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Assalamu 'alaykum,
So I got into a conversation yesterday with my father, I said that as laymen we should follow the guidance of the ulema. Then he said how do you know if someone is an alim and what he preaches is true? I said that they're acknowledged unanimously such as the four madhab imams, the later ones such as imam al ghazali, and the contemporary ones such as shaykh al bouti. For the contemporary ones we can trace where they acquired their knowledge, the chain, ijaza, etc. He's still not convinced, he thinks that islamic knowledge can be gained from anyone even directly from the qur'an (without referring to the mufassirun) with reliance upon Allah's guidance. He also has some "teachers" who aren't traditionally educated and whom I know have some doubtful teachings. I think this is a dangerous way of seeking knowledge. As Ibn Sireen said, be careful of where you take your deen knowledge from (paraphrased). How should I explain to my dad? Is there any helpful articles? Jazakallah khairan.
So I got into a conversation yesterday with my father, I said that as laymen we should follow the guidance of the ulema. Then he said how do you know if someone is an alim and what he preaches is true? I said that they're acknowledged unanimously such as the four madhab imams, the later ones such as imam al ghazali, and the contemporary ones such as shaykh al bouti. For the contemporary ones we can trace where they acquired their knowledge, the chain, ijaza, etc. He's still not convinced, he thinks that islamic knowledge can be gained from anyone even directly from the qur'an (without referring to the mufassirun) with reliance upon Allah's guidance. He also has some "teachers" who aren't traditionally educated and whom I know have some doubtful teachings. I think this is a dangerous way of seeking knowledge. As Ibn Sireen said, be careful of where you take your deen knowledge from (paraphrased). How should I explain to my dad? Is there any helpful articles? Jazakallah khairan.
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