When an evangelical pastor from Texas admits that 57% of evangelicals hold a negative view of Muslims — and that evangelical pastors themselves are the primary source of that hatred — it forces an honest reckoning with how deeply misconceptions about Islam have infected Christian communities. Pastor Bob Roberts of NorthWood Church, speaking from years of genuine friendship with Muslims, imams, and people of all faiths, lays bare the uncomfortable truth: the problem is not Islam. The problem is ignorance, bad theology, and a failure to follow the very teachings of Jesus that Christians claim to uphold.
Ignorance Is the Root of Anti-Muslim Hatred
The first and most powerful reason evangelicals harbor negativity toward Muslims is breathtakingly simple — they do not know any. Pastor Roberts describes how his own church hosts annual gatherings where hundreds of Muslims and Christians share meals together, visit each other’s homes, and build real relationships. The transformation is immediate and profound. Christians who actually spend time with Muslim families come back saying the same thing every time: these people are just like us.
We never realized that they’re just like us. They’re not extremists. The views that we had, the crazy things about Sharia and all Muslims are like Al-Qaeda and ISIS, is just not true. They’re as afraid of them as we are. Did you know more Muslims are persecuted by the extremists than any other group?
- Misconceptions about Islam are built on 30-second news soundbites, not personal relationships with actual Muslims
- Fear-driven propaganda conflates 1.7 billion peaceful Muslims with a tiny fringe of extremists
- Muslims are the primary victims of the very extremism they are falsely accused of supporting
- Evangelical pastors bear the greatest responsibility for spreading anti-Muslim hatred from their pulpits
Speculative Theology Turns Christians Against Muslims
Pastor Roberts identifies a second major driver of hatred: distorted end-times theology that has no solid basis in Scripture. Some evangelicals have constructed elaborate eschatological narratives that cast Muslims as enemies in a cosmic drama — narratives built on speculation rather than faith. As Roberts bluntly states, Christians hold a thousand different views about how Jesus will return, and most of them contradict each other. Yet these unproven theories are used to justify hostility toward an entire civilization. Islam, by contrast, honors Jesus as a revered prophet, upholds monotheism, emphasizes charity, prayer, and moral conduct — values that align directly with the core of Christianity. The hatred is not rooted in theological substance. It is rooted in theological ignorance.
The Gospel of Jesus Commands Love — Not Hatred
Jesus even says love your enemies. In other words, no one’s left out. We should never dislike someone. We should never hate anyone. We’ve been commanded by Jesus to do only one thing: love.
- The essence of faith in both Islam and Christianity is love, mercy, and submission to God
- Jesus commanded love for God, neighbor, family — and even enemies — leaving no room for hatred of Muslims
- Islam teaches the same principle — the Quran instructs believers to respond to evil with goodness and to treat all people with justice
- True Christianity and true Islam both call their followers to sacrifice for others, regardless of religious labels
A Muslim’s Courage Proved the Truth
Perhaps the most powerful moment in this testimony is when Pastor Roberts recalls visiting Afghanistan to honor a Muslim friend whose father had been killed. His friend Umar came to the airport to meet him — knowing full well that being seen with an American Christian could cost him his life. When Roberts protested, Umar replied with words that echo the highest teachings of both Islam and Christianity: “It doesn’t matter if you’re a Muslim or a Christian, you’re my friend.” This is the reality of Islam that the propaganda machine does not want you to see — a faith that produces people willing to lay down their lives out of love, loyalty, and honor. The truth about Islam is not found in headlines. It is found in the character of Muslims like Umar, and in the honest words of evangelicals brave enough to say: we were wrong.
