In this paper I want to study the ayahs regarding iman and kufr in the Quran. In Turkey, the developments in the last couple of years have shaken the very foundations of the classic ‘Ahl al-Sunnah aqidah’ in the eyes of many Muslims. Recently, in a popular Turkish YouTube Channel broadcasting from exile (due to the fact that most of opposition channels were seized or closed by the government), the topic was; “according to Alh al-Sunnah aqidah, an unbeliever, atheist or Christian who has dedicated his/her whole life to helping others and lived a righteous life will go to the hell because he/she doesn’t have faith and on the other side a corrupt person, an oppressor, a thief, a rapist will eventually go to paradise because he/she has faith, how should we understand this with the fairness of Allah who is the Most Just?”[1]
Although this question is not new in Islamic history, many Muslims in Turkey are encountering this dilemma for the first time in their lives. Both practicing Muslims and majority of the seculars used to associate faith with virtues such as humbleness, truthfulness, decency, compassion, and most importantly justice. Yet lately, political Islamists have proven exact opposite of this belief. Once they possessed full power, they became the oppressors themselves. Albeit, the oppressed, becoming the worst kind of oppressor is a usual theme in history, a few years ago it was unimaginable that oppressed Islamists who fought several decades for democracy, justice, human rights, rule of the law and anti-corruption would become so corrupt and ruthless in such a short time.
So, what does the Quran say about faith and people of salvation and how does it describe the unbelievers who will be the dwellers of the hell? Can a person, who is committing major sins stay as a Muslim or what is the status of an atheist who is doing good deeds? This was one of the major breaking points between Kharijites, Mu’tazila and Ahl al-Sunnah (basically Ash’aris and Maturidis). The Kharijites thought anybody who commits a grave sin is doomed for eternally in the hell, on the other hand, Ahl al-Sunnah believed sins, no matter how big they are, would not make somebody an unbeliever. Sherman Jackson narrates an anecdote in his book, Islam & The Problem of Black Suffering between Hasan al-Basri and one of his followers Wasil bin Ata who is later labeled as Mu’tazila, the one who has separated himself or disassociated himself.
“The traditional story is that the famed protoorthodox master al-Hasan al-Basri (d. 100/728) was once presiding over a study circle in the mosque at Basra when a man approached and asked him the settle the controversy over the fate of miscreant believers. According to the man, some for examples, certain groups of Kharijites- held that those who committed grave sins were doomed to Hell eternally; others such as the Murji’ites, held that as long as one was a believer in one’s heart, one’s misdeeds would bring no harm in afterlife, just as the good deeds of unbelievers would bring no benefit. Before al-Hasan al-Basri could gather his thoughts, a student of his, Wasil b. Ata (d. 131/748) arose and interjected: “I do not say that those who commit grave sins are believers or unbelievers in the absolute; rather, they occupy a status between these two statutes, being neither believer or unbeliever. Wasil then got up, withdrew from al-Basri’s circle, and proceeded to another part of the mosque.”[2]
So, how does the Quran describe iman and kufr? In the Quran, faith is always associated with action. From the very beginning, in the second surah, al-Barakah, believers are addressed as “Who believe in the unseen, establish prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them” (Quran: 2/3). The expression “who have believed and done righteous deeds” is a repeating theme in the Quran.[3] From those ayahs, we can conclude that righteous deeds are a condition for iman.
In the Surah al-Furqan, while the Quran is describing different features of believers, it also negatively describes them not committing major sins, “And those who do not invoke with Allah another deity or kill the soul which Allah has forbidden [to be killed], except by right, and do not commit unlawful sexual intercourse. And whoever should do that will meet a penalty. Multiplied for him is the punishment on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein humiliated” (Quran: 25:68-69). It is noteworthy that, the ayah mentions two majors sins, killing an innocent soul and committing adultery right after associating partners to Allah, which is obvious disbelief in the order from most grave to less grave. That’s why Mu’tazila believes that if somebody commits a grave sin, while he/she claims to be a believer, he/she will be ascribed to a status between the two statuses of iman and kufr.
I think this opinion makes more sense with the following ayahs, “Except for those who repent, believe and do righteous work. For them Allah will replace their evil deeds with good. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful. And he who repents and does righteousness does indeed turn to Allah with [accepted] repentance.” Here, the salvation of a major sinner is conditioned to repentance and doing righteous deeds. In the Quran, the word chosen for repentance is also remarkable. “The word conveys this concept (repentance) in Arabic is tawbah and the verbal form is ta’ba/yata’bu, the literal meaning of which is “to turn”; thus when one repents one is said to turn unto God, or ta’ba ila’Llah. But this phrase also indicates that one has returned from sin to God. Or from sinfulness to godliness, which relates the Quranic conception of the human being as inherently good, rather than stained by original sin.”[4]
However, al-Sunnah scholars have consensus upon that a person should be considered Muslim as long as he claims to be Muslim, no matter how great the sin he/she commits.[5] Their concern is understandable as well. When you start to label people as kafir because of the sins they commit, it will be hard to draw a line. Once you open this door, it goes back to Kharijite creed or their reincarnation in our age as ISIS mentality.
If we go back to the first part of our question; what will be the status of unbelievers who spend their whole life righteously doing good deeds? We see many people in the life of the Prophet (PBUH) who can be considered in this category; of whom the most paramount in his life is His uncle, Abu Talib. There are many ayahs that make it clear that if somebody denies the existence and oneness of Allah Almighty, he will be judged as a kafir in the hereafter. Christians, Jews, and other monotheistic believers are also considered kafir if they deny Allah’s Messenger. “Indeed, those who disbelieve in Allah and His messengers and wish to discriminate between Allah and His messengers and say, we believe in some and disbelieve in others, and wish to adopt a way in between, those are the disbelievers, truly. And We have prepared for the disbelievers a humiliating punishment” (Quran 5:150-151).
Also, the ayah “And whoever does righteous deeds, whether male or female, while being a believer – those will enter Paradise and will not be wronged, [even as much as] the speck on a date seed” (Quran 4:124) clearly tells us iman is a condition for salvation in the hereafter. The repeating ayahs 2:62 and 5:69 also says the same thing. Here again, most of the classic and contemporary scholars think that it is important how well and under what conditions they get to know the Messenger of Allah is important. Yet, there are also several ayahs stating that righteousness and any good deeds will not be left unrewarded regardless of who does them. “So, whoever does an atom’s weight of good will see it, and whoever does an atom’s weight of evil will see it” (Quran 99:7-8).
Here have to point out another very important ayah “O you who have believed, believe in Allah and His Messenger and the Book that He sent down upon His Messenger and the Scripture which He sent down before. And whoever disbelieves in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Last Day has certainly gone far astray” (Quran: 4:136). This ayah also tells us that iman is not a solid-state, rather it can increase or decrease. The ayah 49:14 also points out this fact.
From those ayahs my conclusion will be;
i- Iman is a condition for salvation.
ii- Iman and kufr are not absolute states. As the hadith says “one can leave his house in the morning as a believer and returns in the evening as an unbeliever” (Abu Davud).
iii- Grave sins can diminish or destroy iman.
iv- Those who commit grave sins (especially violating the rights of others) should not be so sure of their iman.
v- All good deeds of unbelievers will be rewarded.
vi- Contemporary scholars must revisit the Ahl al-Sunnah notion that we should consider somebody a believer no matter what kind of zulm they commit. This notion has caused in history and has been causing today that Muslim communities turn a blind eye to the state terror as long as the rulers claim to be Muslims.
vii- Believers should stop supporting politicians or community leaders just because they claim to be good Muslims, regardless of their actions.
The case of hypocrites must be the subject of another paper. I believe they are called hypocrites because their status rapidly changes based on their interests. I want to finish with a quote from Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, “Within each sin is a path leading to unbelief. Unless that sin is swiftly obliterated by seeking God’s pardon, it will grow a worm into a snake that gnaws on the heart.”[6] Allahu a’lam
[1] Erkam Tufan- 30 Minutes, “A Muslims who does evil will go to paradise and an unbeliever who does good will go to hell?” accessed November 20, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RQc5fnXdmQ
[2] On the movement of “Kharijites,” Encyclopedia of Islam, 5:1074-77; W. M. Watt, “The Formative Period of Islamic Thought” (Edinburg: Edinburg University Press, 1973), quoted in Sherman A. Jackson, “Islam and the Problem of Black Suffering” (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009), 47-48.
[3] Quran: 2/82, 3/114, 16/97, 18/30, 19/96, 4/124, 98/7, 25/70, etc.
[4] Joseph Lumbard, “The Quran in Translation.” Quoted from: Joseph Lumbard, Caner Dagli, Maria M Dakake, Seyyid H Nasr, The Study Quran, The Quran in Translation (New York, HarperCollins Publishers, 2015),1604.
[5] Sacit Arvasi, “Kotuluk Yapan Musluman Cennete, Iyilik Yapan Kafir Cehenneme mi?” accessed on December 1, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDx6fdS0Wz0
[6] Bedizuzzaman Said Nursi, “Flashes,” Second Flash. Accessed on December 1, 2019. http://www.erisale.com/index.jsp?locale=en#content.en.203.22
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