If one comes upon people who dislike the Sunnah, is it wise to begin with them by something other than tawhid (the oneness of Allah)?
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The questioner : If one comes upon people who dislike the Sunnah, is it wise to begin with them by something other than tawhid (the oneness of Allah)?
The Shaykh : By disapproving of them?
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : Yes, I see that in such a case, one should begin with the agreed-upon fundamentals: obedience to Allah and His Messenger, mentioning the reward for the obedient, mentioning Paradise and the Fire, and the Last Day—things upon which there is agreement—until their hearts soften toward it and they recognize the knowledge he possesses.
And with a sincere intention, Allah will make the matter easy. For example, if he says, "Obedience to Allah and His Messenger is obligatory, and obedience to Allah and His Messenger leads to success in this world and the Hereafter," and the like of such speech, they will not dispute with you and will agree with you. So he begins first with what is agreed upon, because they claim to be Muslims and to be upon the Sunnah. Then, when they become accustomed to him and recognize the knowledge he has, and he gains a foothold in their hearts, speech becomes easy. Then he also says to these innovators, even if they are interpreting [texts] and have not reached the truth, that they have no sin upon them. And the mujtahid (scholar qualified to derive rulings) of this Ummah (the Muslim community), praise be to Allah, if he hits the mark, he has two rewards, and if he errs, he has one reward. And he opens for them the door of hope.
The questioner : Perhaps they would appoint him as the imam in the Fajr (dawn) prayer, and if he does not perform qunut (a supplication made standing in prayer) in the Fajr prayer, they do not accept from him any deviation or excuse?
The Shaykh : No, no, he should step forward and perform qunut for the sake of reconciliation, because there is no prohibition against qunut in the Fajr prayer, such that we would say he has disobeyed Allah and His Messenger. It is a non-performance, and non-performance does not indicate that it is forbidden. So he performs qunut, and the most important thing is that their hearts accept him.
The Shaykh : By disapproving of them?
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : Yes, I see that in such a case, one should begin with the agreed-upon fundamentals: obedience to Allah and His Messenger, mentioning the reward for the obedient, mentioning Paradise and the Fire, and the Last Day—things upon which there is agreement—until their hearts soften toward it and they recognize the knowledge he possesses.
And with a sincere intention, Allah will make the matter easy. For example, if he says, "Obedience to Allah and His Messenger is obligatory, and obedience to Allah and His Messenger leads to success in this world and the Hereafter," and the like of such speech, they will not dispute with you and will agree with you. So he begins first with what is agreed upon, because they claim to be Muslims and to be upon the Sunnah. Then, when they become accustomed to him and recognize the knowledge he has, and he gains a foothold in their hearts, speech becomes easy. Then he also says to these innovators, even if they are interpreting [texts] and have not reached the truth, that they have no sin upon them. And the mujtahid (scholar qualified to derive rulings) of this Ummah (the Muslim community), praise be to Allah, if he hits the mark, he has two rewards, and if he errs, he has one reward. And he opens for them the door of hope.
The questioner : Perhaps they would appoint him as the imam in the Fajr (dawn) prayer, and if he does not perform qunut (a supplication made standing in prayer) in the Fajr prayer, they do not accept from him any deviation or excuse?
The Shaykh : No, no, he should step forward and perform qunut for the sake of reconciliation, because there is no prohibition against qunut in the Fajr prayer, such that we would say he has disobeyed Allah and His Messenger. It is a non-performance, and non-performance does not indicate that it is forbidden. So he performs qunut, and the most important thing is that their hearts accept him.