Calling to Allah Without Knowledge
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
Finally, what is the ruling on what people fear regarding da'wah (calling others to Islam) in lands without knowledge, and it is known that Muslims are falling short in their da'wah?
The Shaykh:
Do not approach the statement.
The questioner:
Rather, his statement is that people should be distressed.
The Shaykh:
Inciting, yes.
The questioner:
In lands of disbelief and ignorance, and he sees Muslims falling short in their lands.
The Shaykh:
Da'wah is not permissible without knowledge, because he does not know the obligatory from the non-obligatory, nor does he know the halal from the haram, nor does he know how to answer if he is asked. So this person is not suitable for da'wah. However, if he gives general guidance, there is no harm. But if he calls people, declares things halal and haram, and declares people disbelievers, this is not permissible except for the people of knowledge. However, if he gives general guidance and encourages good according to his knowledge, without intervening in matters of haram and halal, valid and invalid, shirk (associating partners with Allah) and tawhid (the oneness of Allah), and he does not intervene in these matters, but rather gives general guidance encouraging Islam and stating that Islam is a good thing, general guidance without intervening in rulings, this may be permissible, if Allah wills.
Finally, what is the ruling on what people fear regarding da'wah (calling others to Islam) in lands without knowledge, and it is known that Muslims are falling short in their da'wah?
The Shaykh:
Do not approach the statement.
The questioner:
Rather, his statement is that people should be distressed.
The Shaykh:
Inciting, yes.
The questioner:
In lands of disbelief and ignorance, and he sees Muslims falling short in their lands.
The Shaykh:
Da'wah is not permissible without knowledge, because he does not know the obligatory from the non-obligatory, nor does he know the halal from the haram, nor does he know how to answer if he is asked. So this person is not suitable for da'wah. However, if he gives general guidance, there is no harm. But if he calls people, declares things halal and haram, and declares people disbelievers, this is not permissible except for the people of knowledge. However, if he gives general guidance and encourages good according to his knowledge, without intervening in matters of haram and halal, valid and invalid, shirk (associating partners with Allah) and tawhid (the oneness of Allah), and he does not intervene in these matters, but rather gives general guidance encouraging Islam and stating that Islam is a good thing, general guidance without intervening in rulings, this may be permissible, if Allah wills.
Source
شرح بلوغ المرام من أدلة الأحكام [ صالح الفوزان ]، كتاب الزكاة — islamhouse.com (1:03:04)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.