One who is afflicted with a religious innovation: will his sins be expiated as other calamities expiate them?
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The student: If a person is afflicted with a religious innovation, how are his sins expiated...?
The Shaykh : A religious innovation does not expiate sins; it increases them. This is a calamity, but it is a calamity that requires repentance. That is to say, religious calamities are certainly calamities. There is no doubt that if a person is struck with laziness in obedience, or for example turning away from obedience, it is certainly a calamity. However, he must not remain in it; he must flee from it just as he flees from physical calamities.
The Shaykh : A religious innovation does not expiate sins; it increases them. This is a calamity, but it is a calamity that requires repentance. That is to say, religious calamities are certainly calamities. There is no doubt that if a person is struck with laziness in obedience, or for example turning away from obedience, it is certainly a calamity. However, he must not remain in it; he must flee from it just as he flees from physical calamities.