Why is it that someone suspected of apostasy, such as a parent, is not directly confronted with this suspicion to advise them to repent, citing the saying "suspicion is a safeguard," instead of leaving them to die in a state of doubt, especially given the existence of numerous fatwas and examples that raise this type of suspicion?
Doubt concerning someone's disbelief does not permit declaring them an unbeliever or accusing them of disbelief, especially if you suffer from obsessive doubts. For one whose Islam is established with certainty, it is not removed by doubt. A Muslim is not declared an unbeliever unless they commit a saying, action, or belief that the Qur'an and Sunnah or scholarly consensus have indicated to be major disbelief that expels one from the faith, while fulfilling the conditions for declaring someone an unbeliever and negating its impediments (such as being an adult, sane, acting by choice, and not excused by ignorance or misinterpretation). Therefore, the idea of declaring someone an unbeliever should be abandoned. Instead, one can study the reasons for strengthening faith, the nullifiers of Islam, and the signs of hypocrisy, explaining their dangers without falling into what is forbidden.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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