The Methodology of the People of the Sunnah in Defining Bid'ah (Religious Innovation) and the Ruling on the Innovator

Question:
The fourth question says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, a new thought and a new opinion have spread among the youth, which is that they say: We do not declare a person an innovator for manifesting a bid'ah (religious innovation) until the evidence is established against him and until they themselves, the youth, are convinced of their bid'ah, without referring to the scholars of knowledge and fatwa. What is the methodology of the people of the Sunnah and the community in this important issue? And what is your advice to these young people?

Answer:
First, bid'ah (religious innovation). It is what is newly introduced into the religion that is not part of it. This is bid'ah. Bid'ah is what is newly introduced into the religion by way of addition, subtraction, or without evidence from the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), as He said: He said (peace and blessings be upon him): He, the Exalted and Glorified, said: . So bid'ah is introducing something into the religion that is not part of it. Yes. And as for...
As for the idea that bid'ah, as mentioned in the question, is defined by the opinions of these people, and that what they call bid'ah is bid'ah and what they call not bid'ah is not bid'ah, this is not based on their desires, and the matter does not return to them. Rather, the matter returns to the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). So the Sunnah is not what people have agreed upon, and bid'ah is not what people have not agreed upon. Nor is the Sunnah what so-and-so or so-and-so approved of, and bid'ah what so-and-so or so-and-so did not approve of. Allah, the Exalted and Glorified, did not refer us to our minds or to the opinions of people, but He made us self-sufficient with the revelation sent down to His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). So the Sunnah is what the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) brought, and bid'ah is what the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not bring, in terms of words and actions. No one has the right to rule that something is bid'ah or that it is Sunnah until he presents it to the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him).
As for ruling that a person is an innovator, everyone who introduces a bid'ah into the religion is called an innovator, and his action is called bid'ah. As for what is between him and Allah, regarding whether he is punished for it, that depends on the evidence being established against him. If it is explained to him that this is bid'ah and that it contradicts what the Messenger brought, and he persists in it, then he is punished by Allah, the Exalted and Glorified. But if he did it out of ignorance and thought it was the truth, but it was not explained to him, then there is no punishment from Allah, the Exalted and Glorified, for him in what is between him and Allah, because he is excused by ignorance. However, in reality, he is an innovator and his action is bid'ah. We treat him as an innovator and consider his action to be bid'ah because it contradicts the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), even if he is ignorant and does not know. As for what is between him and Allah, there is the distinction we mentioned. Yes.