Q 2: Some people see Munkar (that which is unacceptable or disapproved of by Islamic law and Muslims of sound intellect) being done, such as acts of Shirk (associating others with Allah in His Divinity or worship), grave worshipping, witchcraft or other evils, but they say: We are not obliged to resist such evil deeds, because there are certain authorities that are responsible for that; and they also do not report these evil deeds to the concerned authorities. What is the ruling on these people?

A: If someone sees a person doing any kind of Munkar or Bid`ah (innovation in the religion), they must advise this person in a way that is gentle, lenient and wise; and call them to Islam in a good way, clarifying Al-Haqq (the Truth) for them so that they might give up this sin and turn to Allah (Glorified be He) with sincere Tawbah (repentance to Allah), and exert all their effort to eliminate such Munkar and do their best to rectify it, according to their ability, (Part No. 11; Page No. 40) abiding by the Hadith in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) is authentically reported to have said: Anyone of you who sees something wrong, let them change it with their hand (by taking action); if they cannot, then with their tongue (by speaking out); and if they cannot, then with their heart (by hating it and feeling that it is wrong); and that is the weakest of Iman (faith). (Related by Imam Muslim, Al-Tirmidhy and others). According to the narration by Muslim on the authority of Ibn Mas`ud: Beyond that there is no Iman even to the extent of a mustard seed. Also, Allah (Exalted be He) says: Help you one another in Al-Birr and At-Taqwâ (virtue, righteousness and piety); but do not help one another in sin and transgression. Then, if the perpetrator of such evil persists in their deviation from what is right and does not give up their sin, but insists on committing the same offense, the concerned authorities must be informed so as to resist such evil and reveal righteousness. The wrongdoers must be curbed and compelled to abide by the right way, so as to suppress the evil of the perpetrators of Bid`ah and corruption and prevent their harm and influence from prevailing among Muslims.May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.