Are the pieces of evidence and arguments presented by a certain group—based on verses from Surahs Al-A'raf and Al-Kahf and the interpretation of Al-Tabari—regarding the non-acceptance of ignorance as an excuse and the validity of declaring someone who has a defect in the fundamentals of religion or creed a disbeliever correct? If not, what is the correct interpretation of these verses and other verses that include the word "they think" (يحسبون), and what are the details of the issue of ignorance as an excuse?

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah states that excommunication (takfir) is a form of warning, and that a statement might be a denial of the Messenger, but its utterer is not excommunicated until proof is established against him, such as a new convert to Islam or someone raised in a remote desert. He cites the story of the man who doubted Allah’s power and was forgiven.

As for using some verses to argue against excusing the ignorant in matters of Tawhid (monotheism), this is incorrect. Those verses were revealed concerning original disbelievers and hypocrites who turned away from proofs and evidence after they had reached them, not concerning ignorant or mistaken Muslims, as explained by Ibn al-Qayyim, Ibn Hazm, Al-Shinqiti, Ibn Kathir, and others.

Error is only confirmed against one upon whom the proof has been established and who then turns away from it, not against the ignorant person whom the message has not reached. Similarly, Al-Tabari's deduction, which equates the ignorant with the obstinate, is incorrect and contradicts scriptural texts and scholarly consensus.