Normandy attack: Pope Francis pays tribute to murdered French Priest as religious leaders call for people of all faiths to unite

AFP
Chloe Chaplain27 July 2016

The Pope has spoken of his “sorrow and horror” after a French Priest had his throat slit in front of a congregation of worshippers.

The Vatican issued a statement paying tribute to Father Jacques Hamel, who was murdered in Normandy today, as religious leaders call for solidarity across all faiths.

The Vatican said: "We are particularly struck because this horrible violence has occurred in a church - a sacred place where we pronounce God's love - with the barbaric murder of a priest and worshippers affected."

Pope Francis was one of a number of world and religious leaders to speak out after the brutal murder today.

Pope Francis spoke of his sorrow following the murder 
EPA/Tiziana Fabi

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said: "Evil attacks the weakest, denies truth and love, is defeated through Jesus Christ.

"Pray for France, for victims, for their communities."

The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Justin Welby
PA Wire

The Archbishop of Rouen, Dominique Lebrun, who cut short a visit to Poland to return to his diocese, said: "I cry to God with all men of good will.

"The only arms which the Catholic Church can take up are prayer and brotherhood between men."

Suleman Nagdi from the Federation of Muslim Organisations called on people of all faiths to join together in the wake of the attack.

He said: "Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Rouen and France as they come to terms with yet another barbaric attack.

The 85-year-old Priest was murdered during a morning service 
AFP/Getty Images

“The Federation of Muslim Organisations condemns this most incomprehensible and reprehensible act of murder.

"Christians and Muslims have a shared history. Our beloved prophet (pbuh) drafted the constitution of Medina which gave rights to all.

“Values of responsibility, hard work, charity, compassion, humility, and love are shared by people of all our faiths and those of other beliefs.

The church where the attack took place 
Diocese de Rouen via Reuters

“These values underpin so many aspects of the liberal democracy which we cherish today.

"People of all faiths and none must come together, united in condemnation of such vile hatred.

"In doing so we strengthen our resistance against the terrorists and ensure these attempts to divide our communities only makes us stronger."

Prime Minister Theresa May also called for a united front to “win” against the terrorists who she accused of “trying to destroy our values”.

Pascal Rossignol/Reuters

Speaking in Downing Street, Mrs May said: "We all face a terror threat. If you look at the national threat level here in the United Kingdom, it is at severe. That means that a terrorist attack is highly likely.

"What is necessary is for us all to work together, and stand shoulder to shoulder with France. We offer them every support we have in dealing with this issue and this threat that they, and the rest of us, are facing.

"But on one thing, I think, we are all absolutely clear, and that is the terrorists will not prevail.

"They are trying to destroy our way of life. They are trying to destroy our values. We have shared values and those values will win through and the terrorists will not win."

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in