Is it true that we do not testify that the disbelievers who were not reached by the call of Islam are in the Fire?
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The student: Some people say it is not permissible for a person to say that all disbelievers are in the Fire. We say that as for those who were reached by the call, we testify that they are in the Fire...?
The Shaykh : No, we say that every disbeliever is in the Fire, but as for the one who was not reached by the call, we do not assert for him Paradise or the Fire, because he has not yet been described as a disbeliever. We say his affair is with Allah on the Day of Resurrection. This is different from the one who claims to be a Muslim but does what constitutes disbelief while ignorant. We have previously spoken about this issue and mentioned to you that the Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him), when he debated the Jahmiyyah and clarified the truth to them, and they persisted in what they were upon, said: "I know that if I said what you say, I would be a disbeliever, but as for you, you are not disbelievers in my view because you are those who engage in figurative interpretation". This was while he was debating the Jahmiyyah and clarifying the truth to them. He mentioned this in the book al-Istighathah.
This indicates an issue in which some people today are severe regarding the act of what constitutes disbelief, where they declare people disbelievers absolutely without evidence. This issue, as we said previously, is serious. Now, the Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him), as you heard, says: "I know that if I said what you say, I would be a disbeliever, because I know that this is contrary to the truth, but as for you, you are not disbelievers in my view because you are those who engage in figurative interpretation". And they are Jahmiyyah, even though declaring the Jahmiyyah disbelievers in general was reported from Imam Ahmad and others. And as I also quoted for you from Shaykh Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab (may Allah have mercy on him), he said: "We do not declare disbelievers those who took a statue on the grave of al-Badawi and al-Qadir due to their ignorance and the absence of one to alert them". Many people, or students of knowledge, used to distinguish between the root and the branch, saying that ignorance is excused in the branch but not in the root. This is not correct. First, dividing religion into root and branch: the Shaykh al-Islam says this is a religious innovation. There is no division of religion into root and branch in the Qur'an or the Sunnah. This only occurred from the speech of the theologians after the blessed centuries. They divided religion into root and branch, and said that this division is refuted by the fact that prayer is a branch in their view, yet it is of the roots of the roots, and by the fact that some issues in which there is disagreement in what they call roots do not result in the disbeliever being declared a disbeliever, as passed to us in the Sirat, the scale, the punishment of the grave, and seeing the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) seeing his Lord. All of these are what they call roots, and yet there is disagreement in them. Even if the disagreement in the root is not established, there is disagreement in the branches of the roots. Therefore, these issues should be clarified by the student of knowledge before he rules upon the servants of Allah with what Allah has not made for them.
The Shaykh : No, we say that every disbeliever is in the Fire, but as for the one who was not reached by the call, we do not assert for him Paradise or the Fire, because he has not yet been described as a disbeliever. We say his affair is with Allah on the Day of Resurrection. This is different from the one who claims to be a Muslim but does what constitutes disbelief while ignorant. We have previously spoken about this issue and mentioned to you that the Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him), when he debated the Jahmiyyah and clarified the truth to them, and they persisted in what they were upon, said: "I know that if I said what you say, I would be a disbeliever, but as for you, you are not disbelievers in my view because you are those who engage in figurative interpretation". This was while he was debating the Jahmiyyah and clarifying the truth to them. He mentioned this in the book al-Istighathah.
This indicates an issue in which some people today are severe regarding the act of what constitutes disbelief, where they declare people disbelievers absolutely without evidence. This issue, as we said previously, is serious. Now, the Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him), as you heard, says: "I know that if I said what you say, I would be a disbeliever, because I know that this is contrary to the truth, but as for you, you are not disbelievers in my view because you are those who engage in figurative interpretation". And they are Jahmiyyah, even though declaring the Jahmiyyah disbelievers in general was reported from Imam Ahmad and others. And as I also quoted for you from Shaykh Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab (may Allah have mercy on him), he said: "We do not declare disbelievers those who took a statue on the grave of al-Badawi and al-Qadir due to their ignorance and the absence of one to alert them". Many people, or students of knowledge, used to distinguish between the root and the branch, saying that ignorance is excused in the branch but not in the root. This is not correct. First, dividing religion into root and branch: the Shaykh al-Islam says this is a religious innovation. There is no division of religion into root and branch in the Qur'an or the Sunnah. This only occurred from the speech of the theologians after the blessed centuries. They divided religion into root and branch, and said that this division is refuted by the fact that prayer is a branch in their view, yet it is of the roots of the roots, and by the fact that some issues in which there is disagreement in what they call roots do not result in the disbeliever being declared a disbeliever, as passed to us in the Sirat, the scale, the punishment of the grave, and seeing the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) seeing his Lord. All of these are what they call roots, and yet there is disagreement in them. Even if the disagreement in the root is not established, there is disagreement in the branches of the roots. Therefore, these issues should be clarified by the student of knowledge before he rules upon the servants of Allah with what Allah has not made for them.