Rose al-Yūsuf tried to ask the
opinion of the
Azhar Shaykh Imām Dr. Sayyid Tantāwī about the PhD thesis of an
Azhar
student from the faculty of Usūl al-Dīn [Fundamentals of Religion] when he considered Rose
al
-Yūsuf to be Kāfir.
In the interview, the Imām got angry
expressing
that he knew nothing of the matter, and asked his interviewer to bring him a copy of the thesis
as he could not
state his opinion on something he had ignored.
“It is none of my business! I know
nothing about the matter.
Go to Shaykh Ibrāhīm al-Faīyūmi, the general
secretary of the Islamic Research
Academy, or to the person who declared Rose al-Yūsuf Kāfir
and ask them!” the Imām
answered Wā’il Lutfī, demanding that he file a
claim against that person claiming that the
Takfīr was untrue and ask for
compensation.
Upon Lutfī’s question whether the
Imām agreed on the Azhar
researchers practicing Takfīr, he answered: “This is a silly
question! The Azhar’s role is to
teach people how to distinguish halāl from harām, no
more or less, and I know
nothing about your case,” the Imām concluded.
