French Muslims protect church

As a French-born Muslim, Elyazid Benferhat’s stomach turned when he heard about a deadly Islamic extremist attack on a church in Nice. Then he decided to act.

A self-described man of peace and pragmatism, Benferhat and a friend gathered a group of young Muslim men to stand guard outside their town’s cathedral for the All Saints’ holiday weekend, to symbolically protect it and show solidarity with Catholic churchgoers.

Parishioners at the 13th-century church in the southern town of Lodeve were deeply touched. The parish priest said their gesture gave him hope in a time of turmoil.

Benferhat identified himself as “more French than anything.” While his mother was born in Algeria, he was born in France and grew up speaking only French. “But I am also Muslim … and we have seen Islamophobia in this country, and terrorism,” he told The Associated Press.

“In recent years, I’ve had a pit in my stomach,” because every time Islamic extremist violence strikes France, he said, French Muslims face new stigmatization, even though “we had nothing to do with it.”

Benferhat, who works for French oil company Total and coaches at a local football club, talked to a Muslim friend who was in Nice that day, “and we had this idea. We needed to do something beyond paying homage to the victims of recent extremist attacks. We said, we will protect churches ourselves.”

They recruited volunteers among their friends and at his football club, and guarded the church that night and again for Sunday Mass. He said they also coordinated with local police, after France’s government promised to increase security at sensitive religious sites.

“It’s amazing to see that these young people are against violence,” the cathedral’s priest, the Rev. Luis Iniguez, told the AP.

In closing, this is an example that demonstrates the “true” Islamic message, taught by Prophet Muhammad (saws). It also shows that his message will always pass the test of time.

If we think back on history, Muslims showed the same peace and mercy when they reentered Mecca, as well as when they enter Jerusalem, during the time of the crusades.

Simply stated, this is what Muslims do. The fundamental lesson here is to always “Command the right; forbid the wrong.”