Does a person become a Muslim and is he safe from harm by pronouncing the two testimonies, even if he insults the Companions?
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Question:
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. Some people say that if a person testifies that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, he becomes a Muslim, and his insulting the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) or practicing some religious innovations (bid'ah) that contradict the creed does not negate his Islam. Rather, they say his case is with Allah regarding the matters mentioned. Is this statement correct?
Answer:
My brother, if he testifies that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, it is obligatory to leave him alone and accept his Islam. If a nullifier of Islam appears from him, he is ruled to be an apostate. He is ruled to be an apostate, so he is given the opportunity to repent. If he repents, well and good; otherwise, he is killed. The danger of insulting the Companions is great. If he insults them because they spread Islam, fought in the path of Allah, and accompanied the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), then this is disbelief and apostasy. But if he hates them for their personal qualities or for something less than that, then this is a major sin among the major sins, and he is not ruled to be an apostate. It is necessary to love the Companions and hold them in high esteem (may Allah be pleased with them), because Allah is pleased with them and has made them content.
And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) praised them and said, "Do not insult my Companions." The one who insults the Companions or any one of them faces a great danger to the religion of the Muslims. How can one insult the Companions? Why? What is the reason for insulting the Companions? Is it not that Allah and His Messenger have honored them, and Allah and His Messenger have given them virtue? No one who has faith in his heart ever insults them. Only a hypocrite or an enemy of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) insults them, because whoever opposes the Companions has opposed the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him).
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. Some people say that if a person testifies that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, he becomes a Muslim, and his insulting the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) or practicing some religious innovations (bid'ah) that contradict the creed does not negate his Islam. Rather, they say his case is with Allah regarding the matters mentioned. Is this statement correct?
Answer:
My brother, if he testifies that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, it is obligatory to leave him alone and accept his Islam. If a nullifier of Islam appears from him, he is ruled to be an apostate. He is ruled to be an apostate, so he is given the opportunity to repent. If he repents, well and good; otherwise, he is killed. The danger of insulting the Companions is great. If he insults them because they spread Islam, fought in the path of Allah, and accompanied the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), then this is disbelief and apostasy. But if he hates them for their personal qualities or for something less than that, then this is a major sin among the major sins, and he is not ruled to be an apostate. It is necessary to love the Companions and hold them in high esteem (may Allah be pleased with them), because Allah is pleased with them and has made them content.
And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) praised them and said, "Do not insult my Companions." The one who insults the Companions or any one of them faces a great danger to the religion of the Muslims. How can one insult the Companions? Why? What is the reason for insulting the Companions? Is it not that Allah and His Messenger have honored them, and Allah and His Messenger have given them virtue? No one who has faith in his heart ever insults them. Only a hypocrite or an enemy of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) insults them, because whoever opposes the Companions has opposed the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him).
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، [1364- 4717] هل يصبح الشخص مسلما ويكف عنه بنطقه بالشهادتين ولو سب الصحابة؟ - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.