Is a layperson sinful if he strives to compile and explain scholars' fatwas for the public to understand, and makes a mistake in doing so because he did not verify the correctness of his work with people of knowledge, even though that was easy for him?
"Gathering the sayings of scholars, explaining them, and making them understandable to people is not the role of common folk who have not reached the level of a student of knowledge; rather, they must first qualify themselves. So, whoever undertakes to explain the fatwas of the people of knowledge without qualification has erred, and even if they happen to be correct, their correctness was by coincidence and illusion, not by knowledge and understanding. And if they err and attribute to the Sharia what is not from it, or speak presumptuously about Allah without knowledge, then this is one of the major sins. Allah Almighty says: 'Say, "My Lord has only forbidden immoralities – what is apparent of them and what is concealed – and sin, and oppression without right, and that you associate with Allah that for which He has not sent down authority, and that you say about Allah that which you do not know."'"
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/161171