Who Is A Kafir & A Munaafiq?

A person rejects the Oneness of Allah and the Prophethood of Muhammed (S.A.W) is called a Kafir. The word Kafir is derived from the arabic term Kafara which means to "to cover up or hide something." So a kafir is a person who covers up and hides the truth. A Kafir, or disbeliever, will be punished for eternity in the fire of hell.

A Munafiq, on the other hand, is a hypocrite. These are people who are outwardly Muslim, but deep down they hate the muslims and they sow seeds of discord amongst the Muslims. Munafiqueen (plural of Munafiq) were particularly common during the lifetime of The Prophet Muhammed (S.A.W)

Speaking about these hypocrites in The Holy Quran Allah says "Among people are some who say 'We believe in Allah and the Last Day.' But they don't really believe. They try to fool Allah and the believers but they only fool themselves without realizing it. Their hearts are diseased, and Allah increases their disease because they were false to themselves. When they're told not to make trouble in the world, they answer 'We only want to make peace.' But they're making trouble without realizing it. When they are told to believe what other people believe they say 'Should we believe, they say 'We believe.' But when they're alone with their evil friends they say 'We're with you; we were only fooling them'" SURAH 2 Verses 8-14

A person is also a hypocrite when he doesn't walk his talk or practice what he preaches.

Allah Almighty, addressing the believers, says in the Holy Quran "O you who believe. Why do you say what you don't do? It's a hateful thing in Allah's sight to say what you don't do."
SURAH 61 VERSES 2-3

There are four signs of hypocrisy that the Noble Prophet Muhammed (S.A.W) warned us about in the following Ahaadith(sayings of the Noble Prophet Muhamed (S.A.W)

"There are 4 signs which which, if present in a person, show him to be a hypocrite. If someone has one of them, the he has one part of hypocrisy until he gets rid of it. These are: when he is trusted with something, he cheats; when he talks, he lies; when he promises, he breaks his promise; and when he argues, he insults." (Bukhari)

So from this we learn that a true Muslim is one who knows what the true teachings of Allah and His Nabi (S.A.W) are and that he follows those teachings to the best of his ability and is sincere in his intentions. Whoever does this is promised salvation and entry into Paradise. May Allah Almighty make us among the fortunate ones. Aameen.