What is the answer to the one who says: People do not need to go to the scholars now; the internet is sufficient?

Question:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, what is the answer to the one who says that people do not need to go to the scholars in the mosque now, and that the internet, listening to tapes, and reading books are sufficient?

Answer:
This is misleading, like the one you mentioned who says, "Do not call people to tawhid (the oneness of Allah)." Knowledge is not taken except from scholars. It is not taken from books or tapes. It is taken from scholars. Books and things fall from the one who said them, the one who spoke about them; you do not know who he is, nor what his creed is. You do not know if he is a scholar or not. Some people are good at speaking and eloquent, but they have no knowledge. It is a matter of good style or good speech about knowledge and fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence). Fiqh is little now. Fiqh is little now among people. The number of readers increases, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us. The number of readers increases and the number of fuqaha (jurists) decreases. The criterion is fiqh, not reading. And knowledge is not taken from books. Books contain truth and falsehood, misguidance and error, and correctness. Only scholars distinguish this, as they critique and judge them. You read them and do not know, and you take them as they are, and perhaps you believe in misguidance while you do not know. So this is absolutely not permissible. And the one who says this is either a compound ignoramus, or he is a misleader who wants to divert people from seeking knowledge and taking knowledge from scholars.