982 - Muhammad ibn 'Ali informed us, saying: Abu Bakr al-Athram narrated to us, saying: I heard Abu 'Abd Allah [Ahmad ibn Hanbal] when it was said to him, 'What do you say regarding Shababah?' He replied: 'Shababah used to invite to Irja'.' He then said: 'A statement even more vile than these sayings has been narrated from Shababah, which I have not heard anyone [else] express like it. He said: Shababah said, "If he speaks, then he has acted." He said: He [Shababah] states, "Faith is speech and action," just as they [the Murji'ah] say: "If he speaks, then he has acted with his limb, meaning with his tongue." So he has acted with his tongue when he spoke. Then Abu 'Abd Allah said: "This is a vile statement; I have not heard anyone say it, nor has it reached me [from anyone else]."