Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. —Matthew 23: 23-
I have been reading the debates about homosexuality, Christians, and the Bible’s views on this, I have always struggled with the blatant hypocrisy, hate, and cold hardheartedness from Christian that make such a strong stand against homosexuality. For an example of Christian love and tolerance, lets see what the Westboro Church is practicing. Shall we?
Motorcycle riders, law enforcement agents from around the state and region, and concerned citizens are expected to form a human barrier around the funeral of Justin Helton — a 2006 graduate of Beaver Eastern High School, and member of the U.S. military who died in Afghanistan last week. Another flyer from the group known as Westboro Baptist Church has emerged, causing apprehension that that group may show up to picket the young man’s funeral services.
The latest flyer circulating in light of the funeral services for Helton, reads – “Thank God for 10 more dead troops,” and “Thank God for 3 dead oath-breakers,” among other things. Protests have also been held against Jews and Catholics, and some protests have included WBC members stomping on the American flag
. http://www.portsmouth dailytimes.com/news/news/3806400/Westboro-Church-threatens-to-picket-soldiers-funeral
Please tell me this is a hoax, and none of these stories are true. Who wants to believe that human beings would behave this way? Is this Christian love at its finest???
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing devotion to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law — Romans 13:8-10
The thought that ANYONE would protest a fallen solider that gave the ultimate sacrifice (his life) for our country is a travesty that I have a hard time wrapping my mind around. To me this organization is so radical, unreasonable, and down right stupid. They take it to far and what ever message they are trying to convey is being lost.
Now- I guess Country Music and the fabulous Brad Paisley is also under attack from these God fearing Christians?
“Brad Paisley’s hilarious selfie in front of picketing Westboro Baptist Church members was more than an Instagram sensation — it was a statement about the group that pickets everything from the funerals of U.S. troops killed in duty to homosexuals.”
“The group’s hatred is so broad, that they are one of the few things most people in the country agree on. “They are just the most insane people,” says Paisley. “It’s hard to find a unifying force in this society. But there they are. But we don’t return their hatred with ours. Everyone can have disdain for them.” “I’m of the mind-set that God loves everyone,” says Paisley. “But these people are testing that.”
The part I have the most problem with is that they use the Bible, as their tool of hate to perpetuate what they believe is the absolute truth. I swear, if I hear one more time, “It is what the Bible says, so no one can argue with it, because it is God’s absolute truth!”….
Okay, I gonna admit this is another thing in life that makes me go hhhmmmmm.
Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. — Luke 6:41-42
I have been researching different perspectives , and this one made sense to me. How this author explained his perspective was eye opening for me.
“To excerpt any isolated short passage from the Bible, and then claim for that passage absolute authority, is to fail to take the Bible on its own terms. If we wish to follow the word of God, then we must take the entirety of God’s words into account. For example, when the Bible itself identifies some of its words as proverbs, it is bestowing upon those words less moral weight than other words that it identifies as commandments. The Bible itself tells us that some of its contents are songs, some visions, some histories, some dreams, some parables, and some commandments. The Bible itself also instructs Christians that New Testament moral directives supersede Old Testament moral directives. The Bible itself tells us that its moral principles supersede any of its moral ‘rules.'” – John Shore
There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? James 4:12 ESV / 109