# Do you need to appear perfectly pious to be a good Muslim? *Fake preaching and a hierarchy of people who do not believe what they preach* - URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/ypfqphdsbgg/s/5/ - Date: 2019-08-01 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Umm Abdullah & Hasanat Scandal | Mufti Abu Layth (25:17–31:24) - Status: general teaching - Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPFQpHdSbGg&t=1517s - Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/ypfqphdsbgg/ **Topics:** Cults, clergy and religious abuse; Social media; Religious guilt and scrupulosity **Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** No one needs to pretend to be pious; being genuinely human makes the deen more workable, while sanctimonious fake preaching drives people from faith. **Checked position (checked by two independent reviews, not by the channel):** Mufti Abu Layth says one does not need to pretend to be pious, and that it is okay just to be human. **Evidence, his words at 29:39:** “what I am saying is you don't need to pretend to be pious I think it's okay to just be human just be yourself” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPFQpHdSbGg&t=1779s) ## Longer summary Mufti Abu Layth says his issue with the affair is fake preaching. He likens Islam to a hierarchy in which much of what is preached at the top is not believed by those preaching it, the people on the ground half believe only because they think others believe, and ordinary people then feel guilty, give up on faith and come to him. He says if people acted more genuinely it would reduce much of the trauma on the ground, and likens the internet to medieval public executions. He says he has never claimed to be pious, that one does not need to pretend to be, and that it is okay just to be human, which makes the deen more workable for the common person. He signs off. ## Transcript (machine tier, 25:17–31:24) [24:40] this ocean of love what the hell - hey this just a graveyard of leaders warriors pioneers people of great potential all just lying dead here at the hands slain by love Allah Allah so anyway let's focus focus focus focus so people so that's what's been going on this has been completely it's plagued the social media scene this Omar [25:16] Abdullah and Hassan at Abdullah kind of thing and I have to say that you know this my issues are with this fake preaching because this is the thing I'm telling you imagine Islam is a hierarchy imagine Islam is a hierarchy and you've got the huge people at the top most of these people what they preach the narrative they preach I'm not saying all of it but a huge part of it they don't believe in it and the people on the bottom the ground floor you're on the [25:55] ground half of them or most of them don't believe in either but they think we ought to believe in it because those people are saying we ought to believe in it so it's one of these things that people believe that other people believe in it it's a paradox nobody's actually believing in a lot of these things they just believe that other people believe in these things so this is why and then you've got like let's say middle management or management and the middle management and then if you got like team leaders I think at that level some people probably do believe in it like a lot of this stuff those kind of lowly [26:33] all people and then they the public I don't think most of them even think in that much detail about the finites of things they're being told to believe in but then they just feel guilty that they're not good Muslims and they don't do it and then is it what is my issue with this you know somebody might say yeah move TG up cuca ik/fk kahiko ducrai what's your problem my problem is then the people on the ground these people then feel that they can't believe in this stuff and then they give up on faith and then these are the kind of [27:12] people that I'm dealing with so this is the problem if people started to act just more real just more genuine in stuff you know it would reduce a huge amount of the trauma on the ground because your common person can't believe in stuff your common person listens to this Islamic stuff just to talk you know when they're having a guilt trip just to feel like oh yeah that's what I ought to be like and even the person they listening to isn't [27:48] like some builds sons it's it's a dog-eat-dog world people dog-eat-dog and I've got to say the internet is ruthless I was saying earlier on that the internet is like people of the medieval age you know when the public like in the 15th century 14th century you know you get them saying they're the public executions and they'll be like throwing Rotten are on or tomatoes or things and [28:24] saying yeah this is what everybody is like on the Internet they just ruthless Allah Allah [Music] I see a stylist courses as he s done las casas kirino's this is the problem this is the problem you know on this fake preaching move this is as they would say Oh God can way go you know this is playing with fire people it's muy muy [29:02] peligroso very dangerous and this is the problem that we unliving that kind of a double life especially when you don't believe in something and then using religion just to rip people off making fake exorcisms this one not nice so our people I hope you've hope that's brought you up to speed I just want to share my thoughts I'm not saying that you know I'm and I've made something very clear [29:39] I've never preached to be pious and holy and I'm not saying I'm definitely not saying I am but what I am saying is you don't need to pretend to be pious I think it's okay to just be human just be yourself it will take away from some of that glory but it will make the mean more workable for the common person you see so and this is why my issue was never is not with their personal lives or people personally doing stuff for them you know [30:19] whether it's going to be these sex parties or these curbing or these whatever people are up to these were not you know if it was behind closed doors it was them my issue was always that the sanctimonious behavior the pretending that you're so holy that you know tapa tapa let alone do I don't even have these thoughts don't even occur to me I have angels protecting me from sin you know this kind of thing disheartens [30:58] people on the ground because the regular person then thinks all that is the ideal so yeah such a lot people that's I thought these were some thoughts why not share them with you well with that I leave you bid you a very good night take very good care of yourselves people wherever you are stay blessed over now ## Cite Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment YPFQpHdSbGg/s/5. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/ypfqphdsbgg/s/5/ Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.