A.P. Richelieu
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Yes, idol worship is unforgivable, if maintained until death:
[40:66] Say, "I have been enjoined from worshiping the idols you worship beside GOD, when the clear revelations came to me from my Lord. I was commanded to submit to the Lord of the universe."
And yes, disregarding God's words is forgivable if the person is truly repentant. But that does not necessarily make the wording any less strong in the context of intoxicants because I have contrasted it with other abominable acts like idol worship and homosexuality where the same wording has been used - such acts are considered an abomination and are also prohibited, so we can assume that any other thing that is considered an abomination is also prohibited. A believer with clarity of thought will accept it for what it is and not question it further. It is an abomination of the devil....can it get any more clearer than that? Is a believer still going to go and disregard the word of God when it has explicitly been said to AVOID IT? Did you forget the part where verse 5:90 has intoxicants and altars of idol worship mentioned in the same line as abominations and we're told to avoid them?
[Quran 5:90] O you who believe, intoxicants, and gambling, and the altars of idols, and the games of chance are abominations of the devil; you shall avoid them, that you may succeed."
We can also argue that the word "Avoid" is quite strong. When it is said to AVOID something, you steer clear of it - so it does not give room to the argument that "a little is okay and not sinful." Even a little is sinful, if you are aware of God's command. But God is merciful, and if he sees that a person is truly repentant, then such sins can be forgiven, provided you don't keep making the mistake:
[4:18] Not acceptable is the repentance of those who commit sins until death comes to them, then say, "Now I repent." Nor is it acceptable from those who die as disbelievers. For these, we have prepared a painful retribution.
No, I beg to disagree.
If the Qur'an told You to avoid leaning too far out, when You are in a high-rise building,
it is because it is safer for You not to lean out.
You cannot draw the conclusion, that leaning out is committing a sin.
If the Qur'an had a statement that You should avoid leaning out and worship idols,
it still would not mean that leaning out becomes a sin, just good advice.
The banning of Idol worship is clarified in many places in the Qur'an.
Not so for intoxicants. The threat is that you may be less successful
which noone disagrees with.
That does not make it a punishable sin, just good advice.
If the unwanted side effects does not occur, and the person is successful in life,
because his behaviour is always considerate to his fellow man,
it would be very strange to punish him.
You make the assumption that all creations of the Devil cause immediate harm.
Is there anything in the Qur'an that supports that view?
It is very unlikely that such trickery will work for the Devil, since it will become unpopular rather fast.
For a trick to work, it must be seen to have positive effect, until the trap slams shut.
Not drinking alcohol at all is a strategy which eliminates such a trap, thats all.
It is good advice for any alcoholic.
If You drink alcohol and harm people while under influence, you commit a sin,
but if you drink alcohol and otherwise are behaving correctly, what is the problem.
Satan's plan simply failed, and he has been defeated.