Unsettled Christianity

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December 27th, 2012

Legally recognize Westboro Baptist Church as a hate group.

A White House Petition set up on the 14th December, the same day as the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, has become the most popular petition of all time, and currently stands at 262,708 signatures.

The petition reads thus:

Legally recognize Westboro Baptist Church as a hate group.

This group has been recognized as a hate group by organizations, such as The Southern Poverty Law Center, and has repeatedly displayed the actions typical of hate groups.

Their actions have been directed at many groups, including homosexuals, military, Jewish people and even other Christians. They pose a threat to the welfare and treatment of others and will not improve without some form of imposed regulation.

I must admit, if I were an US citizen, I’d sign it…..

UPDATE: It appears that following the success of the above petition somebody thought it a great idea to create a similar one pertaining to the Catholic Church:

Officially recognize the Roman Catholic Church as a hate group.

In his annual Christmas address to the College of Cardinals, Pope Benedict XVI, the global leader of the Roman Catholic Church, demeaned and belittled homosexual people around the world. Using hateful language and discriminatory remarks, the Pope painted a portrait in which gay people are second-class global citizens. Pope Benedict said that gay people starting families are threatening to society, and that gay parents objectify and take away the dignity of children. The Pope also implied that gay families are sub-human, as they are not dignified in the eyes of God.

Upon these remarks, the Roman Catholic Church fits the definition of a hate group as defined by both the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League.

This has garnered a whopping 93 signatures…..

Tags: Hate group, westboro baptist church, white house
Posted in Controversial | 5 Comments »

December 2nd, 2010

Christians, the FRC and the SPLC hate list

: Image via Wikipedia

Ultimately, this is a real problem for American Christianity. One should be able to trust Christian groups to provide accurate information and nuanced analysis. However, on issues relating to sexual orientation, I cannot trust them. For me, this lack of trust spills over to other domains as well, creating a significant problem with credibility. I hope my fellow believers will not defend these claims simply because those making them are Christians.

There are many negative consequences which derive from the myths, overgeneralizations and stereotypes. For instance, I know of a handful of situations where men were kept from their grandchildren or children by other family members because they disclosed same-sex attraction. Even though the men involved had no attraction for children, their families feared them because they experienced homosexual attractions. I know of more than one man who had to defend his right to have custody of his children because he divulged his homosexual attractions to a Christian leader. The families and Christian leaders were driven to fear because of rhetoric from one or more of the groups now on the SPLC list.

What should Christians do about the SPLC hate list? — Warren Throckmorton.

Read the entire article.

Recently, the SPLC has branded the Family Research Council a hate-group, not for their views on homosexuality, but for their messages so delivered. This might not be a dividing line for many, but the SPLC is claiming that the FRC is purposely distorting facts on homosexuality. The author of the above post is correct – it behooves us as Christians to hold each other to a higher standard when we are making any sort of claims.

Now, I have my own issues with the SPLC and their use of ‘hate group’, so don’t get me wrong in thinking that I would automatically support them. I do, however, feel that the labeling of the FRC as such to be a good thing, for several reasons.

What sayeth ye?