Author: Om Aisha
Morjaeh Sect (20th part)
The point of view of Ahl al-Sunnah and Jama’ah
However, the opinion of “Ahl al-Sunnah and Jama’ah” regarding the perpetrator of a major sin in the hereafter (The day of Judgement) is that pardoning the perpetrator of a major sin is permissible in terms of both hearing and reason.
Amedi writes about this: “The people of the truth believe that the believer deserves to be punished for his mistakes in the hereafter. Their difference is whether it is possible for him to be forgiven or not?” The Ash’aris consider this to be permissible rationally and aurally.
Abul Barakat Nasafi writes: “A person who commits a major sin, who does not consider it lawful and does not feel contempt for the one who forbids it, does not leave the faith; because confirmation still exists, and no one is left out of faith; except from the way he entered it. If the sinner dies without repentance, he is in the will of Allah Almighty. He will forgive him if He wills, and with His grace and mercy, or with the blessing of faith and obedience that is with him, or with the intercession of some. He will bring the chosen ones into heaven, and if he wants, he will punish him according to the size of his sin, whether it is small or big. Then his destiny will be paradise, and he will not remain in the fire of hell forever.
Therefore, according to Ahl al-Sunnah and Jama’ah, the perpetrator of a major sin has two situations: either Allah Almighty forgives him from the very beginning, with His grace and mercy or through intercession, or He punishes him according to the extent of his sin, and then he will enter heaven according to his promise, not by the individual’s own merit.
Saad al-Din Taftazani, in his clarification of the religion of “Ah-al-Sunnah and Jama’ah,” says: “The people of Islam differ about a believer who commits a major sin and dies before repenting: our religion is that we definitely cannot ask for forgiveness or let’s judge his punishment; rather, both are subject to the will of Almighty Allah. But if he is tormented, we are sure that he will not remain there forever; rather, he definitely comes out of there. Of course, not through obligation to Allah Almighty; rather, it is in accordance with the promise that Allah Almighty has given and it has been proven with the same reason as the solitude of the people of Paradise.”
Almighty Allah says: «قل يعبادي الذين أسرفوا على أنفسهم لا تقنطوا من رحمة الله إن الله يغفر الذنوب جميعا إنه هو الغفور الرحيم» Translation: “O Prophet! From me say: O servants who have wasted yourselves! Do not despair of Allah’s mercy; indeed, Allah forgives all sins, surely He is the Forgiving.”
The way of reasoning from this verse is: Allah Almighty forgives all sins; therefore, this forgiveness is general and includes all sins, and no sin is an exception to it, unless it is proven by consensus.
Allah Almighty said: «وإن ربّك لذو مغفرة للناس على ظلمهم» Translation: “And your Lord is Forgiving to people despite their wrongdoing.”
The way this verse indicates the permissibility of forgiveness is that Allah Almighty has established forgiveness in the state of oppression, and it is also clear that this forgiveness is not for the unbeliever. So, it was established below that, and the word “عَلي” (“on”) also implies the same thing; because this word implies the present; therefore, forgiveness is in the state of oppression, not in the state of disbelief; therefore, this verse is generally common except for unbelievers; therefore, the perpetrator of a major sin is also included in this ruling.
The pardon and forgiveness of the Almighty Allah for the servants, which the Qur’an stated and the Ummah agreed upon, is only for those who commit major sins before repentance; because minor sins are absolutely forgiven, and major sins are forgiven after repentance, as Allah the Exalted Himself has said: «إن تجتنبوا کبائر ما تنهون عنه نکفر عنکم سیئاتکم وندخلکم مدخلا کریما» Translation: “If you stay away from the big things that you have been forbidden, we will remove your [minor] sins from you and make you a worthy [and honorable] position.” In another place, He says: «وأقم الصلاة طرفي النهار وزلفا من الليل إن الحسنات يذهبن السيئات ذلك ذكرى للذاكرين». Translation: “And offer prayers at both ends of the day and at different times of the night. Verily, the good deeds cancel out the bad deeds. This is a warning for those who take counsel.”
