I was scrolling through recent fatwas and i came across fatwa 393448. As far as i understand you said there that hell is not eternal? Is that true? Why is it then important to be in the correct sect if every Muslim will in the end be saved anyway?

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

We did not state in the Fatwa you referred to that Hellfire is not eternal; rather, we stated that those who enter it from among the believers will not be eternal in it. These believers will be punished therein because of their disobedience, but Allah will bring them out of it because of their faith, whereas the disbelievers will be eternal in it.

It is an obligation on the Muslim to stay away from the disobedience of Allah and follow the Truth and not commit what Allah has forbidden and not to deviate from the Truth because of allegedly depending on the principle of faith that he has and that ultimately, he will be in Paradise.

One does not know how he will end his life, and whether he will die upon Islam or will stray before his death and die upon disbelief -we seek refuge in Allah from this.

The Prophet said: “Verily, the inhabitant of Paradise, shall have his deeds sealed off with the deeds of the people of Paradise, regardless of whichever deeds he did (before that). And indeed, the inhabitant of Hellfire shall have his deeds sealed off with the deeds of the people of Hellfire, regardless whichever deeds he did (before that).” [At-Tirmithi and others]

Allah Almighty has ordered us in His Book to fear Him and to die upon Islam; Allah Says (what means): {O you who have believed, fear Allah as He should be feared and do not die except as Muslims [in submission to Him].} [Quran 3:102]

Ibn Katheer said: “The term; {and do not die except as Muslims}, means, preserve your Islam while you are well and safe, so that you die as a Muslim. The Most Generous (Allah) has made it His decision that whatever state one lives in, that is what he will die upon and will be resurrected upon. We seek refuge from dying on other than Islam.” [End of quote]

The people who are most deserving to be made firm by Allah at the time of death are those who lived upon righteousness and piety and abided by His commands in this worldly life. Sins -among which are innovations -are one of the reasons of deviation, so a person would not be safe and his heart could deviate at the time of death, and so he could die on Kufr (disbelief) -we seek refuge in Allah from that.

If we suppose that a person died upon Islam and entered Hellfire because of his sins, do you think that the punishment of Hellfire is something insignificant so that one will underestimate it and say “Why is it then important to be in the correct sect”; does he know how long he will be punished in Hellfire? We seek refuge in Allah from His Torment and all His Wrath.”

Allah knows best.