:wasalam:
عن عبد الله بن مسعود رضي الله عنه قال
ـ ( مَن كانَ مُسْتَنًّا ، فَلْيَسْتَنَّ بمن قد ماتَ ، فإنَّ الحيَّ لا تُؤمَنُ عليه الفِتْنَةُ ، أولئك أصحابُ محمد - صلى الله عليه وسلم - ، كانوا أفضلَ هذه الأمة : أبرَّها قلوبًا ، وأعمقَها علمًا ، وأقلَّها تكلُّفًا ، اختارهم الله لصحبة نبيِّه ، ولإقامة دِينه ، فاعرِفوا لهم فضلَهم ، واتبعُوهم على أثرهم ، وتمسَّكوا بما استَطَعْتُم من أخلاقِهم وسيَرِهم ، فإنهم كانوا على الهُدَى المستقيم ) . ـ
ـ رواه ابن عبد البر في "جامع بيان العلم وفضله" (2/947ـ رقم 1810) ـ
‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ood (may Allah be pleased with him) is reported to have said: “
Whoever wants to follow a path, let him follow the path of one who has died, for the living are not safe from fitnah. I mean the Companions of Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). They were the best of this ummah: the purest in heart, the deepest in knowledge and the most straightforward. Allah chose them to accompany His Prophet and establish His religion, so recognise their status and follow in their footsteps and adhere as much as you can to their example of conduct and attitude, for they followed true guidance.”
This report was narrated by Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr in Jaami‘ Bayaan al-‘Ilm wa Fadluhu, 2/947, no. 1810.
While it is good and recommended to find a trust-able and knowledgeable scholar whom you can follow, it should always be kept in the mind that every living human being is surrounded by a lot of trials. Follow the good that you see in them and overlook their faults. Perhaps Allah :swt: will forgive them because of the massive good work that they do for the sake of this Deen.