Silsilat al-Ahadith al-Sahihah - Nasir al-Din al-Albani - (7/141)

Silsilat al-Ahadith al-SahihahNasir al-Din al-Albani

a disbeliever except insofar as he was a Muslim; and he became Muslim by his profession of Islam. Likewise, his apostasy can only result from his repudiation of Islam.”

I say: This is sound legal reasoning and an incontrovertible statement. It fully accords with Imam Ahmad’s preceding words, which indicate that he does not deem a person a disbeliever merely for abandoning the prayer, but rather for refusing to pray after being summoned to it. Further confirming the interpretation I have given to Imam Ahmad’s words is what appears in the book al-Insaf fi Ma‘rifat al-Rajih min al-Khilaf ‘ala Madhhab al-Imam al-Mubajjal Ahmad ibn Hanbal (Fairness in Identifying the Preponderant View among the Differences of Opinion in the School of the Venerated Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal), by Shaykh Ala al-Din al-Mardawi. He said, may Allah have mercy on him, (1/402)—as though explaining Ahmad’s aforementioned statement, “I summon him three times”:

“The one who summons him is the ruler or his deputy. Thus, if he has neglected many prayers before being summoned, his execution is not obligatory, and, according to the sound position of the madhhab, he is not deemed a disbeliever. This is the view held by the majority of the school’s adherents, and many of them stated it decisively.”

Among those who chose this position was Abu Abd Allah Ibn Battah, as mentioned by Shaykh Abu al-Faraj Abd al-Rahman ibn Qudamah al-Maqdisi in his book al-Sharh al-Kabir ‘ala al-Muqni‘ (The Great Commentary on al-Muqni‘) by Imam Muwaffaq al-Din al-Maqdisi (1/385). He added that Ibn Battah rejected the view of those who declared him a disbeliever. Abu al-Faraj said:

“It is the view of most jurists, including Abu Hanifah, Malik, and al-Shafi‘i...”

He then cited many hadiths in support of this, most of which are found in Ibn al-Qayyim’s work. Among them is the previously mentioned hadith of Ubadah in Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah’s discussion. He then said:

“Had he been a disbeliever, he would not have been included under the divine will.”

I say: This is further confirmed—beyond any room for doubt or misgiving—by the hadith under discussion and the hadith of Aishah. So do not forget this. Abu al-Faraj then said:

كافراً إلا من حيث كان مسلماً، وإسلامه كان بإقراره بالإسلام؛ فكذلك ردته لا تكون إلا بجحوده الإسلام ". قلت: وهذا فقه جيد، وكلام متين لا مرد له، وهو يلتقي تماماً ما تقدم من كلام الإمام أحمد ﵀ الدال على أنه لا يكفر بمجرد الترك؛ بل بامتناعه من الصلاة بعد دعائه إليها، وإن مما يؤكد ما حملت عليه كلام الإمام أحمد؛ ما جاء في كتاب " الإنصاف في معرفة الراجح من الخلاف على مذهب الإمام المبجل أحمد بن حنبل " للشيخ علاء الدين المرداوي؛ قال ﵀ (١/٤٠٢) - كالشارح لقول أحمد المتقدم آنفاً: " أدعوه ثلاثاً " -: " الداعي له هو الإمام أو نائبه، فلو ترك صلوات كثيرة قبل الدعاء لم يجب قتله، ولا يكفر على الصحيح من المذهب، وعليه جماهير الأصحاب، وقطع به كثير منهم ". وممن اختار هذا المذهب أبو عبد الله بن بطة، كما ذكر ذلك الشيخ أبو الفرج عبد الرحمن بن قدامة المقدسي في كتابه " الشرح الكبير على المقنع " للإمام موفق الدين المقدسي (١/٣٨٥) ، وزاد أنه أنكر قول من قال بكفره. قال أبو الفرج: " وهو قول أكثر الفقهاء؛ منهم: أبو حنيفة ومالك والشافعي.. ". ثم استدل على ذلك بأحاديث كثيرة أكثرها عند ابن القيم، ومنها حديث عبادة المتقدم في كلام شيخ الإسلام ابن تيمية، فقال عقبه: " ولو كان كافراً لم يدخله في المشيئة ". قلت: ويؤكد ذلك حديث الترجمة وحديث عائشة تأكيداً لا يدع لأحد شكاً أو شبهة، فلا تنسى. ثم قال أبو الفرج: