They are perhaps the most hated family in the nation! I’m talking about the family that makes up the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas. This group of church members (primarily one family) has 50-75 members.
They were sued and their case went to the U.S. Supreme Court. At issue in winning their free-speech case before the court was about all their placards and hate speech. They ranted at funerals of many of our U.S. soldiers killed in combat, stating they were glad the soldiers were dead. Their signs read, “Thank God for 9/11,” “Fag the Troops.” Other signs I can’t or won’t print because they are in language that the Bible forbids.
The Westboro Baptist Church is an independent Baptist church known for its stance against homosexuality. The church’s protest activities include picketing funerals and desecrating the American flag; their protest is very anti-Jewish vitriol.
The founder of this church (family) is Fred Phelps, a disbarred lawyer. He is a past civil rights activist in Kansas and ran for public office five times. His preaching and protest theme seems to be to warn others of God’s anger. He and his family church have participated in at least 40 protests per week over the past ten years.
President George Bush signed into law in May 2006, the Respect for America’s Fallen Heroes Act to counter Phelps and his family church. Kansas Governor, Kathleen Sebelius, in 2007 signed into law a bill that keeps protesters 150 feet away from funerals—a kind of buffer zone.
Phelps is primarily known for his hate speech against people who sin. All their propaganda is monitored by the Anti-Defamation League.
The children in this family church are taught lullabies about people going to hell. Pause for a minute and think about these 3-5 year-olds learning not about how to sing “This Little Light of Mine, I’m going to Let It Shine,” or “Jesus Loves Me This I know, For The Bible Tells Me So,” but rather songs that condemn people to hell who are homosexual (can’t use their other words), Catholics, Jews etc.
As a pastor and counselor, I would call this family church a cult. The church members are prisoners to the pastor and his ideas. They are enslaved to hate and to the opposite of all that I know about the Triune God and our Bible.
Good theology can bless and benefit us. We can grow in our relationship with God and become like His Son. Bad theology can harm both our relationships with God and with other people.
I am saddened about this cult and its leadership. The Bible I read talks of God’s love for sinners. He hates sin in both non-Christians and Christians. His Son died and was buried and rose from the dead (the Gospel) in order that we people might have forgiveness of sins, abundant life, peace with God, and eternal life.
If we are believers, we are a changed people and our language changes too. In Paul’s letter to the Ephesian believers (Eph 4:22-24), he talks about how to grow and change in Christ. In chapter 4:25-32, he talks about “putting off the old self” and “putting on the new self” in Christ. In this he gives us four rules for communicating:
1. Be honest (vs 25)
2. Keep current (vs 26-27)
3. Attack problems, not people (vs 29-30; 4:15)
4. Act, don’t react (vs 31-32)
By the way, disrespect is a sin (Eph 6:2). So is name calling (John 4:11; Pro 30:11); so is an angry countenance (Gen 4:6) and all ungracious speech (Eph 4:29; Col 4:6).
Don’t hate the pastor or people of Westboro Baptist church. Pray that God will send true Christians to witness to them. God’s mercy has been granted to us, and even in rebellion to God, we should come down on God’s side—hate the sin, but love the sinner. One of the watershed moments in the OT is this:
“But he's already made it plain how to live, what to do,
what God is looking for in men and women.
It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor,
be compassionate and loyal in your love,
And don't take yourself too seriously— take God seriously.”
–Micah 6:8
God Bless,
Woody
P.S. Romans 12 reminds us to overcome evil with good.
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