While the men prayed, she sat patiently in the back corner of the mosque waiting to say the words many in the room were so thankful to hear.

“There should be no fear ever in worshipping your God, our God, in Ontario or in Canada,” Premier Kathleen Wynne said to the worshippers who came for noon-hour prayers at the Muslim Association of Canada’s Masjid Mosque on Dundas St. W.

“Our hearts and prayers go out to the victims and families of this horrible act of violence.”

The sick terror attack on a mosque in Quebec City that left six innocents dead, five in hospital and a Quebec man in custody.

“We are shocked,” said Wynne.

And horrified.

There’s lots of things said and written about Wynne, but whatever you think of her politically, it’s hard not to give her a pat on the back for the grace she displayed. Those citing the idea that her going to the mosque was calculated, should consider how humbling, if not embarrassing, it may have been for the openly-gay premier.

Especially, since the Imam who invited her to come to the front of the mosque to share the microphone has in the past had less than progressive views on homosexuality and gay marriage.

As quoted in the CIJ News in 2015 from a question and answer session on Onislam.net, Imam Wael Shehab said “homosexuality is a sinful act in Islam ... I’d cite the following fatwa of Dr. Muzammil Siddiqi, president of the Fiqh Council of North America:

‘We should consider them people who get themselves engaged in a sinful act. We should deal with them in the same way we deal with any people who are involved in alcoholics, gambling or adultery. We should have deep repugnance to their acts and we must remind and warn them.”

If they persist he said “we should certainly avoid those people.”

Awkward.

And yet, there was Wynne being bigger than that, offering a heartfelt message of unity to him and his fellow Muslim followers.

“As-Salam-u-Alaikum (Peace be unto you). Thanks for welcoming me into your house, your home,” said Wynne, who also visited the “sisters” section of the mosque on the second floor. But other than media and her staff, she was the only female in the room for the male prayer.

“Our government stands with you. We are not different. We are the same. We are all Canadians.”

With class, she clearly did not let any of the previous words affect her focus on honouring the innocent victims of this heinous terror act. Her office did not respond to questions on the Imam’s previous words.

As horrible as his previous quotes are, Shehab said he very much cherished the premier’s visit and her warm words and humanity. He explained although he’s on record for teachings in previous sermons, his views are not as they appear.

“They are taken out of context,” he told me gently. “They are not my views. My views are clear on my Facebook page. We stand for freedom, equality and justice for all. I support for human rights for all.”

Like the rest of the people in the mosque who seemed thrilled the premier came, Shehab echoed the sentiment.

“We very much appreciated Premier Wynne coming,” he said. “We as Muslims understand it’s unfair to blame communities for this behaviour and this crime. We all stand for justice, security and peaceful order.”

Wynne won over the room with her final message: “The only antidote to hatred is love.” She showed that first hand Monday.

Sometimes the world is complicated. But what happened in the Quebec mosque is not. It’s vile — something the Imam and premier agree on.