Shaykh al-Islām—may Allah Most High have mercy on him—said:

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“Qualifying one’s profession of faith is Sunnah.”

This is the position of our scholars and most of Ahl al-Sunnah. The Murji’ah and the Mu‘tazilah, however, say that such qualification is impermissible, since it constitutes doubt.

Qualification means saying: “I am a believer, if Allah wills”; “I am a believer, I hope”; “I believe in Allah, His angels, His Books, and His messengers”; or: “If by faith you mean that which renders my blood inviolable, then yes. But if you mean:

‘The believers are only those whose hearts tremble when Allah is mentioned,’

then Allah knows best.”

There are three views here. The first is that qualification is obligatory, so an unqualified assertion is impermissible. This view is stated by al-Qādī in ‘Uyūn al-Masā’il, among other sources. The second is that qualification is recommended, while an unqualified assertion is permissible from another standpoint. The third is that both are permissible, each from a particular standpoint. The statement that qualification is Sunnah means only that it is permissible, in refutation of those who prohibit it.

If we say that it is obligatory, al-Qādī’s reasoning is that, if we could categorically assert that we are believers, this would amount to categorically asserting that we are destined for Paradise, since Allah has promised Paradise to the believers. Yet we cannot categorically assert that the promise of Paradise applies to us, because this is conditional upon dying in faith, and only Allah knows that,