Christians must reject Islamophobia, a top US Catholic archbishop has said, calling on Americans to resist responding to recent violence with hatred and suspicion.
Archbishop of Louisville Joseph Kurtz condemned "policies of discrimination", saying that the US should never "target specific classes of persons based on religion", in a speech at the US Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Kurtz, the president of the conference, was responding to recent acts of violence in the US including the shootings at a Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood clinic on November 27 and at a centre for persons with disabilities in San Bernardino on December 2.
Addressing violence towards Muslims in the wake of the San Bernardino shooting, he warned that, "when we fail to see the difference between our enemies and people of good will, we lose a part of who we are as people of faith."
Although witnessing the horror of terrorism and fearing that it may reach our own families "rightly stirs our deepest protective emotions," Kurtz insisted that "we must resist the hatred and suspicion that leads to policies of discrimination."
Instead, he said we must actively engage in a "vibrant witness to the dignity of every person."
"We should employ immigration laws that are humane and keep us safe, but should never target specific classes of persons based on religion," the archbishop said. "Policies of fear and inflammatory rhetoric will only offer extremists fertile soil and pave the way toward a divisive, fearful future."
In reference to the Planned Parentood shooting, which was carried out by a Christian gunman allegedly motivated by his faith, Kurtz said that violence "can never be justified by invoking the name of God."
He said that instead of blaming those with mental illness, the focus of reform should be on gun laws, insisting that few people with mental illnesses are a threat to others or themselves. The US bishops' conference will continue to support the "strengthening social services for persons with mental illness", he added.
Kurtz offered consolation and prayers for those who were killed in the shootings and their families.
"We pray that family and friends facing the pain of loss and the journey of recovery find strength in the compassion of their community," the archbishop said. "We draw especially close to the local church, which has borne the burden of mourning the loss of those who died and of comforting their families, yet has the strength to reach out in love."
Kurtz also warned America against reducing its refugee programme, reiterating that the Catholic Church "remains steadfast" in its support.
"Let us confront the extremist threat with courage and compassion, recognising that Christianity, Islam, Judaism and many other religions are united in opposition to violence carried out in their name," Kurtz said.
