Takfir

 

In Islamic law making takfir or takfeer is the act of declaring a Muslim individual or Muslim group as being kaffirs i.e. non Muslims. Takfir can be done on Muslims living at the present moment, or Muslims who lived in the past

Making takfir on the Disbelievers-Some People say that we can not call disbelievers kafirs

By Sheikh Ubayd Al-Jabri

Qn28: Some of the people by what’s been called by ‘Interfaith Dialogue’ and they are claiming that those who Islaam hasn’t yet reached cannot be called kuffar (disbelievers) because the evidence hasn’t been established upon them. So, we ask you Shaykh, if you can explain this issue of making takfeer on those who haven’t embraced Islaam yet because the message hasn’t reached them.

Ans.28: This school of thought which you are mentioning are the exact thoughts of Dr Yusuf al-Qaradawi who’s an Egyptian Islamic doctor who lives in Qatar, and he is not trustworthy regarding the Religion. He is a servant of the freemasons; he gives da’wah promoting the unity of religions and that which was led by Hasan Turaaby from Sudan. We know from the Quran, the Sunnah and the Consensus of Scholars that people are of two types – and there is no third.

The types are, first those who responded to the Call of Allaah and His Messenger (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and they are the Muslims; while the second consists of those who have not responded to the Call of Allaah, and they are the Jews, the Christians and the Hindus; and these are the kuffar (disbelievers) due to the evidence in the Qur’aan, the Sunnah and the Ijmaa’ (consensus of the Scholars). The Jews and the Christians are also known as the People of the Book due to the fact that they have heard about the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and they also heard his call. In the hadeeth of the Prophet sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, he says, ‘I swear by the One in Whose Hands my life is, there is not a Jew or Christian who heard about me and he dies without accepting that which I have brought, then he will enter the Hellfire.’ This interfaith dialogue is a sickness, an affliction, trying to bring about the unification of religions and it is not from the methodology of the Salaf; this hasn’t been known of until it became apparent from the Ikhwan al-Muslimeen in Egypt and has since branched out into different organisations in Sudan, Syria and other places. And as for the principles of this organisation, we will take that which we agree with and we will leave that which we disagree with. Their principles are the likes of which open ways to bid’ah (innovation) and enable the people of bid’ah to climb into the lives of the Muslims taking any opportunity they can to get to the misguided Muslim groups such as the Raafidah and other than them as well as the non-Muslims amongst the Jews and Christians. I have discussed this in detail previously and explained how these people leave al Walaa wal Baraa (the allegiance to the Muslims and not associating oneself to the Kuffar) although it is a principle of Islaam. As a result of this new thought, they call people to love the Christians and the Jews. This is one of their da’wah which adds itself to another of their da’wah to bring together the people of the Sunnah with the people of the Rafidaah together – and this was instigated by the founder of the Ikhwan al Muslimeen, Hasan al-Banna who clearly mentioned this. This man claimed that the Muslims and Jews should be brought together since their enmity wasn’t based on religion issues but rather our differences are economical ones – this was quoted by Mahmoud Abdul-Haleem in his book, ‘Al Ikhwaanu Ahdaatun sun’atu Tareekh’.

Every Muslim should know, there are two types in the religion, those who have accepted the words of Allaah and they are the Muslims, and those who haven’t and they are the Kuffar – and this is based on evidence from the Qur’aan, the Sunnah and the Ijmaa’. So I advise those who have been afflicted or tested with this Unity of religions to repent to Allaah. It is clear that there is no problem with is giving the Jews and Christians da’wah by using all the means causing them to love this religion. We should make apparent to them the good deeds of Islaam of which are Righteousness, Justice, prohibition of Oppression, Honesty, Protection, Security for ourselves and our neighbours, security of their wealth and their person and all other positive aspects of Islaam since it is the upright and straight religion and it is the only religion. Making takfeer on those who haven’t embraced Islaam

The 3rd Nullifier of One’s Islaam: “Whoever does not declare the polytheists to be disbelievers, or doubts their disbelif or approves of their way has disbelieved” {Things that nullify One’s Islaam by Muhamed Abdul wahab pg 39}

 

Making takfir upon Muslims is not a light issue, and there are several conditions which are needed before takfir can be declared. Secondly, the making of takfir upon other Muslims is reserved for those who have a lot of Islamic knowledge such as the Ulema and Sheikhs, Muslims should not take it upon themselves to call other Muslims kaffirs when they don’t have the proper qualifications to do

Before I move on as to show what the scholars say about making takfir upon another Muslim, I would first like to show what the punishment is if takfir is done upon an innocent Muslim who is not a kaffir but a Muslim. From the authentic hadiths of the prophet:

Volume 8, Book 73, Number 71:

Narrated Abu Dhar:

That he heard the Prophet saying, “If somebody accuses another of Fusuq (by calling him ‘Fasiq’ i.e. a wicked person) or accuses him of Kufr, such an accusation will revert to him (i.e. the accuser) if his companion (the accused) is innocent.” ( Sahih Bukhari)

Sahih Muslim Book 001, Number 0116:

It is reported on the authority of Ibn ‘Umar that the Apostle (may peace and blessings be upon him) observed: When a man calls his brother an unbeliever, it returns (at least) to one of them.

As you can see, the punishment of wrongly calling another Muslim is severe, and that if you are wrong and that the Muslim you call a kaffir is not a kaffir then you yourself become the kaffir, which means you shall die in a state of unbelief and be thrown in the hell-fire. So this is why making takfir should be done by those who have a great deal of Islamic knowledge such as the Ulema and sheikhs.

Muhammad bin Saalih al-Uthaimeen about some groups of people who make takfir of the Muslim rulers without any guidelines and conditions.

The Shaikh replied: “Those who make takfir, they are the inheritors of the Khawaarij, those who rebelled against Ali bin Abi Taalib (radiallahu anhu). The kaafir is the one whom Allaah and His Messenger have declared a kaafir, and takfir itself has conditions, amongst them, ilm (knowledge) and amongst them iraadah (will, intent). So we ought to know that this ruler opposed the truth, and he knew the truth, and he intended deliberate opposition, and that he did not have any faulty interpretation (in the matter), such as when a person prostrates to an idol, and he knows that prostrating to an idol is Shirk and he does not have any faulty understanding either.

 What is important is that this affair has conditions, and it is not permissible to rush into takfir, just as it is not permissible to rush into the saying, “This is halaal (lawful) and this is haraam (unlawful).”