Explanation of the principle: (We cooperate in what we agree upon and we excuse one another in what we differ on)
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Explanation of the principle: (We cooperate in what we agree upon and we excuse one another in what we differ on)
Your Eminence! It is well known that the Shi'ah and the Murji'ah, all of them, differ greatly from the people of the Sunnah and the community. There is a principle among some scholars that they call the golden principle: (We assist one another in what we agree upon and we excuse one another in what we differ on) So how do we excuse these Shi'ah?
This golden principle is not a golden principle and does not deserve to be a principle. Rather, what we agree upon is a blessing from Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and agreement is better than disagreement. As for what we differ on, the one who differs may be excused or may not be excused. If the difference is in a matter where disagreement is permissible, then there is no harm in it, and the Imams have continued to differ. Imam Ahmad, al-Shafi'i, Malik, and Abu Hanifah all differ. However, if the disagreement is one in which one is not excused, such as disagreement in matters of creed, then we do not excuse one another. Rather, it is obligatory to return to what the Book and the Sunnah indicate. So the Murji'ah, the Shi'ah, and every innovator must return to the Book and the Sunnah and are not excused. This principle is not a golden principle, and perhaps you should call it a wooden principle.
You now know what is permissible for independent legal reasoning (ijtihad). There is no harm in allowing the one who differs in that. But what is not permissible for independent legal reasoning, such as matters of creed in which a person contradicts the Salaf, they cannot be excused.
Your Eminence! It is well known that the Shi'ah and the Murji'ah, all of them, differ greatly from the people of the Sunnah and the community. There is a principle among some scholars that they call the golden principle: (We assist one another in what we agree upon and we excuse one another in what we differ on) So how do we excuse these Shi'ah?
This golden principle is not a golden principle and does not deserve to be a principle. Rather, what we agree upon is a blessing from Allah (Mighty and Majestic), and agreement is better than disagreement. As for what we differ on, the one who differs may be excused or may not be excused. If the difference is in a matter where disagreement is permissible, then there is no harm in it, and the Imams have continued to differ. Imam Ahmad, al-Shafi'i, Malik, and Abu Hanifah all differ. However, if the disagreement is one in which one is not excused, such as disagreement in matters of creed, then we do not excuse one another. Rather, it is obligatory to return to what the Book and the Sunnah indicate. So the Murji'ah, the Shi'ah, and every innovator must return to the Book and the Sunnah and are not excused. This principle is not a golden principle, and perhaps you should call it a wooden principle.
You now know what is permissible for independent legal reasoning (ijtihad). There is no harm in allowing the one who differs in that. But what is not permissible for independent legal reasoning, such as matters of creed in which a person contradicts the Salaf, they cannot be excused.