The account coming out of the mass shooting in Roseburg, Oregon, on Thursday was chilling: The gunman had asked Umpqua Community College students if they were Christian, and then told those who were that they would “see God in just about one second.” Then he opened fire, killing nine.
Stacy Boylan, whose daughter Anastasia Boylan was wounded in the attack, relayed the account to CNN.
And Korney Moore, 18, gave a similar account to NRToday, telling the paper that the gunman asked the group about their religion before shooting.
A law enforcement official also told the New York Times that 26-year-old Chris Harper-Mercer had asked his victims about their religion before firing.
In honor and memory of those who lost their lives yesterday in Oregon. #YesImAChristian pic.twitter.com/NlacWEXluA
— Hailey Rasanow (@ohheyitshailey) October 2, 2015
Family statement for Jason Johnson. #UCCShooting pic.twitter.com/g9Z64emQsx
— Douglas Co Sheriff's Office – Oregon (@DouglasCoSO) October 2, 2015
The family of Jason Johnson, one of the students killed in the shooting, said in a statement Friday he was a proud Christian who had “finally found his path.”
Authorities have not released a motive for the shooting rampage, but the multiple reports on the Harper-Mercer’s religious inquisition of his victims has, for many Christians, already answered that question. On Friday, the collective sense of some of their own being attacked for their faith prompted a wave of support for Christians on social media with the hashtag #YesImAChristian.