An Unlearned Father Abusing His Learned Sons

Question

Zayd is a hajji, and his two sons are scholars of religion. One day in a quarrel Zayd abused his learned sons roundly and said, “O kafir scholar, what will you understand of the meaning of the Qur’an and hadith? You are a dog; what proof is there of your being a scholar? If some bastard Chamar (an Indian caste of leatherworkers, regarded as low) studies the science of hadith, will he become a scholar of religion? Never!

Answer

If Zayd said this in order to demean and belittle religious knowledge, it is kufr. If some disbeliever of the lowest sort accepts Islam, acquires religious knowledge, and his knowledge and practice become sound, he is certainly a scholar of religion and deserving of Paradise.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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