Yeah, I was at church on Ash Wednesday (St. John Vianney), and the Priest mentioned this. They are going to be picketing around town at various churches and places of interest around town. St. John Vianney is the only Catholic Church they are picketing, and they will be doing so at Saturday's 5:30 Mass. I don't know why they picked us, but they are going to be lined up across the church's entrance for a while. Fr. Morfin's advice was just to ignore them, because they WANT to provoke conflict.
My parents' church in Kingwood is also targeted for protest due to their refusal to condemn homosexuality. With all the problems in the world, you think these people could put their energies to more productive use. Then again, I'm not sure if idiots like this are capable of doing anything productive.
Vengeance...do you go to St. John Vianney? That's right down the street from where I grew up..very near where I live now! My high school girlfriend and my two best friends went to church there... Unbelievable that people can hate that much. And then try to justify it in the name of Jesus Christ. Just awful.
It would take a tremendous amount of restraint on my part to not go ape **** on this particular group if they picketed my church. I would probably stick their picket signs where the sun don't shine, it probably bring some self loathing guys out of the closet.
Unfreaking Real. Look, I am a Christian. A proud one. Yeah I goof up more than most people in prison but my faith is real and I am a firm believer. I am also a conservative. I am a card carrying Republican that blanket votes with the right. I live less on the right, in fact most of my personal decisions would probably be considered on the liberal side of the line. I just think that what is best for the country is conservatism. But this **** makes me wanna hurl. I would like to bash the **** out of those picketing motherf$ckers. Those hateful people make the human race look disgusting. I would like to go with a bunch of gay dudes and beat the tar out of those freaks.
While it would nice to see them get the **** beat out of them, that would just be falling into their trap. Here's a good peaceful way to disturb them. Get a large group of people to go to where they are protesting and then start making them uncomfortable to the point where they attempt to do something violent. The guys can can stare at the other guys and hit on them. Same with the girls. Go there and smile at them and tell them that they're real cute when they protest. If they fall for it and attack you then you can sue them for assault and thereby expose their group as being violent.
If I was gay, I'd just take my boyfriend and go make out in front of them. Of course, my boyfriend would have to be one of those really buff guys the health club. But you get my point.
That is one of the challenges of our religion. We are seriously supposed to pray for those we despise. Admirable post.
MadMax -- yeah, I do go to SJV. It's about a 25 minute drive there, but I like it better than the church close to me (Epiphany). I agree, it would be difficult not to say anything. I was thinking "We ought to counter-protest" but when Fr. Morfin said not to provoke them, that made sense. Max is right -- we are obliged to pray for those who are wrong. But just because we should doesn't always make it easy.
Yep. Love your enemies...like the Bible says. Instead of revenge, turn to prayer. It's good to see some people remember that in this day and age. If someone slaps you, offer the other cheek. Man, I love the Bible. It's so unlike society. It challenges. It's powerful. -goose bumps-
If you have some time to kill, here's an interesting look at this bunch. Fred Phelps is one odd guy. Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church
Phelps left Bob Jones University without graduating. From Bob Jones, Phelps headed north to the Prairie Bible Institute in Three Hills near Calgary, Alberta. After two semesters, Phelps moved to California in April 1949, where he earned a two-year degree in 1951 from John Muir College in Pasadena. !!! Oh great. Now we get to share in this guy’s path to lunacy. Guys like this are a REAL challenge for me. It would be sooooo easy to hate this man, to angrily explode on his sick, pathetic … but that would be succumbing to the temptation. This man is about hate. He sows the seeds of hate and intolerance, and they aren’t just the seeds of hate and intolerance toward gays. Hate legitimises hate. Hate breeds hate, and if we respond back with hate then his seeds have found fertile ground in us. There must be a way to strongly oppose these guys in a compassionate way.
