What is the ruling on praying over the funeral of a Muslim woman who abandoned prayer, knowing that her excommunication and eternal damnation in Hell are unseen matters known only to Allah, and that "we do not excommunicate anyone for a sin unless they deem it permissible"?

The phenomenon of unqualified individuals issuing fatwas necessitates reminding people of the obligation to refrain from issuing religious verdicts without knowledge, and that speaking about Allah without knowledge is one of the gravest sins, as Allah Almighty says: ﴿And do not say about what your tongues assert falsely, “This is lawful and this is unlawful,” to invent falsehood about Allah. Indeed, those who invent falsehood about Allah will not succeed.﴾ [An-Nahl: 116].

As for the person who abandons prayer, the disagreement regarding this matter is ancient and well-known:

1. Imam Ahmad and a group of the early Muslims (Salaf) held the view that such a person is an apostate, outside the fold of Islam, will abide eternally in Hellfire, and should not be prayed over if they die, nor buried in Muslim cemeteries. They based their arguments on evidence.

2. The majority of scholars held the view that such a person remains within the fold of Muslims, and is considered among the gravest of evildoers (fasiq), but should be prayed over and buried in Muslim cemeteries if they die. They cited general evidence indicating that monotheists will not abide eternally in Hellfire.

The disagreement on this issue is permissible and falls within matters of ijtihad (definition) (independent reasoning). Loyalty and disavowal should not be based on it, nor should one definitively assert that the one who abandons prayer will abide eternally in Hellfire, because that is a ramification of the differing opinions on their apostasy, and it is a matter of conjecture, not certainty.