# How should Muslims treat people who leave Islam?

*Leave those who leave alone: misrepresentation, mercy and no mandate for a state*

- URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/vyawdwthpa4/s/13/
- Date: 2018-05-10 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Apostasy has NO punishment in Islam: A Qur'an & Sunnah Analysis by Mufti Abu Layth (53:42–1:00:17)
- Status: general teaching
- Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyAwDWTHPa4&t=3222s
- Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/vyawdwthpa4/

**Topics:** Apostasy and blasphemy; Converts and newcomers; Caliphate

**Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** People who leave Islam should be left alone, since that is between them and God; those who misrepresent the Prophet bear blame for people's hatred, and the Prophet's way was gentleness, not coercion or a state.

**Checked position (checked by two independent reviews, not by the channel):** Mufti Abu Layth says that whether a person leaves Islam is between them and God and they should be left alone, and that those who have given a distorted image of the Prophet bear the blame for people's hatred of him.

**Evidence, his words at 55:15:** “to judge the look if a person left Islam that's the that's between them and God leave them alone” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyAwDWTHPa4&t=3315s)

## Longer summary

Mufti Abu Layth mentions people on death row in Saudi Arabia for blasphemy and rejects the claim that ex-Muslims left because of a disease in their hearts, citing the Prophet's rebuke 'did you split open his heart?'. He says none of them met the Prophet, and that those who hate him do so because of the distorted image given by bigots, who are to blame; whether someone leaves Islam is between them and God, they may be engaged in discussion but should be left alone, and he condemns posts claiming an ex-Muslim's wife is fair game. He tells the report of the man who urinated in the mosque, whom the Prophet told the people to leave alone and cleaned up after himself, and the parable of the owner who calls back his runaway horse with hay rather than chasing it, as the Prophet's way. He rejects the argument that apostates would be killed in an Islamic state, saying the Quran gives no command to set up a state, referring to a joint event with Shaykh Akram Nadwi, and calling the call for a state a fake nostalgia for empire. He closes with the Prophet's instruction to make things easy for people and not drive them away, and signs off.

## Sources and names cited

- report: did you split open his heart (unresolved)
- report: leave him alone the bedouin who urinated in the mosque (unresolved)
- report: my example and yours with this man is like a man whose horse ran away (unresolved)
- Shaykh Akram Nadwi
- ISIS
- report: bashshiru wa la tunaffiru yassiru wa la tuassiru

## Transcript (machine tier, 53:42–1:00:17)

[53:20] TV shows that look why why is it on the rise because they say later Nakhoda Elfie Korea was a coffee here because of these because of the clashes ideological clashes I was reading the other day about this I don't know if they've executed him this think his name was Ahmed and summary and a few other people that are on death row in Saudi Arabia for blasphemy well why it hurts me you know some of these X Muslims look people say old they left Islam because old they said this because they've got a disease in their heart get lost

[53:59] have you you know what The Messenger of Allah said I was shocked to Allah that have you ripped open his heart and taken a look how do you know how be you can make these claims I've read one of the the tweets about some Saudi who they said was an apostate what Allah he it hurt me to see that these people that look listen people the none of us have met the messenger of allah salallahu alaihe salam these people who have a bad

[54:37] opinion or they've gone away from the Prophet it has been because of the misrepresented image by these bigots of our prophet they have sowed the seeds of hatred they have given a distorted ugly image of Allah and His Messenger to these people who have then hated Allah and His Messenger they are to blame it hurts me when I see that that why you know that this person hasn't met the Prophet why

[55:15] would he hate the Prophet he would hate him because what has he read about him he read what these idiots have been writing they are to blame seriously and and to judge the look if a person left Islam that's the that's between them and God leave them alone yes if they want to have a discussion you can have a discussion but this kind of nonsense oh it's because it's a disease in their hearts oh it's Hungary Lud is more space in heaven or I read somewhere some post about next Muslim

[55:54] saying that Muslims are saying well your wife is now fair game oh she's you know this kind of what kind of disgusting nature what what is wrong with you people man is this how you know wonder they hate Allah and His Messenger who would who would you know because they think that's what a line is messengerís saying honestly what why he these people will be answerable for what they've said they have caused these people to hate let me tell you a hadith of The Messenger of Allah Salama Ali was

[56:31] something that he when when a person came in and he urinated in a sacred space and the people got up to chase this person and the Prophet told him leave him alone leave him alone what the hell's wrong the Prophet himself went and cleaned that himself went and cleaned that and do you know when he the person embraced his father probably never told him to embrace Islam person embraced Islam the Prophet said would you would you say that in front of them they said he said iyx you know you must be the Messenger of God the Prophet said to them listen he said the lightness the

[57:10] Simla to dove you and me to this person is like a person who had a horse and the horse run ran off ran wild and people chased it and the more they run after it the more it run away they chased him run and the owner said leave it alone leave it alone I am its own and he picked up some hay and and he just simply showed it to the horse and the horse came walking to its owner he said that is the similar to dove you with this person and me that had a void

[57:50] left here you would have killed him that is not my message not the messenger of allah sevillanas so people look and this argument oh no we will kill somebody openly if we have an Islamic state what hell is that about what Islamic state what's so different about you Islamic state and this Isis Islamic state we did Allah say in the Quran go bisetta state no way there's a video clip before it's on YouTube or chef Akram Ned we and I did a joint event where we answer this question share affirm that we actually answers

[58:28] that question more so saying there is nowhere in Islam this kind of Monday to set up a state yes if Muslims got together and they live together in communities they should have some rules that govern them but it would never set out with this impetus vision of empire the way it's become over time and today it doesn't exist and all this is is a fake nostalgia it's a fake solution to our problems or why why are we suffering because we haven't got a state let's go back to a state what state Empire you want to go back to Empire it will never go back to we are not in stage of

[59:06] Empires and kings and dynast dynasts and dynasties and so you know mayor loss of Hana Hana seriously give us all the ability to learn this thing truly for ourselves to really convey this with the sincerity that that it deserves ok I'm sorry to have kind of gone on but these kind of things really do rile me sometimes so I'll leave you guys with that if you do have any issues do reach out to me and Charlotte that's on

[59:44] Facebook on Twitter like my page I'm on snapchat mum 2014 ma LM 2 0 1 4 other than that people do remember the words of the messenger of allah that look make ease for people welcomed them do not scare them away that was his message ok I leave you with those words people spread love not war in sha Allah take very good care of yourselves Salam alaikum or a little lighter I'll our butter cat

## Cite

Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment VyAwDWTHPa4/s/13. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/vyawdwthpa4/s/13/

Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.