SOMERSET, Pa. -- A Somerset County preacher vowed to fight the design of the Flight 93 National Memorial, insisting that the crescent pathway used in the design is a symbol of Islam.

	Paul Murdoch Architects Above: A crescent of maple trees is one aspect of the 2,000 acre "Crescent of Embrace" memorial site. Below: Two textured concrete walls frame the flight path of United Airlines Flight 93. The site also includes a chapel with 40 metallic wind chimes. Click illustrations for larger image. Previous article Flight 93 marker design picked

"This is a memorial to the terrorists who killed those people, not a memorial to the folks who died there innocently," said the Rev. Ron McRae, leader of the Bible Anabaptist Church near Jerome, about 55 miles southeast of Pittsburgh.

"The crescent is as much connected to Islam as the cross is to Christianity," said McRae of Conemaugh Township, also listed as director and founder on the Web site of the Lancaster-based Street Preachers Fellowship.

McRae said the group may go to court to try to block the "Crescent of Embrace" memorial designed by Paul Murdoch Associates of Los Angeles. The design centers on a mile-long semicircle of red maples surrounding the point of impact, where 40 passengers and crew were killed when the hijacked plane crashed near Shanksville on Sept. 11, 2001.

Though not accepted by all Muslims, the crescent moon and star is an internationally recognized symbol of Islam and appears on the flags of many Muslim nations.

Murdoch, however, said his crescent has no religious significance, but was created to add formality to the bowl-shaped valley surrounding the crash site.

"This is not about any religion per se," Murdoch said in a telephone interview with the Tribune-Democrat in Johnstown. "It's a spiritual space, and a sacred place, but it's open to anyone."

The word "crescent," he said, was used as a generic architectural term for a curved line.

"Sure, there is an Islamic crescent," Murdoch said. "Theirs is a lunar crescent. Ours isn't based on that."

The jury that recommended the final design, approved by the Flight 93 Advisory Commission, had suggested in a report that planners rethink use of the word "crescent" and, instead, use "circle," "arc" or other words not linked to religious icons.

Fouad El Bayly, leader of the Islamic Center of Johnstown, said the crescent isn't a holy symbol, but one identified with the lunar Muslim calendar.

"When it comes to a memorial, all mankind sympathizes," he said. "They recognize it was against everybody."

Murdoch's design was unveiled Wednesday to overwhelming support from Flight 93 family members at the crash site. Some said the design perfectly blends the serene landscape with the solemnity of a cemetery. Planners expect the memorial to be completed by the 10th anniversary of the crash.

But McRae, widely known for his protests in the 1990s outside a gay bar in Somerset County, said he would fight Murdoch's design if it goes forward.

"They wouldn't dare put up the Ten Commandments or the cross of Christ, but they're going to put up a red crescent," he said. "We're not going to stand idly by and allow this to happen."

Helene Fried, an adviser for the memorial's design competition, said any religious symbolism was unintentional and the crescent "was merely the embrace of taking in a larger family."