Jamaat not khawarij

Jama’at al-Muslimeen Are Not the Khawarij

In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate.

There are several differences between Jama’at al-Muslimeen and the Khawarij:

1. Jama’at al-Muslimeen do not declare a person who commits a major sin, other than shirk, to be a disbeliever, whereas the Khawarij declare the disobedient person who commits a major sin to be a disbeliever.

2. Jama’at al-Muslimeen have not rebelled against the Imam of the Muslims, whereas the Khawarij rebelled against Jama’at al-Muslimeen and their Imam.

3. Jama’at al-Muslimeen do not declare Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, to be a disbeliever, whereas the Khawarij declared the Commander of the Believers, Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, to be a disbeliever.

4. Jama’at al-Muslimeen do not declare a person to be a disbeliever merely because he acts contrary to Allah’s ruling in a particular matter while still acknowledging Allah’s ruling, whereas the Khawarij declare such a person to be a disbeliever.

5. Jama’at al-Muslimeen do not declare a person to be a disbeliever merely because he obeys a disbeliever in committing a sinful act, unless he considers that act lawful. The Khawarij, however, declare a person who obeys a disbeliever in committing a sinful act to be a disbeliever.

6. Jama’at al-Muslimeen believe that belonging to Quraysh is a condition for the Imamate, unlike the Khawarij.

7. Jama’at al-Muslimeen accept the Sunnah and the Prophetic hadiths, whereas the Khawarij reject them.

8. Jama’at al-Muslimeen accept scholarly consensus, whereas the Khawarij reject it.

9. Jama’at al-Muslimeen have not killed the people of Islam while leaving the idolaters unharmed. This is among the characteristics attributed to the Khawarij.

10. Jama’at al-Muslimeen recite the Quran and their hearts understand it, whereas the Khawarij recite it, but it does not go beyond their throats.

11. The Khawarij are known by the sign of shaving their heads, while this is not a characteristic of Jama’at al-Muslimeen or their Imam.

12. The Khawarij rebelled within a land of Islam in which Allah’s law was implemented, whereas we live in lands where Allah’s law is not implemented.

As for the matter of declaring someone to be a disbeliever, it has its own Islamic rulings, which are explained through evidence from the Quran and Sunnah.

Things are also known through their opposites. Whoever does not understand disbelief will not properly understand Islam, and whoever understands disbelief will recognize those who fall into it.