The Ruling on Harshness and Violence in Calling People to Islam

Question:
The questioner: Your Eminence, there is a group of people who hold a pessimistic view toward their upright brothers, which has resulted in those brothers distancing themselves from the communities of the righteous. What is the way to bridge this gap, and what is the position of the upright people regarding this view held of them?

Answer:
It is obligatory for the committed to be humble and to seek the good manner and gentleness with people, especially the common people, and to address them in clear, soft ways that they understand, with gentleness in all matters. They must not be arrogant and must not use violence in speech, for this drives people away from the truth and makes people hate the people of truth. The believer, and especially the caller to Allah and the student of knowledge, should be gentle in all his affairs, forbearing and humble in his calling of people and his teaching of them, so that they accept from him. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: And he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: And he said: .
So, the arrogance of the committed person and his pride over people because Allah guided him and enabled him for something they did not know is among the causes of his deprivation, among the causes of his lack of success, and among the causes of his misguidance after guidance. It is obligatory to be humble before Allah and not to be arrogant over the servants of Allah, and to be humble, forbearing, and gentle in his advice, teaching, and guidance, addressing people with what they know, and addressing them with good, soft, and pleasant ways. This is what is required, so that his brothers do not turn away from him, so that they do not hate his admonition, and so that they do not distance themselves from nearness. May Allah grant success to everyone.
Q: Your Eminence, some committed youth look at their brothers with a view that contains much harshness and distance from the wisdom of guidance and calling to Allah in the manner of the wise caller, observing that they commit some apparent sins. What is your guidance for these people? May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh: The matter has been discussed previously, and it is obligatory for them to be humble and to address people with good speech and good manner, to be gentle, and to use forbearance in all matters, and not to be arrogant over the servants of Allah. Rather, they must praise Allah and thank Him for the favor He bestowed upon them with knowledge, and for guiding and enabling them, so that they do not become arrogant over their brothers because of that. Let not their noses be lifted in arrogance and pride over their brothers because they understood what the others did not understand. No, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was at the peak of humility; he taught the ignorant and was gentle with the ignorant, and did not rebuke them or be severe with them. In what occurred of his character (peace and blessings be upon him) and what passed through him is a lesson and admonition for the people of knowledge. Among that is what happened in the story of the man who urinated in the mosque, and the people were about to attack him, so he said: When he finished urinating, he called him and said: He did not rebuke him and did not be severe with him, but taught him what he did not know. Among that is the story of the Bedouin who pulled his garment until it left a mark on the side of his neck, and said: "Give me from the wealth of Allah that is with you." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) smiled and ordered a gift for him, and did not rebuke him (peace and blessings be upon him). Among that is the story of Mu'awiyah ibn al-Hakam when a man near him sneezed during prayer and he congratulated him, saying: "May Allah have mercy on you." The people saw him looking at them and he disliked that, and said: "And what is their business looking at me?" So they tried to silence him, advising him to be quiet, so he was quiet. When he finished praying, he came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) taught him. He said: "By Allah, I have not seen better teaching than his (peace and blessings be upon him). He did not humiliate me, nor hit me, nor insult me," to the end of what he said. Rather, he taught him and was good in his teaching (peace and blessings be upon him), and made it clear to him that this prayer is not suitable for any of the speech of people; it is only glorification, saying Allahu Akbar, and reciting the Qur'an. So he did not be severe (peace and blessings be upon him), but taught him. And so is the story of the one who did not do well in his prayer, who prayed and did not settle in his bowing, so the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) called him and said: He did not say: "O wicked one," or "O ignorant one," or "O misguided one." He said: So he went back and prayed as he had prayed, then he came and greeted the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and he returned the greeting and said: So he went back and prayed as he had prayed, then he came and greeted the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and he returned the greeting. He did not boycott him; he returned the greeting and said: He said: "By Him who sent you with the truth as a Prophet, I do not know how to do anything other than this, so teach me." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) taught him and said: The hadith. He did not be severe with him, nor curse him, nor say: "O ignorant one," or "O sinner," or "O wicked one," or such offensive words. No, rather he taught him and was good in his teaching (peace and blessings be upon him). In these incidents and their like is an admonition for the caller and a reminder, so that he is gentle with people, so that he uses pleasant words, and so that he avoids every word that hurts people and drives them away from the truth. We ask Allah for guidance for everyone.