The Shaykh's view on the debate to be held between Shaykh Ali al-Halabi and al-Saqaf.
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : At this time, we would like to take your opinion on this, and perhaps you have heard about the debate that took place betweenThe Shaykh : onAl-Halabi : and Hasan al-Saqaf regarding the person of Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him). We do not know what your opinion is initially, and what your opinion is after, perhaps you have heard the results or some of the results.
The Shaykh : What is my opinion about whom?
The questioner : About the debate initially.
The Shaykh : Ah, my opinion, which I mentioned to some of our brothers after they started debating, was that the debate must be confined to a very small number of individuals, and not be like this, between dozens, if not more, of shepherds and common people who do not understand anything. In addition to that, my opinion was that the discussion should not be about a person, but rather about the creed. There is no doubt that the scope of discussion with these people regarding their creeds, which are the furthest from the Book and the Sunnah, is broader and more beneficial. This was my opinion. But as I understood, often a person is forced to discuss something that, if he had the choice, he would not choose. Yes, and in any case, what Allah willed happened, and what He did not will did not happen.
The questioner : As we understood from our Shaykh, that the debate should be transformed into a discussion of the beliefs of the opponents.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : So that there are illustrative examples more important than the image of an individual or a scholar who has passed away.
The Shaykh : Especially since the issue raised by that man is very sensitive, meaning it is difficult for those who revere and honor the Shaykh to understand it, let alone for his enemies to approach it. It was actually possible to exploit the research presented to some of our brothers to turn and direct it to another research related to the same subject, since it concerns the Divine Essence, for example, discussing the attributes of Allah, and especially the attribute of elevation, which they deny, if not all of them, then at least most of them. But the reality is, we truly feel that a person is dragged along whether he wants it or chooses it or not. And it was reported to me recently that some of our brothers directed a request toThe Shaykh : this poor one, because he denied that Allah is above His Throne. Perhaps this has reached you?
The questioner : In the last session, he did not acknowledge it, but he evaded. But one of the brothers, Wafi, said to him, "How can you be a judge when you are a party?" And he said to him, "You deny that Allah is above His Throne," and he fell silent?
The Shaykh : You were present.
The questioner : I heard that from the tape, our Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Ah, I heard the tape. Did he not answer with anything?
The questioner : He did not answer with anything. And that was the brothers' direction that now the poor one is a party, and why should he laugh at us? And unfortunately, the results of the debate were not what we hoped for, because of the judge.
The Shaykh : Yes, and in any case, his choice as a judge was truly a matter of concern, because the man is known to be very far from the Salafi methodology. But perhaps he will make amends later.
The questioner : Our discussion regarding the judge: Brother Ali did not know about the existence of the judge beforehand. So they seated him and said, "I apologize, because the brothers invited me to be a judge by mutual agreement between them." Ali mentioned that he did not know about this arrangement, but he approved it. Ali says that the setting of the session did not allow him to refuse the judgment, as you mentioned, that perhaps a person may be forced to accept what he does not like.
The Shaykh : What is my opinion about whom?
The questioner : About the debate initially.
The Shaykh : Ah, my opinion, which I mentioned to some of our brothers after they started debating, was that the debate must be confined to a very small number of individuals, and not be like this, between dozens, if not more, of shepherds and common people who do not understand anything. In addition to that, my opinion was that the discussion should not be about a person, but rather about the creed. There is no doubt that the scope of discussion with these people regarding their creeds, which are the furthest from the Book and the Sunnah, is broader and more beneficial. This was my opinion. But as I understood, often a person is forced to discuss something that, if he had the choice, he would not choose. Yes, and in any case, what Allah willed happened, and what He did not will did not happen.
The questioner : As we understood from our Shaykh, that the debate should be transformed into a discussion of the beliefs of the opponents.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : So that there are illustrative examples more important than the image of an individual or a scholar who has passed away.
The Shaykh : Especially since the issue raised by that man is very sensitive, meaning it is difficult for those who revere and honor the Shaykh to understand it, let alone for his enemies to approach it. It was actually possible to exploit the research presented to some of our brothers to turn and direct it to another research related to the same subject, since it concerns the Divine Essence, for example, discussing the attributes of Allah, and especially the attribute of elevation, which they deny, if not all of them, then at least most of them. But the reality is, we truly feel that a person is dragged along whether he wants it or chooses it or not. And it was reported to me recently that some of our brothers directed a request toThe Shaykh : this poor one, because he denied that Allah is above His Throne. Perhaps this has reached you?
The questioner : In the last session, he did not acknowledge it, but he evaded. But one of the brothers, Wafi, said to him, "How can you be a judge when you are a party?" And he said to him, "You deny that Allah is above His Throne," and he fell silent?
The Shaykh : You were present.
The questioner : I heard that from the tape, our Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Ah, I heard the tape. Did he not answer with anything?
The questioner : He did not answer with anything. And that was the brothers' direction that now the poor one is a party, and why should he laugh at us? And unfortunately, the results of the debate were not what we hoped for, because of the judge.
The Shaykh : Yes, and in any case, his choice as a judge was truly a matter of concern, because the man is known to be very far from the Salafi methodology. But perhaps he will make amends later.
The questioner : Our discussion regarding the judge: Brother Ali did not know about the existence of the judge beforehand. So they seated him and said, "I apologize, because the brothers invited me to be a judge by mutual agreement between them." Ali mentioned that he did not know about this arrangement, but he approved it. Ali says that the setting of the session did not allow him to refuse the judgment, as you mentioned, that perhaps a person may be forced to accept what he does not like.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.