The Second Principle

A person’s involvement in actions that could be classified as acts of disbelief does not automatically make them a disbeliever. This is because declaring someone specific as a disbeliever requires that evidence be established against them. Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allāh have mercy on him, said: «وليس لأحد أن يكفر المسلمين؛ وإن أخطأ وغلط؛ حتى تقام عليه الحجة، وتبين له المحجة، ومن ثبت إسلامه بيقين؛ لم يزُل ذلك عنه بالشك، بل لا يزول إلا بعد إقامة الحجة، وإزالة الشبهة» "No one has the right to declare Muslims as disbelievers, even if they make mistakes or err, until the evidence is established against them and the truth is made clear to them. Once a person's Islam is confirmed with certainty, it cannot be undone by doubt; it can only be nullified after establishing the evidence and removing any doubt." [Majmū' Al-Fatāwā (12/466)] I say: Establishing the evidence means ensuring that the conditions for declaring a specific person to be a disbeliever are met, which are: 1. Knowledge that removes ignorance, 2. Intention that rules out error, 3. Free-will that excludes force, 4. Absence of valid interpretation that would otherwise justify their actions. Therefore, even if scholars have identified something as major disbelief, it does not mean that everyone who engages in it is automatically a disbeliever, as the evidence must be established before such a judgment can be made.