Nazareth College is expressing concern over what it calls a “disturbing” incident involving two Muslim students.

As part of an assignment for a religious studies class, the two students were directed to visit a place of worship for a faith other than their own.

The two Muslim students visited Browncroft Community Church – and say that resulted in a church member calling Homeland Security to express concern about the students.

According to Nazareth President Daan Braveman, the school was contacted by New York State Police to verify their status as a student.

The professors we spoke with were very disappointed that this happened, saying they’ve successfully assigned this task to students for years without a problem.

The two Muslim students, we’re told, identified themselves as students on an assignment – and visited on two separate occasions.

They were shocked to hear that the DHS and State Police had been called, since they said their visit was very civil.

Professor Susan Nowak, who is the chair of the Religious Studies program at Nazareth, believes this incident occurred because of an increase in Islamophobia nationwide and here in Rochester.

“My Muslim neighbors and colleagues live under a tension that I don’t,” she said. “They’re under scrutiny for every aspect of their lives, but especially their religion, which too many Americans equate with terrorism.”

We spoke with Sam Huey, the executive pastor at the Browncroft Community Church, and he said that the church would not be making a public comment at this time.

In a statement to the campus community, Nazareth President Braveman said,

“I am writing to report on an incident that greatly disturbs me. This past Sunday, two of our Muslim students visited a local church as part of the Sociology of Religion course, which requires students to attend religious services that are not of their own tradition. This was the second time the students visited the church. Our students were very well behaved and appeared to be well received at the church. Nevertheless, a church member subsequently called Homeland Security to express concern about Muslim students from Nazareth. A State Police representative contacted the College to confirm that the two individuals are in fact students. After their student status was confirmed, the police dropped the matter. A third student, who is not Muslim, also visited that church earlier in the day but was not the subject of any such report.

“I am very troubled and indeed angered that two of our students were singled out because of their religious beliefs. We intend to discuss this matter with representatives of the church. In the meantime, I want to stress that Nazareth is committed to supporting our students, and I have met with the two students to reassure them of that support. This incident underscores, especially in the context of the larger environment, the importance of our work in promoting interfaith understanding and respect across lines of religious difference.”