A meeting at an Edmond church to discuss Islam drew hundreds Monday night.
About 300 people were lined up outside the Fairview Baptist Church at 1230 N Sooner Road in Edmond waiting for the doors to open. The line wrapped around the building and not everyone made it inside.
“In this community there’s a lot of good, sound Christian people and I think they’re very much concerned about our country,” said attendee Bill Stephens.
“What the religion is all about and what they stand for. What they believe. What their aims are as far as our country is concerned,” said church member Ted Travis in response to what he hoped to learn.
Among the Christians waiting to attend the meeting there were also Muslims. Priscilla Galstaun said she was attending to dispel any rumors about her faith.
“Pastor Paul Blair asked the question is it a religion of peace and I’m here to say that yes indeed it is,” said Galstaun.
Fairview Baptist officials said they are asking that question because of last month’s beheading at Vaughn Foods in Moore.
“We’ve heard all sorts of excuses and explanations about this being workplace violence or so on,” said Blair.
Blair said he doesn’t accept that explanation.
“When you have a man that’s a convert to Islam that’s crying out in Islamic terminology that beheads someone, which happens to be the in vogue choice of murder by this particular sociopolitical system, well, that brings some questions to people’s minds,” said Blair.
Galstaun, however, says violence is not the way of Islam.
“Whatever they hear tonight, no matter how dark the message is there’s always another side and always an explanation and there’s always, always context,” said Galstaun.
She, as well as her group, were turned away from the meeting that was attended by state representatives John Bennett and Dan Fisher.
One of the women in a burka told KOCO’s Brian Shlonsky that she was asked to remove it and for security reasons. She said she had been in many churches before and was never asked to remove it.
“We’ve got a lot of lives here that are entrusted to my well-being. We’d prefer to be able to see what’s being brought into the church,” Blair said.
Security was checking bags and purses of many in the line.