Are the Means of Da‘wah Restricted to Those Prescribed by the Shariah?

Here is a question: Are the means of calling to Allah, the Most High, restricted to those prescribed by the Shariah, or are they open to personal reasoning and judgement? In other words, for example, are we allowed to use football as a means and method of attracting young people and drawing them towards the call to Allah, the Most High? Likewise, for example, can we organise meals to feed them and offer them tea with the aim of attracting them, and other such means? Sheikh Albani rahimahullah: The answer is that we do not consider it permissible to adopt these things as means of calling to Allah. This is because at least some of them are forms of entertainment. And as mentioned in the hadith of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, recorded by Imam an-Nasa'i in as-Sunan al-Kubra and elsewhere, from Jabir ibn 'Abdullah al-Ansari, the Prophet ﷺ said: “Every form of amusement in which the son of Adam engages is false and futile, except his playing with his wife, his playing with his horse, his shooting with his bow, and swimming.” These are four things that the Prophet ﷺ mentioned as being excluded from what is futile, excluded from prohibited forms of amusement. Every form of amusement in which the son of Adam engages is futile, except for these matters. So, when we come to some of the forms of entertainment that have emerged in this era—for example, basketball, as mentioned in the question, as well as table tennis and similar activities—we may consider engaging in them permissible if the intention is a legislated one, namely strengthening the body. However, adopting such activities as a means of calling people to Allah is, firstly, a method that is foreign to Islam. Muslims have passed through all these long centuries, yet it has never been known that they adopted amusement—even if we were to consider that amusement permissible—as a means of calling people to Allah. And we all know, Allah willing, that there are matters which are prohibited in the Shariah as a means of blocking the means to evil (sadd adh-dhara'i'). Such matters are not prohibited in themselves; rather, they are prohibited because it is feared that they may lead to something contrary to the Shariah, whether that contradiction falls under the category of being disliked or the category of being prohibited. I believe that what we are referring to here has occurred in our own time. Some people have adopted certain forms of entertainment as a means—as they claim!—of bringing people closer to the call to Allah. You all know that, until fairly recently, some of the Sufis used singing and playing certain musical instruments as a means of attracting guests to their Sufi gatherings. Many debates took place between the people of knowledge and the people of Sufism concerning whether instruments of entertainment and music are prohibited or permissible. The people of Islamic jurisprudence and knowledge, without a doubt, were in accordance with what is indicated by the texts of the Qur'an and Sunnah regarding the prohibition of such forms of entertainment. Meanwhile, the Sufis took another position and went so far as to declare such forms of entertainment permissible—even playing the duff, the drum, and similar instruments. This is something that has long been known about the Sufis. We do not need to remind you of something that is already known to you as an evil. Then, before the Salafi da'wah had spread throughout almost all the Muslim countries, the masses of people became aware of the falsity of the Sufis' claim that these instruments were permissible. A generation then emerged that adopted a middle path between those two groups. They interpreted certain forms of chanting as permissible and called them “Islamic nasheeds.” Source: https://www.al-albany.com/audios/content/13287/%D9%87%D9%84-%D9%88%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D8%B9%D9%88%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D9%88%D9%82%D9%8A%D9%81%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A3%D9%85-%D8%A7%D8%AC%D8%AA%D9%87%D8%A7%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%81%D9%87%D9%84-%D9%8A%D8%AC%D9%88%D8%B2-%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%AA%D8%B9%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%84-%D9%83%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%AF%D9%85-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D8%B9%D9%88%D8%A9 ___ Sheikh Muqbil rahimahullah said: "Football is not one of the means of da‘wah. Only those who are bankrupt (ikhwan Al-Muflisoon) take it as a means of da‘wah." [Qam‘ al-Mu‘ānid, 2/397–398]