Diagnosing the cause of the dispute and further advice for reconciliation between the disputing parties.

Shuqara: By Allah, look, our Shaykh, regarding this matter, I spoke the truth concerning my brother Khalid. I met him and a number of the brothers in Jeddah, and the truth is that I saw them, and praise be to Allah, they are in a good state. This enthusiasm that my brother Khalid has is not based on error at all, and we exonerate him from that, if Allah wills, and we clear him of all of this, just as we clear our other brothers there. But the truth is that the truth must be said: there are errors there. I do not say that the error occurred from one side only; rather, the error came from several parties. I do not blame my brother Khalid, nor do I blame the young men who are like my brother Khalid for their enthusiasm, because their enthusiasm for the da'wah is genuine. Rather, the first ones I blame are our brothers the Shaykhs, who are considered the front line. Let us say, in that expression, when the front line or the first group of brothers takes such positions, it truly upsets us. I say that perhaps I differ with my brother Khalid on the issue of whether these differences existed before the Gulf Fitnah. I say that the Gulf Fitnah was the greatest cause. Even if there were signs of it, they would not have persisted; they could have been managed. But the Gulf Fitnah ignited its embers and increased its intensity, and the competition in this issue became a cause for attracting people to people and for people to turn away from people. This truly happened, and the parties pulled at each other as if they were in a battle of enemies and opponents with one another, whereas we know that there are distinct positions, one from another. There may be an official position and an unofficial position. The unofficial position is the one that actually helped cause the disagreement and discord that occurred. The brothers, all of them, our brothers Khalid and others and others, the hundreds who are there, with their enthusiasm and their zeal for the da'wah, did not prefer to see the aversion and discord between what is called the official and the unofficial. How much more so if there is discord between them all? This is truly a matter. This is more certain. The second matter, and I told the brothers to engage in these issues, and although they are important issues, there are truly issues much more important than them. I say, and I told them, that our preparation for ourselves must be different from this preparation. Because if there had been precise preparation, this existing difference would never have occurred. The scholarly issues in which the difference arose are, in fact, not rooted in branches at all. Their origin is their belief that it is a difference in the fundamentals of the methodology, and the fundamentals of the methodology are 'aqidah. If these issues were removed from among them, or if they understood them completely as they are, this would not have been said. The proof of this is, for example, that some of the brothers do not declare the rulers there to be disbelievers. We testify to Allah the Exalted and we hold that if a ruler does not believe in the validity of the methodology he adopts for governance and prefers it over what Allah has revealed, we do not declare him a disbeliever, but we say he is in sin. But the other party says this, and our brothers who say that the rulers are disbelievers, the issue is clear to them; their 'aqidah is completely clear. But our other brothers, it is not that their position on declaring the ruler a disbeliever is based on desire at all, but it is based on a principle they have adhered to for many years and inherited from centuries ago, which is based on the apparent meanings of the hadiths that declare the doer of a major sin a disbeliever, whether they are Qur'anic verses or Prophetic hadiths. If there were correct scholarly clarity, I say that those who say that [the ruler is a disbeliever] might see the correctness of the opinion in this issue, but it is difficult for them to return from it for two reasons. The first reason, I do not mean to say the statement of the people of the pre-Islamic age regarding their methodology, but rather, because of habit, subhan Allah, when it becomes long and turns into a custom and a habit, it is difficult to retreat from it. The statement that the one who abandons prayer in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a disbeliever is a familiar statement. It has become such that anyone who tells you "he is a disbeliever" is far from [being correct] when you ask. And I asked one of the brothers, I said to him, "What if we did not say that the one who abandons prayer is a disbeliever, and we said that he is a disbeliever by practical disbelief?" He said, "This causes a great problem for us." What is this problem? He said, "The problem is that many people will abandon prayer." Because of that, the issue of hijab, they say, why do we oppose...The Shaykh : Nasser, becauseThe Shaykh : Nasser says that it is permissible to uncover the face, and if we had taken the position ofThe Shaykh : Nasser and said by a fatwa or an opinion ofThe Shaykh : Nasser, we would have found all the women there removing their niqab and becoming uncovered in their faces, and we are not currently free from calamities, andThe Shaykh : Nasser says this statement, and we are standing against it, so how if we said what he says?The Shaykh : Nasser, so here there is a very important issue, which is habit and custom. As for the second matter, the truth is correcting some texts and preferring the weakening of them or preferring their correction. This, I do not say, is also based on desire, but rather, perhaps they found for them athar, or they found for them someone whose words they emulate in these issues. In any case, we say to my brother Khalid, we and what we have to speak and say before our Shaykh, but my brother Khalid, we are now in the wind, and the Muslims now, you know, they do not possess anything of their own affairs. All the Muslims, the whole world and in all corners of the earth, do not possess anything of their own affairs. And I think, or rather I believe, that what is happening now there, behind this thing, are hidden hands directing this. And of course, I do not say that there is a response to this topic or competition and rivalry and racing between the two parties where the winner [wins], but I say one hand is the one that moves, but a very hidden hand, to keep the fire of fitnah burning, especially in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I say here that it is natural that there is not a difference between the brothers, the brothers of the methodology, the da'wah of the Salafis, rather I say there is a difference between two opposite parties, which exists with us, but this here, what helps in accelerating the difference between the brothers in the same methodology, is the existence of these currents that—may Allah reward you with good—may attract some of the brothers to their methodology and their way, especially the Muslim Brotherhood in this country. And therefore, what I say is that I, Safer, 'Umar, and others and others of our brothers who seem to differ, and we do not, may Allah forbid, that we say a word of what I said that would be untrue. This is impossible for it to enter our minds. But I say that truth is sometimes a lie, and a lie is truth, if we measure the lie by its bad effects, it is blameworthy, but if there are good effects of the lie, the liar is praised and takes the place of truth, and the opposite is the case. If the truth leads to destruction or harm or or or shedding of blood or seizing of land or or, then this is the truth that is a lie, and the lie is the truth. At that time, I say, may Allah bless you, that we have from the rules of our religion and the principles of our Shari'ah what makes each one seek from the other, asking for an excuse from him, even if, as they say, what is there? They say in a hadith, of course, attributed to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and it is not authentic: "Seek for your brother...

The Shaykh: an excuse
Shuqara: Seek for your brother an excuse. And there is what else? Another saying, if there is a suspicion, what is it?

The Shaykh: No, this is a statement of some jurists that if there are ninety-nine statements in judging a Muslim as a disbeliever and one statement says he is not a disbeliever, this statement is built upon
Shuqara: This statement is built upon

The Shaykh: out of caution.
Shuqara: As a precaution, may Allah bless you, my brother Khalid. What we want from you there, especially regarding the young people who have no knowledge, is that you speak about knowledge and connection to what is said in public gatherings, but the other brothers do not know this; they do not know it at all. I have noticed that they do not have an academic or intellectual foundation that would make them at least cautious in judging things. This is your responsibility. You, who adopt the correct Salafi line in Saudi Arabia, must be responsible for caring for these people and not leaving them alone. I mean, the thing I hate most, by Allah, is that I work on exposing a person, even if he is not on the methodology, because this distracts me from many issues and diverts my effort. And although, of course, it is obligatory to warn if warning is required, I do not see anything that requires warning from what you think is wrong. Why? Because the issues, as we agreed, that led to the division are in the branches, not in the creed at all. Therefore, may Allah bless you, my brother Khalid, let it not be the case that you, whom we consider the visible face of this issue and the prominent names in it, occupy these young people with things other than what they should be occupied with, which is seeking knowledge, reading, and acquiring understanding. And you must occupy them with circles of knowledge.

The questioner : There is no doubt that this exists, and we always warn, and all the shaykhs, as well as those who are not shaykhs, warn the young people not to speak in these issues so that this does not divert them from seeking knowledge.
Shuqara: But I have noticed this a lot. The questions that were directed, my brother Khalid, the questions they directed to me there, revolve around this.

The Shaykh : The fire is stoked. I would like to remind our brother Khalid, in my opinion, of a hadith that can be of benefit to us in what we are dealing with, which is that the criticism of scholars by one another is not accepted if they are in the same country.
Shuqara: This is beautiful speech.

The Shaykh : Why? Because sensitivity drives people to something that, if they were to think about it, they would find to be incorrect.
Al-'Awaisheh: The same thing, our Shaykh.

The Shaykh : Yes.

The questioner : It has indicators.

The Shaykh : It is this.
Shuqara: In any case, we are happy with your visit. May Allah will it that we meet soon. May Allah will it that our Shaykh be the leader of the caravan, if Allah wills.