HOLLY WARE
A hashtag stating ‘I am a Christian’ started trending on twitter following the Oregon Shooting on Thursday the 1st of October.
Allegations have surfaced that the gunman, believed to be, 26-year-old, Chris Harper Mercer, specifically targeted Christians in the school shooting.
Survivor of the shooting, Anastasia Boylan, told CNN that the gunman entered the classroom and opened fire before ordering students who identify as Christian to stand up.
“(He) ordered the students to stand up if they were Christians, and they would stand up and he said, ‘Good, because you’re a Christian, you’re going to see God in just about one second, and then he shot and killed them.” Ms Boylan said.
13 people were killed as a result and a further 20 injured at Umpqua Community College.
Potters House Christian Church Pastor George Ouma says that rather than deterring people from their faith, this incident will encourage people to attend church.
“It makes me a bit more focused on what we are doing as Christians,” Pastor George Ouma said.
He believes the focus lies solely on the individual.
“Gun control- it’s not the issue-the issue is what is in their heart.”
Thousands of people took to twitter to stand up against this violent act and posted a picture that reads ‘I am a Christian’ with accompanying text.
The hashtag appears to have had a powerful impact on peoples perceptions of what it means to be an individual or group who practice religion and it highlights the positive and negative outcomes of that practice.