Allah says: “So kill the polytheists wherever you find them; capture them, besiege them, and lie in wait for them at every ambush-point” (al-Tawbah 9:5). Hence scholars must warn against shirk and explain it to the people so that they keep away from it; this is a binding obligation. To remain silent while people drift into worshipping others beside Allah—all the while claiming to be Muslims, with no one forbidding or alerting them—is extremely dangerous. Some preachers focus on condemning usury, adultery, and moral decadence. These are indeed forbidden and corrupt, yet shirk is far graver. Why, then, is there no comparable concern to denounce shirk, to warn against it, and to expose the acts of major shirk into which many fall while professing Islam? Why this complacency toward shirk—allowing people to commit it while scholars live among them yet say nothing? The very first priority must be to forbid this enormous peril that has devastated the community, for every sin beneath it is lighter. One must start with what is most important, then move on to what is next in importance. (19) Definition of shirk: it is to call upon anyone alongside Allah—that is, to direct any act of worship to other than Allah, whether to an angel…