negate it: prostration to an idol, showing contempt for the Mushaf (a written copy of the Quran), murdering a prophet, or maligning him all nullify faith. By contrast, ruling by other than what Allah has revealed and abandoning the prayer are, without doubt, kinds of practical kufr (disbelief in deed).

I say: This blanket statement warrants scrutiny, for those very acts may on occasion constitute doctrinal kufr as well, namely when they are accompanied by something that betrays a corrupt creed—such as mocking the prayer and those who perform it, or preferring execution to performing the prayer when the judge commands him to do so, as will be explained later. Keep this point in mind, for it is important.

He—may Allah have mercy on him—then said:
“It is impossible to remove the designation of kufr once Allah and His Messenger have applied it to a person; nevertheless, it is kufr in action, not kufr in belief. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ denied faith of the adulterer, the thief, the wine-drinker, and the one whose neighbor does not feel safe from his harm. When the Prophet negated faith from such a person, he is a kafir from the standpoint of deed, while the kufr of denial and conviction is absent.”

I reply: In my view, it is incorrect to apply the very word kufr to such individuals by saying, for example, “Whoever commits adultery has disbelieved,” let alone declaring, “He is a kafir”—even regarding the one who neglects the prayer, or anyone else described in the hadith as having committed kufr—while adhering to… ⦗38⦘