Q: The Prophet (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) once said, that the one who leaves or abandons prayer is a kaafir. So what if one who has parents that are from a Muslim background, (practising or otherwise), has never prayed the 5 prayers out of laziness or other reasons, but believes in Allah and His Messenger; is he/she still considered a kaafir? I mean, will they still be Muslims, but only called non-practising Muslims due to them not praying? Also, what if they try to pray sporadically, but without wudu or without saying the prayer words properly or without intention, only to please others (while they still know this is wrong); are these people still considered non-practising Muslims, even though they still believe wholly in Allah and His Messenger? How is a Muslim defined in this case? The reason why I am asking this, is because I heard that because one has either left the prayer or has never properly prayed to begin with, is not even considered a Muslim, regardless of whether he/she believes in Allah and His Messenger or not? Is this correct?
A: If they believe in the obligation of Salaah, however they do not perform it due to their own personal weakness, they will still remain believers.
And Allah Ta'ala (الله تعالى) knows best.
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