What is the interpretation of the statement of 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him): "Whoever is able to perform Hajj but does not, it is the same for him whether he dies a Jew or a Christian"?
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The questioner : ... The report of 'Umar ibn al-Khattab that whoever does not perform Hajj will die the death of a Jew, a Christian, or a Zoroastrian, along with the statement that Allah forgives all sins with Islam ...?
The Shaykh : Good; the answer—may Allah bless you—is from two aspects. The first aspect is that we were pointing to something when we drew attention to the fact that this is not established as a hadith from the Messenger (peace be upon him), but rather it is from the words of 'Umar. The difference between the two is that the words of the Messenger are Shari'ah, whereas the words of anyone other than the Messenger are not Shari'ah. Good; if this hadith were authentic from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), we would say that this means that as long as this man died in this state, he is a disbeliever; in that case, your question would not apply, clear? Good; but this, first, is not a hadith from the Messenger (peace be upon him). Second: since it is from the words of 'Umar, one of us might dare to speak about the words of 'Umar and say: this came from him as an exaggeration in warning, that whoever leaves this obligatory duty, which is once in a lifetime, and does not perform Hajj to the Sacred House of Allah while he is able, what will he become? A Jew or a Christian. But this is not a report; he is not reporting that this person died a Jew, but rather it is in the context of warning, so let him die, if he wills, a Jew, a Christian, or a Zoroastrian. So, in short, since it is not a fabricated hadith and it was confusing for some, let them be at ease with it, correct? And the second answer is that 'Umar, of course, has his status with us; that 'Umar did not say: "he dies," but rather this is "may he die."
Another questioner : He dies.
The Shaykh : Yes?
So may he die, if he wills, a Jew, and so on, in the context of what? Exaggeration in warning against leaving this obligatory duty. I hope I have answered your question.
Well; anything else?
The Shaykh : Good; the answer—may Allah bless you—is from two aspects. The first aspect is that we were pointing to something when we drew attention to the fact that this is not established as a hadith from the Messenger (peace be upon him), but rather it is from the words of 'Umar. The difference between the two is that the words of the Messenger are Shari'ah, whereas the words of anyone other than the Messenger are not Shari'ah. Good; if this hadith were authentic from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), we would say that this means that as long as this man died in this state, he is a disbeliever; in that case, your question would not apply, clear? Good; but this, first, is not a hadith from the Messenger (peace be upon him). Second: since it is from the words of 'Umar, one of us might dare to speak about the words of 'Umar and say: this came from him as an exaggeration in warning, that whoever leaves this obligatory duty, which is once in a lifetime, and does not perform Hajj to the Sacred House of Allah while he is able, what will he become? A Jew or a Christian. But this is not a report; he is not reporting that this person died a Jew, but rather it is in the context of warning, so let him die, if he wills, a Jew, a Christian, or a Zoroastrian. So, in short, since it is not a fabricated hadith and it was confusing for some, let them be at ease with it, correct? And the second answer is that 'Umar, of course, has his status with us; that 'Umar did not say: "he dies," but rather this is "may he die."
Another questioner : He dies.
The Shaykh : Yes?
So may he die, if he wills, a Jew, and so on, in the context of what? Exaggeration in warning against leaving this obligatory duty. I hope I have answered your question.
Well; anything else?
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.