The Danger of Dramatic Performances Containing Acts of Disbelief, Such as Prostrating to Idols, Under the Claim of Reminding Muslims of Their Glory (A Clarification of the Strangeness of Islam)

The Shaykh : About a week ago, I had the opportunity to see a play on television. This play, of course, presents to people the past Islamic glory, their strength, and their victory over the disbelievers. The play calls for men who are shaven, but they wear beards in the style of lords...
Al-Halabi : ...false beards.

The Shaykh : Yes, false beards. It calls for people to play the role of those who worship the cross, those who prostrate to the priest, to the king of the Christians, and so on. Who plays these roles? Muslims. Where did this come from? It is claimed that there is a benefit in it, in presenting the greatness of past Islam to today's Muslims so that they become enthusiastic and return to their past glory. But in this path of return, they will expose themselves to problems like this, which, if it is not doctrinal disbelief, is at least practical disbelief, which is prostrating to other than Allah in the name of the play. And the truth is, this is the time about which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us in the authentic hadith . He was asked, peace and blessings be upon him, as it is reported in three narrations—it seems three times, but two of them are established according to the method of the people of hadith, and the third narration is weak. In the first narration, it was said: "O Messenger of Allah, who are these strangers?" He said: . And the second narration, which is also authentic like the first, is: . In my opinion, regarding the strangers, they are the strangers among the strangers, because the first strangers are a few righteous people among many people, of whom more disobey them than obey them...