On Sunday, June 6th, 4 members of a Muslim family in London were killed in a targeted attack and a 5th was seriously injured. As a congregation, we have some long-standing and close connections within the Turkish community. Knowing that incidents like this make the Muslim community feel unsafe and deeply harmed, we have reached out to our friends at the Intercultural Dialogue Institute IDID) and Anatolian Cultural Centre.
Dear Friends at IDI and the Anatolian Cultural Centre,
Greetings to you from Stirling Avenue Mennonite Church.
Our hearts are heavy at the news of another hate crime on Canadian soil. We lament the tragic loss of life of a beautiful Muslim family in London. And we lament the hate that motivated this murder. We hold in prayer the young son in hospital, as well as the family, friends and community of the family.
We know that acts of hate which target a particular faith or cultural group have far-reaching impact – and so we reach out to you, our dear friends. We want you to know that we hold all of you in prayer. We give thanks for the friendship that exists between our communities of faith. We give thanks for each one of you and are glad that you are part of our community. May we continue to build bridges of friendship and understanding, trusting that Love is stronger Hate.
Stirling Avenue Mennonite Church
We received several responses from individuals and this one from the IDI the next day:
Dear Friends at Stirling Avenue Mennonite Church,
We thank God that we have friends like you. Up to now, we always felt your heart-felt considerations and feelings. We convey our greetings to your community too.
As our community, we love people (humanity) because of the creator (God), since God created each and every human being.
We condemn this heinous attack. Our hearts are in pain due to the tragic loss of life of a Muslim family in London. We are sure that hate will loose and love will win in Canada.
We will keep your names in our prayers. May God help us and guide us during difficult moments. Also, may God make our friendship stronger than before.
Kind regards, IDI K-WB
We are called to shalom, to work for a peaceful world where all feel safe. Please consider the following opportunities to act against Islamophobia:
Sign a petition asking all levels of government to join in a National Action Summit on Islamophobia
Attend the National Council of Canadian Muslims’ anti-Islamophobia workshop on Sunday June 20, from 11-3