GETZVILLE, NY- "There was little damage to the building but there was no damage to the church," said Pastor Jerry Gillis.

 

With that Pastor Jerry Gillis proclaimed it business as usual here at the Chapel at Crosspoint. Early Saturday morning someone smashed out a glass door at the east entrance to the church.  Police say the vandal threw a Molotov cocktail into the vestibule.         

 

"The sprinkler system worked fine it drowned that out after the smoke reached it and so there was a little bit of water damage that was there so no one was injured thank God it was early in the morning," said Pastor Gillis.

 

Sunday, more than two thousand members came to church following the scare.  Some say the attack on their church home does raise some concerns.

 

"Yeah, obviously we've seen internationally that's a major concern for Christians throughout the world.  So, it saddens me that it happens here throughout our own society," said church member David Barnard.

 

"I think it's sad, I think there's obviously some ignorance or prejudgment of who we are what we're about and I think that's going on in  a lot of different areas of our society," said church member Rich Worling.  

 

Amherst police are trying to determine who and why someone would attack the church. Investigators say they're not ruling out the possibility it was a hate crime.     

 

We asked church member Hawa Wajed if it would concern her if it was determined the incident was a hate crime.

 

“It's hard to say. It could be mischievous. You just don't know. It could be like graffiti. You don't know the intention of that either other than getting attention. People want attention in the weirdest kind of ways. So now they have or attention and our attention is prayer and love for them and that's what we're going to do," said Wajed.

 

 

That's exactly what Pastor Gillis is asking his congregation to do.  Meanwhile as police look for the person responsible Pastor Gillis says the church will continue in its mission.        

 

"The Church is people. Buildings are buildings. This structure is not the church, we are the church," said Pastor Gillis.