5 Ways Christians Can Support Their Muslim Neighbors

On May 18, two teenagers shot and killed three people in a coordinated attack on the Islamic Center of San Diego, which also houses a school. At the time of the shooting, there were 140 schoolchildren inside the center. Community members said that the three men who were killed—Amin Abdullah, Mansour Kaziha, and Nadir Awad—sacrificed their lives to protect the children. Subsequent investigations have found that the two gunmen left behind anti-Muslim, anti-Black, anti-women, and antisemitic writings.

In the wake of the shooting, it can feel easy to give in to despair as we witness yet another shocking act of violence against marginalized religious communities in the United States. But this is not a time for despair. Instead, it is a time for action. For Christians wondering what to do, here are five things you can do now to support Muslim communities and fight Islamophobia in your community.

1. Call it what it is: a hate crime

There’s one word that seems to dominate in the wake of violent acts like this one: “tragedy.” Without a doubt, it is just that. But “tragedy” is an insufficient descriptor. What happened was a hate crime, and we ought to name it just that. This was a targeted attack on one community, meant to limit its ability to worship freely.

How we talk about these events matters because it gives us an opportunity for us to clearly name evil without flinching. This hate crime did not happen in a vacuum or emerge mysteriously. Islamophobia has been stoked by President Donald Trump and others at the highest levels of the U.S. government. Take, for instance, the message that right-wing conspiracy theorist and Trump adviser Laura Loomer offered shortly after the shooting, arguing that the best way to keep Muslims safe was “to deport every Muslim in America back to the Middle East where they can live in fully Islamic societies.” This is not just the view of one person but a dominant stream of thought among those on the U.S. right. In March, Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) said that “Muslims don’t belong in America” and that “pluralism is a lie.” Also in March, the editorial board of The New York Times criticized Trump and his administration for “hypocrisy on religious freedom,” pointing to examples of how the administration has sought to defend Christianity while openly discriminating against Muslims.

Naming this shooting a hate crime and insisting that there is an origin point for these ideologies is an important step of solidarity.

2. Show up locally

In the coming weeks and months, there will be many opportunities to demonstrate solidarity with our Muslim siblings. One of the most concrete ways you can do this is by reaching out to your local mosque with a message of support from your faith community. This can be especially effective if you commit to praying for them over the coming weeks, months, or even years. A hate crime like this one creates fear in communities far beyond San Diego, and your Muslim neighbors are likely experiencing grief, fear, and anxiety.

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If you already have a relationship with your local mosque, ask how you can be supportive during this time. One way I generally show support is by attending Friday prayers if invited. Not only is this a visible show of solidarity, but it also puts Christians in a position most have never experienced: attending a worship service where there is likely increased security. This is a reality marginalized religious groups experience every day.

3. Honor the victims

In worship this Sunday, or any time in the future, consider reading the names of those killed in the shooting: Amin Abdullah, Mansour Kaziha, and Nadir Awad. All three played an important role in responding to the gunmen. The Islamic Center of San Diego’s imam said the community considers them “our martyrs and our heroes.” There are plenty of ways that Christians can say their names aloud in worship, either in a special time set aside, in a sermon that addresses Islamophobia, or during the community’s time of shared prayer. Either way, it is important to acknowledge their sacrifice and work to commemorate their names in our most sacred time together.

4. Challenge Islamophobia in church

While it is easy to see escalating violence against marginalized religious communities as something that is happening in society at large, the reality is that Christians have a lot of work to do within our own communities. Polling from the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, a research organization focused on Muslims in the U.S., has catalogued the rise in anti-Muslim sentiment since 2018. The ISP’s “Islamophobia Index” tracks Islamophobic attitudes throughout the U.S. The most recent study, published in October 2025, showed an eight-point increase in Islamophobia from 2022 to 2025 amongst Americans generally, and this trend is even more pronounced among white Evangelicals (15 points) and Roman Catholics (12 points). Non-evangelical Protestants are not immune either, with their index reading rising by 7 points.

The data is alarming. Whether Christians are learning anti-Muslim bigotry in church, or their faith makes them more susceptible than the average American, is unclear. Either way, we have work to do to eliminate Islamophobia in our churches, and we can only accomplish this goal if we are willing to challenge such sentiments when we hear them—in worship, liturgy, or at after-worship coffee hour. Challenging Islamophobia in our worship spaces might be uncomfortable, but if the events of May 18 show us anything, it is that silence has a price.

5. Build the ark before the next flood

After the brutal murder of Wadee Alfayoumi, a 6-year-old boy, on Oct. 14, 2023, in Plainfield, Ill., my wife, Anna Piela, and I founded our action network, Challenging Islamophobia Together Chicagoland, because we realized we needed to have deep and lasting relationships with the Muslim community before tragedy struck. Over the past several years, we have worked to connect Christians to Muslim communities, educate against stereotypes, and build spaces where community and interfaith dialogue can take place. We’re not the only ones. The Shoulder to Shoulder campaign and its affiliates work to do the same at the national and local levels and would welcome involvement from more people who want to take on Islamophobia.

If there is no such network in your locality, now might be the time to organize one. You don’t have to start from scratch, however. There are interfaith groups that have likely been working together for decades. What matters now is that we continue to build sinews that link our faith-based communities so that when marginalized communities are targeted, we have the resources to respond.

We cannot wait for the next shocking act of violence to occur. The work before us is both quieter and more enduring than any public statement can achieve. Interfaith work is not only forged in grief. Some of the most important relationships are built in moments of hospitality and shared celebration. By building relationships through meals, dialogue, and service together, we can address Islamophobia in our churches and buttress the pluralistic democracy that we fought so long to achieve. For Christians, solidarity cannot be a mere reaction to violence. It is a spiritual discipline, one that comes from the deepest parts of our faith.

The work before us is both quieter and more enduring than any public statement can achieve. Interfaith work is not only forged in grief. Some of the most important relationships are built in moments of hospitality and shared celebration.