No More Cold, Hateful Religion
J. Lee Grady

If a judgemental spirit has contaminated your walk with God, ask Him for a fresh understanding of grace.

If there were an award for Worst Example of Christianity in 2012, it would have to go to the infamous Westboro Baptist Church.

The tiny sect, based in Topeka, Kan., made headlines several times last year—most notably in December 2012 when its members planned an unsuccessful demonstration at the funeral of a victim of the Connecticut school shooting.

Fred Phelps, the 83-year-old leader of Westboro, believes innocent children died in the Connecticut tragedy because God is mad at America for tolerating gay marriage. This is why Phelps named his church’s website GodHatesFags.com and why he sends his followers to hold hateful placards at military funerals. He claims that every time a U.S. soldier dies in Afghanistan, it is God’s reminder that He’s angry at America’s moral decay.

Personally I don’t think this group should use the term “Baptist” (Phelps describes himself as a Calvinist, but he is accountable to no one) or “church” (his members spend most of their time at protests wearing “God Hates Fags” T-shirts). They bear no resemblance to New Testament faith.

Most of us just roll our eyes when we hear of Westboro’s disgusting attempts to get publicity. Phelps has the constitutional right to say what he wants (and the Supreme Court agreed in 2011), but his angry tone makes all believers look bad. I’m sure some people have rejected the gospel because they assume all Christians share Phelps’ self-righteousness.

I have no plans to fight Phelps. I think the best counter-offensive is to show America what genuine Christian faith really is. We can begin by searching our hearts and making sure we don’t have any self-righteousness in us.

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