Just days after two militants slit the throat of an elderly Catholic priest reportedly in the name of the Islamic State, Muslims flocked to churches and cathedrals across France and Italy to show solidarity with the Christian community.
The touching move came as the murder of the Rev. Jacques Hamel, 85, inside his church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, France, July 26 stunned the world.
It was an event that led local Muslims to show up in support of the grieving community and nation, with one such group attending church in the city of Rouen, just miles from where the horrific attack on Hamel took place.
That group reportedly numbered between 100 and 200 people, with the Muslims in attendance joining 2,000 parishioners at the Gothic cathedral. At a separate location in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, 50 Muslims also joined 350 Catholics at a vigil.
"We are very moved by the presence of our Muslim friends and I believe it is a courageous act that they did by coming to us," Archbishop of Rouen Dominique Lebrun said after Mass, according to The Huffington Post.
He also said in another interview that Catholics were "touched" by the act — one that he called "an important gesture of fraternity."
"They’ve told us, and I think they’re sincere, that it’s not Islam which killed Jacques Hamel," Lebrun said.
While some Muslim adherents were inside the church in Rouen, others stood outside holding a banner that read, "Love for all. Hate for none."
Mohammed Karabila, president of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray Mosque, said he felt it was important for the Muslim community to offer a physical sign of its support for Catholics.
"For me, it is very important to be here today. It should be shown physically, because until now the Muslim community did a lot of things that were not seen," he told the BBC. "Today, we wanted to show physically, by kissing the family of Jacques Hamel, by kissing His Grace Lebrun in front of everybody, so they know that the two communities are united."
Catholics and Muslims embraced one another among other kind acts of solidarity. In fact, one of the nuns who survived the attack in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray was at the church in Rouen, where she hugged and shook hands with Muslims.
This show of unity comes as yet another terror attack allegedly committed in the name of the Islamic State holds the power to divide the masses. Some, though, appear committed to not allowing such division to take root.
In addition to attending church in Rouen, other Muslims went to Mass at Notre Dame cathedral in Paris and in Nice — locations where terror has also struck.
In Italy, too, Islamic leaders attended houses of worship over the weekend, with Catholics and Muslims also marching together in Lyon, Italy, during what has been dubbed a "brotherhood match."
Participants held signs that read, "This is not a religious war" and "We are all brothers and sisters," The Christian Science Monitor reported.
Ahmed El Balazi, an imam in Italy, said he believed it was important to speak out against radical Muslims.
"These people are tainting our religion and it is terrible to know that many people consider all Muslim terrorists. That is not the case," he said, according to The Washington Post. "Religion is one thing. Another is the behavior of Muslims who don’t represent us."
The show of unity left many inspired amid the ongoing pain that France has felt following Hamel's death as well as another attack earlier last month in Nice that left scores of individuals dead.
"We are all Catholics of France," Anouar Kbibech, head of the French Council of the Muslim Faith, said in an effort to come alongside those who were impacted.
Email: bhallowell@deseretnews.com Twitter: billyhallowell Facebook: facebook.com/billyhallowell