A Texas pastor and his son joined dozens of residents in voicing opposition to a proposed Islamic complex in McKinney, a suburb north of Dallas.
Despite the objections, the McKinney City Council voted 7-0 last week to approve the McKinney Islamic Association’s site plan for a roughly 32,000-square-foot development on about 5.5 acres. Plans include a 15,000-square-foot sanctuary, classrooms and a gymnasium.
Pastor Corey Shahan, a McKinney resident and elder at Grace Covenant Baptist Church, told council members that his concerns centered on Islamic teachings and their implications for public life.
He urged officials to “carefully consider the ideological claims of Islam as a comprehensive religious and legal system,” including Sharia law, when evaluating the project.
“In a number of countries where Islamic law has governed public life, freedoms such as religious liberty, freedom of conscience and equal legal protections for women and religious minorities have been significantly, significantly restricted,” he said. “Those realities stand in sharp contrast to the constitutional order and civil liberties that have developed within the heritage of Western civilization.”
Shahan’s son, Luke, later addressed the council, echoing his father’s concerns while arguing that local leaders should preserve what he described as America’s Christian heritage.
“We are not here to draw lines on a map, but to emphasize the nature of our community. McKinney has always been more than a collection of homes and businesses,” he said. “The laws, principles and community itself are rooted in America’s heritage, which is Christian.”
Luke Shahan also contrasted biblical teachings with Islamic ideology and referenced the concept of dhimmi, a historical term for non-Muslims living under Islamic rule.
“Christianity teaches love your neighbor, turn the other cheek, and other biblical principles rooted in truth. It is a faith that respects the sovereignty of the individual conscience,” said Shahan.
“In contrast, Islamic ideology, especially under the framework of Sharia law, presents a comprehensive legal and social system that often supersedes individual rights in favor of religious obligation. We also see, due to different worldviews, a different view of political framework and the concept of dhimmi status, where non-Muslims are tolerated but not equal partners in the civic square. Americans will be seen as inferior in their own nation under Muslim corruption.
“Our American heritage is Christian. Our holidays, our legal precedents and our concept of natural rights are all baptized in the Gospel. To ignore this is to build on sand,” he added.
The McKinney Islamic Association, founded in 1997, says its existing mosque no longer has enough space for its congregation. The current facility is expected to remain open after the new campus is completed, with about 30% of Friday worshippers staying there and 70% moving to the new location.
If the project is completed, McKinney would have at least four operating mosques in addition to a Sufaraa Center.
The controversy comes after Texas Atty. Gen. Ken Paxton opened an investigation in April into allegations that the Dallas-area Islamic Tribunal was issuing judicial rulings based on Sharia law.
