A Dialogue on the Ruling on the One Who Abandons Prayer
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The Shaykh : That is what they say. How does this reconcile with declaring the one who abandons prayer a disbeliever?
The questioner : We discussed this with [Name] today, and he raised it.The Shaykh : And what was the conclusion?
The Shaykh : What Allah willed.
Al-Halabi : And what is the solution?
The questioner : The conclusion is that we returned, O Shaykh, and we addressed the hadith of the card, O Shaykh.
Another questioner : Are you speaking about yourself?
The Shaykh : And what do you say about yourself?
Another questioner : I say, Allah knows best, that he is a disbeliever.
The Shaykh : ... What did I not understand? Allah knows best that what?
Al-Halabi : That he is a disbeliever.
The Shaykh : Then answer this question: How is it that the one who wakes up for the Fajr prayer and does not pray it without an excuse during the time of Fajr, you order him to make it up? And the disbeliever is not ordered to make it up?
The questioner : Should I answer, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh : No, I am asking you why.
The questioner : We say that he does not make it up. If he intentionally missed it outside its time while able to pray, he does not make up the prayer, because by doing so he has committed disbelief, and he must renew his repentance to Allah, the Exalted.
The Shaykh : You did not answer me, may Allah forgive you.
The questioner : You want what I believe.
The Shaykh : No, no, you are a Hanbali. You are a Hanbali.
The questioner : They say he makes it up, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : And I do not say that you are not a Hanbali. What does the poet say? "I am a Hanbali as long as I live..."
Al-Halabi : I am a Hanbali as long as I live *** And my will for people is that they become Hanbalis.
The Shaykh : Yes, so you are a Hanbali, and the Hanbali school, to this day, your scholars all issue rulings based on this, and according to that Turkish, Habsi, Berber, they all issue rulings, and on the radio, unfortunately, it is published in the Islamic world, and you are with them now that the one who abandons prayer, even out of laziness, is a disbeliever; well, how do you order him to make it up? It is not you, you are now fabricating, listen, listen, you are now fabricating, but what a fabrication.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Good... But I ask the scholars who issue rulings: How do they reconcile their statement that the one who abandons prayer is a disbeliever, and this disbeliever is ordered to make up the prayer, and if George or Antonios or so on comes, they say, "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah," and he is not ordered to make up anything or pray a single prayer; because he is a disbeliever. How is this and that? You spoke previously about others, so now, as they also say in our Syria, "a wide carpet," meaning with complete freedom, speak now about what they say?
The questioner : They say, O Shaykh, some hold fast to their school and contradict themselves in this, and some say what you just said...
The Shaykh : Do not say "some." I am speaking about those who issue a ruling that he is a disbeliever and issue a ruling that he must make up the prayers he missed. How is this? Is this not evidence that they say what they do not know?
The questioner : There is.
The Shaykh : One of two things: either their statement is as you say, may Allah protect you and me from declaring Muslims disbelievers, that the one who abandons prayer out of laziness is a disbeliever; or they say that he is a Muslim, excuse me, they say the one who abandons prayer is a disbeliever and do not order him to make it up; or they order him to make it up and do not declare him a disbeliever; as for combining them, as they also say in our Sham, it is a bit ugly, but it is symbolized by one word, as for combining summer and winter on the same roof, this is impossible.
The questioner : But not all of them are like this.
The Shaykh : It is not my research whether all of them or some of them, may Allah bless you. The one who says that the one who abandons prayer is a disbeliever and then orders him to make it up, these are many or few, it does not matter, they are combining summer and winter on the same carpet.
The questioner : That is correct, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : They are combining two contradictions, and this is not permissible.
The questioner : But O Shaykh, what is your answer to the one who says he is a disbeliever, but in this case, he does not have to make it up, and he must renew his repentance to Allah?The Shaykh : He is mistaken, of course.
The questioner : And is that sufficient for him?
The Shaykh : He must renew his repentance, like any sinner, whether his sin was great or small. This is also not a point of disagreement. As for declaring a disbeliever the one who said, "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah," by committing some sins, just because the word "disbelief" was applied to them in the Sunnah, this opens a wide door of declaring people disbelievers that they have no ability to close or shut forever, unless they become Khawarij.
The questioner : But they have the understanding of the righteous Salaf in this, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : The previous question returns, and I hope you adopt this as a rule in your research and principles: All of them? The consensus of the righteous Salaf? Or is it some and some?
The questioner : There are some and some.
The Shaykh : If?
The questioner : But Abdullah ibn Shuqayy narrated the consensus of the Companions...
The Shaykh : On what they considered a matter...
The questioner : "The Companions of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) did not consider any matter whose abandonment is disbelief except prayer." This is a transmission of their consensus.
The Shaykh : If we discuss this report from within, not from outside, meaning from its text, not its chain, its chain is good, but is it true that a Muslim does not become a disbeliever for anything except abandoning prayer? If he abandons zakah, for example, what is his ruling?
The questioner : Meaning they see... they specify his statement regarding...
The Shaykh : No problem, if he abandons zakah, does he become a disbeliever? Say no.
The questioner : They specify in this that if he abandons it while denying it...
The Shaykh : My dear, I am not asking you what his ruling is, I am asking you: does he become a disbeliever? Say yes or say no.
The questioner : Meaning in some cases he becomes a disbeliever and in some cases he does not.
Al-Halabi : It is necessary from the Companion's statement that he does not become a disbeliever, because they did not see anything that makes one a disbeliever except abandoning prayer.
The questioner : No, this is not understood from his statement.
The Shaykh: How?
The questioner : This is not understood from the statement of Abdullah ibn Shuqayy.
The Shaykh : Well, you respond to him, and I will keep my question for later.
The questioner : I say this is not understood from the statement of Abdullah.
Al-Halabi : And their statement, "They did not see any deed whose abandonment is disbelief except prayer," this is an exception of a part from the whole, and it contains restriction, "it was not except," "they were not except," and this is one of the strongest proofs of restriction.
The Shaykh : Meaning, what do you say about the statement of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) being a stronger argument than the statement of a Companion?
The questioner : The statement of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him).
The Shaykh : Is there any doubt in this?
The questioner: No.
The Shaykh : Well, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sahih Muslim 64a Do you believe that the Companions believed in this hadith as we believe?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Then there is something else.
The questioner : How, my Shaykh?
The Shaykh : Something else means they say in his disbelief, meaning they consider it a disbelief other than prayer.
The questioner : This is a disbelief less than disbelief, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : This is what we want, you know, you know, so stick to it...
The questioner : We discussed this with [Name] today, and he raised it.The Shaykh : And what was the conclusion?
The Shaykh : What Allah willed.
Al-Halabi : And what is the solution?
The questioner : The conclusion is that we returned, O Shaykh, and we addressed the hadith of the card, O Shaykh.
Another questioner : Are you speaking about yourself?
The Shaykh : And what do you say about yourself?
Another questioner : I say, Allah knows best, that he is a disbeliever.
The Shaykh : ... What did I not understand? Allah knows best that what?
Al-Halabi : That he is a disbeliever.
The Shaykh : Then answer this question: How is it that the one who wakes up for the Fajr prayer and does not pray it without an excuse during the time of Fajr, you order him to make it up? And the disbeliever is not ordered to make it up?
The questioner : Should I answer, O Shaykh?
The Shaykh : No, I am asking you why.
The questioner : We say that he does not make it up. If he intentionally missed it outside its time while able to pray, he does not make up the prayer, because by doing so he has committed disbelief, and he must renew his repentance to Allah, the Exalted.
The Shaykh : You did not answer me, may Allah forgive you.
The questioner : You want what I believe.
The Shaykh : No, no, you are a Hanbali. You are a Hanbali.
The questioner : They say he makes it up, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : And I do not say that you are not a Hanbali. What does the poet say? "I am a Hanbali as long as I live..."
Al-Halabi : I am a Hanbali as long as I live *** And my will for people is that they become Hanbalis.
The Shaykh : Yes, so you are a Hanbali, and the Hanbali school, to this day, your scholars all issue rulings based on this, and according to that Turkish, Habsi, Berber, they all issue rulings, and on the radio, unfortunately, it is published in the Islamic world, and you are with them now that the one who abandons prayer, even out of laziness, is a disbeliever; well, how do you order him to make it up? It is not you, you are now fabricating, listen, listen, you are now fabricating, but what a fabrication.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Good... But I ask the scholars who issue rulings: How do they reconcile their statement that the one who abandons prayer is a disbeliever, and this disbeliever is ordered to make up the prayer, and if George or Antonios or so on comes, they say, "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah," and he is not ordered to make up anything or pray a single prayer; because he is a disbeliever. How is this and that? You spoke previously about others, so now, as they also say in our Syria, "a wide carpet," meaning with complete freedom, speak now about what they say?
The questioner : They say, O Shaykh, some hold fast to their school and contradict themselves in this, and some say what you just said...
The Shaykh : Do not say "some." I am speaking about those who issue a ruling that he is a disbeliever and issue a ruling that he must make up the prayers he missed. How is this? Is this not evidence that they say what they do not know?
The questioner : There is.
The Shaykh : One of two things: either their statement is as you say, may Allah protect you and me from declaring Muslims disbelievers, that the one who abandons prayer out of laziness is a disbeliever; or they say that he is a Muslim, excuse me, they say the one who abandons prayer is a disbeliever and do not order him to make it up; or they order him to make it up and do not declare him a disbeliever; as for combining them, as they also say in our Sham, it is a bit ugly, but it is symbolized by one word, as for combining summer and winter on the same roof, this is impossible.
The questioner : But not all of them are like this.
The Shaykh : It is not my research whether all of them or some of them, may Allah bless you. The one who says that the one who abandons prayer is a disbeliever and then orders him to make it up, these are many or few, it does not matter, they are combining summer and winter on the same carpet.
The questioner : That is correct, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : They are combining two contradictions, and this is not permissible.
The questioner : But O Shaykh, what is your answer to the one who says he is a disbeliever, but in this case, he does not have to make it up, and he must renew his repentance to Allah?The Shaykh : He is mistaken, of course.
The questioner : And is that sufficient for him?
The Shaykh : He must renew his repentance, like any sinner, whether his sin was great or small. This is also not a point of disagreement. As for declaring a disbeliever the one who said, "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah," by committing some sins, just because the word "disbelief" was applied to them in the Sunnah, this opens a wide door of declaring people disbelievers that they have no ability to close or shut forever, unless they become Khawarij.
The questioner : But they have the understanding of the righteous Salaf in this, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : The previous question returns, and I hope you adopt this as a rule in your research and principles: All of them? The consensus of the righteous Salaf? Or is it some and some?
The questioner : There are some and some.
The Shaykh : If?
The questioner : But Abdullah ibn Shuqayy narrated the consensus of the Companions...
The Shaykh : On what they considered a matter...
The questioner : "The Companions of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) did not consider any matter whose abandonment is disbelief except prayer." This is a transmission of their consensus.
The Shaykh : If we discuss this report from within, not from outside, meaning from its text, not its chain, its chain is good, but is it true that a Muslim does not become a disbeliever for anything except abandoning prayer? If he abandons zakah, for example, what is his ruling?
The questioner : Meaning they see... they specify his statement regarding...
The Shaykh : No problem, if he abandons zakah, does he become a disbeliever? Say no.
The questioner : They specify in this that if he abandons it while denying it...
The Shaykh : My dear, I am not asking you what his ruling is, I am asking you: does he become a disbeliever? Say yes or say no.
The questioner : Meaning in some cases he becomes a disbeliever and in some cases he does not.
Al-Halabi : It is necessary from the Companion's statement that he does not become a disbeliever, because they did not see anything that makes one a disbeliever except abandoning prayer.
The questioner : No, this is not understood from his statement.
The Shaykh: How?
The questioner : This is not understood from the statement of Abdullah ibn Shuqayy.
The Shaykh : Well, you respond to him, and I will keep my question for later.
The questioner : I say this is not understood from the statement of Abdullah.
Al-Halabi : And their statement, "They did not see any deed whose abandonment is disbelief except prayer," this is an exception of a part from the whole, and it contains restriction, "it was not except," "they were not except," and this is one of the strongest proofs of restriction.
The Shaykh : Meaning, what do you say about the statement of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) being a stronger argument than the statement of a Companion?
The questioner : The statement of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him).
The Shaykh : Is there any doubt in this?
The questioner: No.
The Shaykh : Well, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
Abusing a Muslim is an outrage and fighting against him is unbelief
سباب المسلم فسوق وقتاله كفرThe questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Then there is something else.
The questioner : How, my Shaykh?
The Shaykh : Something else means they say in his disbelief, meaning they consider it a disbelief other than prayer.
The questioner : This is a disbelief less than disbelief, O Shaykh.
The Shaykh : This is what we want, you know, you know, so stick to it...
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.