Don’t be such a fanatic!

 

What is the ruling on a person who, when he is advised with regard to an action which goes against sharee’ah, immediately says, “Don’t be such a fanatic and so extreme; be moderate.” We hope you can explain what moderation is.

Praise be to Allaah. 

Whoever
is advised concerning something that is haraam according to sharee’ah,
so that he can avoid it or give it up, or is told of an obligation so
that he can fulfil it, then he says something like this, is doing wrong.
What he should do, if he is advised, is to thank the person who has
offered the advice, then he should look at himself and if the advice
was justified, then he should avoid the haraam thing and do what is
obligatory. As far as his comment “you are a fanatic” is concerned,
fanaticism, laxity and moderation are all to be understood in reference
to sharee’ah. Whatever is in accordance with sharee’ah is moderate;
whatever exceeds that is extreme and whatever falls short of that is
laxity. The standard in all cases is sharee’ah and the meaning of moderation
is that which is in accordance with the sharee’ah. Whatever is in accordance
with sharee’ah is moderate.