False Christians - The Westboro Baptist Church

Fox News.com has this headline “Supreme Court Sides with Westboro Baptist Church on Marine Funeral Protest.”

I can understand the Court’s ruling. I wholeheartedly support the effort to protect everyone’s right to free speech and assembly. But protesting at military funerals because you don’t agree with government policy is misguided at best. At worst, and this is what we’re seeing and hearing from this group, it amounts to harassment of innocent families of the fallen. Common sense should tell the people that directing their ire at a soldier’s funeral instead of the government is the wrong thing to do. If it’s Pentagon policies you disagree with, why not protest there? Somebody needs to tell these folk a thing or two about the Bible and the teachings of Jesus.

They are wrong.

They maintain they don’t like homosexuality or homosexuals. That’s fine. You’re free to believe anything you wish. But heckling, shouting, and carrying signs at what should be a somber event just shows how depraved these people really are.

They are not Christians

What’s even worse, their actions are giving Christianity a bad name, and leading the uninformed to think that all Christians think as they do. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Yet, the media is more than happy to give them publicity in order to smear the faith by association with this fringe group. And make no mistake, this group is about as far out on the edges of religion as you can get. I can call myself a brain surgeon, but that doesn’t make me one.

As a short review of history will confirm, Christianity, like America, has always had an image problem. Those on the outside tend to view it through a distorted lens. Those on the inside know differently, but often find it difficult to project the proper understanding of it due to the preconceived notions that all Christians are alike, which this “church” seems more than happy to promote.

Thankfully, the Bible gives us a yardstick with which to measure folks: Matthew 7:16 “By their fruit, you will recognize them.” Note a subtle distinction: it’s the actions, not the words, you should watch. You can also apply this to politics. I sure do. All the flowery prose in the world can’t disguise a corrupt soul.

So, using God’s Gage, these despicable acts show us who these people really are. They could just as easily show compassion for the families of these fallen soldiers and attend the funerals quietly in a silent show of support for their sacrifice. The fact that they don’t should tell you all you need to know about them. They are in no way Christian. Their protests make a mockery of a solemn ceremony. There is no love in their hearts, nor forgiveness, nor compassion. In fact, everything I’ve seen and heard from them tells me that they worship themselves and their ego, not God or Jesus.

And this Christian denounces them.