Denying perfection, if it occurs, is one of the major sins, so what about one who prays in the presence of food?

The questioner : You said that denying perfection is one of the major sins because a specific punishment is attached to it. So, regarding the hadith that there is no prayer in the presence of food, if a person ate in the presence of food to the extent that it affected his prayer, as we mentioned previously, has he committed a major sin?

The Shaykh : No, no. Denying faith is the issue. As for denying the prayer, that relates to a specific act and has no bearing on faith as a whole. However, any act to which the denial of faith is attached is a major sin.