What is open disbelief?

The questioner : It is mentioned in the hadith of 'Ubadah ibn al-Samit in the authentic collections , so the question raised is to clarify the meaning of open disbelief?

The Shaykh : It means explicit disbelief for which the person has no argument that satisfies him internally, let alone one by which he could satisfy others.
The Shaykh: The argument here is a decisive, clear proof. It is about bringing an argument against the kind of disbelief we call it. However, if someone brings an argument that he is convinced by, it is not permissible to rebel against him, because he has contradicted our established understanding and our knowledge.
The Shaykh: With this, we explain the fitnah of al-Ma'mun al-'Abbasid, who rebelled against the Muslim world during his caliphate by claiming that the Qur'an is created. We see that the Muslim world at that time, which included great scholars, hadith scholars, jurists, and imams, did not rebel against him. They were undoubtedly stronger than we are today in their ability to rebel against him. However, because they adopted the ruling that it is not permissible for Muslims to rebel against their rulers and governors unless they see from them open disbelief, they did not see open disbelief from him. Open disbelief can be understood as what some scholars describe on some occasions as what is known from religion by necessity, meaning a ruling whose knowledge is shared by the specific and the general, the scholar and the ignorant. If a ruler one day declares the permissibility of something whose prohibition is certain from religion by necessity, then the pledge of allegiance given to him is annulled, because he has committed explicit open disbelief. As for the issue of the creation of the Qur'an, it is certainly an error without doubt, but where is the proof? The Salaf scholars, the early Companions, did not speak on this issue. But when the Mu'tazilah emerged with this false, deviant belief, which is contrary to the Shari'ah evidence, and said that the speech of Allah is created, the scholars of the Sunnah, especially the hadith scholars, were forced to counter this statement with its opposite, which is the truth, and to say that the speech of Allah is an attribute of His, and it is inconceivable that it is created. But this is most like what is called 'ilm al-kalam, or to put it another way, most like philosophy. Whoever understands that this attribute is a secondary attribute to the Essence, and the Essence is eternal, then the attributes are eternal, and therefore the speech is not created because it is an attribute of the Creator. Oh, oh, these are matters of ijtihad and deduction, and not all matters of ijtihad and deduction are false, nor are they all true.
The Shaykh: But the matter differs between what is explicitly stated and what is reached through ijtihad and deduction. Therefore, we find that the scholars at that time did not counter the indication of al-Mahdi by rebelling against him, because although he brought a reprehensible matter, he did not bring open disbelief. And so they suffered what they suffered of torture, imprisonment, and perhaps death and killing, but they did not rebel against him. Now, after it has become clear to us what open disbelief is and we have given some examples, what is the benefit of understanding this hadith in this age where there is no pledge of allegiance? I believe that those who raise this question and similar ones are from the modern Khawarij group. They carry the new ideology adopted by the group called, rightly or wrongly, the Group of Takfir and Emigration. Yes.

The questioner : Takfir and Hijrah.

The Shaykh : Takfir and Emigration. Ah, these people want... from many of the Muslim rulers, so it is permissible to rebel against them. We say to them: originally, you did not pledge allegiance. The matter is easier than they imagine, but it is more dangerous than they claim. That is, from one angle it is easier, and from another angle it is more dangerous. Originally, there is no imam to whom a pledge was given for us to withdraw the pledge, and we have seen what open disbelief is. No, there is not...