they affirm the seven or fourteen attributes that they claim the intellect indicates, and they interpret the rest. This is the school of those who are concerned with Ash'arism: interpreting many of the attributes and not affirming them.
As for the prayer, he said regarding the Asha'irah: The Asha'iri is undoubtedly a wrongdoer in his creed regarding the interpretation of the attributes. So, praying behind him: if it is possible to pray behind someone better than him, is it permissible, or is it not permissible to appoint him as an imam in the mosque when he is more prominent? It is not permissible to make him an imam, to appoint him as an imam when he is more prominent. But if it is implemented...
And he prayed with the people; the prayer behind him is valid because he is a Muslim who has not left Islam, even if he differs in creed in the chapter of names and attributes. But he is a Muslim, and the prayer is valid behind every Muslim. The one behind whom the prayer is not valid is the one who commits open sin and the disbeliever. As for the one behind whom the prayer is not valid, as for the Muslim, the prayer is valid behind him. But whenever it is possible to pray behind someone else, that is obligatory as a precaution for the religion and as a precaution for the prayer. And I say, and I repeat: It is not permissible, if we have authority, it is not permissible for us to appoint the Asha'iri as an imam by explicit text, if we have authority. But if the authority is not ours, but we are in other lands where the authority is held by people other than the people of the Sunnah, and they appointed the Asha'irah as imams in the mosques, and you do not find anyone to pray with, then pray with the congregation, even if the imam is an Asha'iri. Yes.