Earlier, on p. 6, he said: “The aim of this division, according to its advocates, is to liken believers who do not follow the approach of the self-styled Salafis to unbelievers—indeed, to declare them unbelievers—on the grounds that, like all other unbelievers, they affirm Allah’s oneness in lordship but not His oneness in worship, which they claim means worshipping Him alone. On this basis, they have declared unbelievers those who seek nearness to Allah through the prophets—peace and blessings be upon them—or through the saints. They have also declared many who disagree with them on numerous matters to be unbelievers, deeming their opponents’ views contrary to what is correct or true. All this is due to that man from Harrān.”
I say: I have already shown that the writer’s claim that this division was invented by Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah is a lie. I have cited statements by scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah wa-l-Jamāʿah demonstrating that this was the position of Ahl al-Sunnah wa-l-Jamāʿah before Ibn Taymiyyah, after him, and in his own time. I have also provided sufficient evidence for the validity of this division, and all praise is due to Allah.
As for the writer’s accusation that Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah declares Muslims unbelievers, this stems from his hatred of Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah. Thus, you find him feigning sorrow over Ibn Taymiyyah’s being called Shaykh al-Islām and expressing his displeasure at this. He even calls on the sleeping to awaken and on those with insight to reflect on this “outrage”!!
He says on p. 20: “Whenever he [i.e., Shaykh al-Duwaysh] mentions Ibn Taymiyyah, he calls him Shaykh al-Islām, without applying this title to the other scholars. Let those with insight reflect, and let the sleepers awaken”!!
Yet this is a lie about Shaykh al-Duwaysh, may Allah have mercy on him. In his book al-Mawrid al-Zulāl (The Pure Spring), to which the writer refers, he describes scholars other than Ibn Taymiyyah as Shaykh al-Islām, as Imam, and as the Imam of Imams in numerous places, as anyone who has read his book in full knows.
In any case, Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, was among the most scrupulous of people in the matter of declaring others unbelievers