Using Gentleness in Da'wah (The Truth is Bitter, So We Do Not Add to Its Bitterness)

The Shaykh : ... that the religion of Allah is complete, and that there is no good innovation in the Qur'an, and that what many people do are customs and traditions for which Allah has not sent down any authority. But when we want to advise and clarify a matter that has a textual basis, we do not use harshness. I say to our brothers, some of whom are present now, O our brothers, our da'wah is the da'wah of the truth, because it is the da'wah of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). The truth is bitter; the truth is bitter by its nature. So we do not want to add another bitterness to people; it is not for us to make them taste it, because the bitterness of the truth alone is sufficient. So this truth to which Allah has guided us and to which we call people, it is sufficient that we present it to them with all gentleness and do not use harshness. This is the truth, and I do not exonerate myself, nor do I exonerate others, that a person may fall into some harshness that he should not fall into, and others may fall into some leniency and diplomacy that they think is Shari'ah diplomacy, but this leniency is not of Shari'ah diplomacy at all. It is possible that this is the case, and it is possible that that is the case. So it is upon us to follow the path that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) has prescribed for us through the tongue of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and through his methodology, and whoever denies it has denied Islam in its entirety. Allah the Exalted said: Then it does not harm us if we call people to the truth and are called "dividers," for the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to divide, and the Qur'an used to divide, and therefore it was named al-Furqan (The Criterion) because it distinguishes between the truth and falsehood, it distinguishes between the people of truth and the people of falsehood, it distinguishes between the son and his father, between the father and his son. This is necessary, and history repeats itself. But it is upon us to proceed as Allah the Exalted said: If I wanted to give Abu Usamah advice like this, we would say, "You too, fear Allah (Mighty and Majestic) regarding your brothers whom you may hear calling to the Book and the Sunnah, and you do not trust their knowledge," or as it is said: "Whoever knew you as a child will not respect you as an adult," and so on. But the truth is, I have not seen him or met him, so I cannot say such a thing to him, because this statement contains an indirect accusation against him. So we mention it as advice and say to him, "May Allah reward you with good."
As for if someone says, "So-and-so," in that case, we ask him, "What did you see from him?" He says, "It is a bid'ah (religious innovation)." We say, "Look, is this a bid'ah or a sunnah (recommended practice)? If you know that it is a sunnah, we say: And if you know that it is a bid'ah, it is not diplomacy to remain silent, but rather to be a helper to your brother in clarifying the Shari'ah ruling to the people. Because, as some jurists say: "The one who is silent about the truth is a mute devil." And naturally, he does not want to be described with this description.
As for if it is a sunnah, Through this path, Muslims can understand one another, and otherwise, they will remain divided. And in any case, we say to our brother Abu Usamah that we remind him that division is a natural matter, a matter of divine creative will from which people have no escape. But Allah the Exalted said: So if you see, may Allah bless you, a disagreement, you must immediately cut it off by knowing that one side of the disagreement is the truth and the other is falsehood. So you must support the truth over falsehood with wisdom and good admonition. As for saying with the tongue of speech or with the tongue of action, as one of the shaykhs in Damascus told me about fifty years ago or more, a person from among our brothers gathered me with him. He had heard me say that prayer in a mosque that contains a grave is forbidden (muharram).
He conveyed this statement to one of the shaykhs there. He told him, "No, this is a mistake and is not permissible. Let this man come to me, and I will clarify it to him." And I was eager to meet with anyone, whether older than me in age, knowledge, or virtue, or younger than me in that, because I am ready. For I say that I am like a saw, going up and down; I benefit if the one I meet is more knowledgeable than me, and if he is less knowledgeable than me, he benefits from me. So in any case, I am like a saw, going up and down.

The questioner : That is the advice of Luqman.

The Shaykh : Yes.

The questioner : O my son, sit with the scholars.

The Shaykh : That is the point. So we met with him, and he heard from me what I said. He could not say to me, "By Allah, your statement is a mistake," because he knew that this is the truth. But what would the people around him say? They all pray in such mosques. So he said to me, and I was a young student in the science of hadith at that time,