By Nicole McKnight
COLLEYVILLE, Texas — In a gesture of compassion and goodwill, the Southlake Masjid Interfaith Team reached out to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Colleyville area—which includes Southlake, Keller, Colleyville, and Grapevine—following two events that deeply touched the Latter-day Saint community: the passing of Prophet Russell M. Nelson and the attack on Church members in Grand Blanc, Michigan.
Representatives from both faiths met last Sunday to express condolences, deepen understanding, and strengthen ties of shared belief and friendship.
Messages of Compassion and Shared Values
As participants gathered around the table, Linda Kopf, leader of the Church’s women’s organization, opened the conversation with gratitude. “We really appreciate you,” she said. “You are beyond thoughtful, and your expression of love for us is truly appreciated.”
Asma Zia, President of the Southlake Masjid Interfaith Team, responded by recalling earlier interfaith encounters with Christine Sturgeon, the Church’s interfaith representative for the area, and Ryan and Melissah Moore, local Church leaders. All three were present at an interfaith iftar dinner earlier in the year. Several of the LDS guests were fasting in solidarity with their Muslim hosts, who were feasting at the end of Ramadan. “I was impressed with the kindness that was shown during our initial meeting,” Zia said. “Peace is a blessing we all deserve—something that starts with connection. We are hoping for peace everywhere in the world.”
Building Relationships Through Dialogue
Each attendee introduced themselves and shared thoughts on faith, family, and community service. As condolences were exchanged, understanding deepened.
A special focus emerged on youth and women’s involvement in future interfaith efforts. Naushin Aamer of the Southlake Masjid highlighted the importance of giving young people a chance to meet and learn from one another. Halli Hockenjos, the Church’s Young Women leader, agreed: “Youth connect not as religion but as individuals.”
Gisel Merrifield, who represented the LDS children’s ministry, said, “We’re all just fellow human beings trying to do our best. I welcome any chance we have for community and unity.” Both groups expressed enthusiasm for a future joint service project or sports-focused activity that would bring youth together—an opportunity to serve side-by-side and build genuine friendships.
Common Ground in Faith
Participants identified key principles shared by both Islam and the Latter-day Saint faith, including belief in a loving and all-powerful God, the role of a prophet, the importance of scripture, and commitments to prayer, fasting, charity, chastity, family, and service.
A video presentation titled Muslims and Latter-day Saints: Beliefs, Values, and Lifestyles highlighted these commonalities and the mutual respect between the two traditions. A pamphlet outlining the shared values was published by the Church in 2021 and was shared with the Muslim participants on Sunday.
At the 2021 BYU Islam Conference, Elder David A. Bednar of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints spoke about these shared values, saying: “The two faiths are different in many of our core doctrines, but many of our values and the ways in which we practice our respective faiths are similar and reflect our love of God and of our fellow man.”
Together, the film and his remarks reinforced a central message: mutual respect and understanding are essential to building peace in a diverse world.
Faith, Respect, and Future Friendship
Drew Johnson, President over the ten Colleyville-area congregations of the Church, finished up the meeting by saying, “Civility and tolerance are low bars for society. We weren’t commanded to tolerate each other, we are commanded to love each other. The world would like to divide us, but we hope we can extend love and care to you as well. There is so much that can bring us together.”
The meeting concluded with a reflection from Asma Zia on the teachings of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). She reminded attendees of the Qur’anic verse, “There is no compulsion in religion” (Qur’an 2:256), affirming that faith must arise from personal conviction, not coercion. She also shared a saying of the Prophet emphasizing compassion toward neighbors: “Gabriel kept on recommending that I treat my neighbors well until I thought he would order me to make them my heirs.”
As the groups parted in mutual appreciation, both expressed hope for continued cooperation and friendship rooted in faith, compassion, and respect. Through future collaborations among women’s, youth, and children’s organizations, both groups hope to strengthen ties and continue to see one another not as strangers of different faiths, but as fellow believers seeking peace under one loving God.