Protesting Funerals
The Rev. Fred Phelps, founder of Westboro Baptist in Kansas, contends that American soldiers are being killed in Iraq as vengeance from God for protecting a country that harbors gays. The church, which is not affiliated with a larger denomination, is made up mostly of Phelps’ children, grandchildren and in-laws.
The church members carried signs and shouted things such as “God hates fags” and “God hates you.” [...]
“My husband is over there, so I’m here to show my support,” 41-year-old Connie Ditmore said as she waved and American flag and as tears came to her eyes. “To do this at a funeral is disrespectful of a family, no matter what your beliefs are.” (source)
Fred Phelps and his group has been doing this for years at the funerals of gay men. I suppose there’s some perverse part of me that is glad they are doing this. Now, I don’t feel so singled out, I suppose, for what that’s worth. And now perhaps straight people who are faced with this kind of hatred will finally understand what it feels like to have someone picket a funeral of someone they love. Of course, we are still involved, indirectly. Phelps is saying that he’s picketing these funerals because America is suffering God’s vengeance because America “harbors gays”.
All I can say to people like Connie Ditmore is, welcome to my world.
Other writings on this
August 9, 2005 - Anti-gay rallies at funerals draw complaints
August 2, 2005 - GodHatesFags.com is Expanding
11 Comments
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Diane,
I really don't know who you are addressing your comments too. You seem like a very angry person inside.
The fact of the matter is, if you look at the way 80% of "Christians" are behaving in this country today, with their "hate the sin, love the sinner" attitudes, Christians are just as bad as the Phelps clan.
At least he and his followers are HONEST about how they feel in their contempt for us. What about you?
These are NOT CHRISTIANS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The Baptist church I was raised in we were taught to not JUDGE others that is the lords job. Please remember that God did not put us in Irag ONE MAN did the jerks name is GW Bush. You want to protest something protest him. Not the poor young men that went over there to PROTECT YOUR WORTHLESS ASS. Your church makes me ashamed of your belief. Maybe some of us should come to your funeral and protest you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Remember judgement is mine sayeth the LORD. When did the Lord appoint you to judge people.
Does anybody know where to contact this travesty of a woman? She needs a slap, and deserves a hell of a lot more.
Well "Jehu", the God I know doesn't hate. He is a God of love and compassion. Perhaps you are listening to someone else?
My filter prevented this poster from posting to the site. But, I decided to let it in to show you a portion of what I read everyday from people who just want to hate and spill their vile rhetoric out for the masses to read.
In my eyes, anyone who calls Fred Phelps a "decient [sic] and upright man that cares about you", has lost all credibility.
Jehu, please go crawl back under your rock.
Fred Phelps is a decient and upright man that cares about you, and your salvation by the blood of Jesus Christ.
His posters are not strictly Bible, but they are true.
Many people are confused by a term that he uses that was used to refer to witches and has only been reciently associated with criminal sexual devients. It quite literally refers to the fact that evil people (those that appose God) will burn on The Lake of Fire like faggots of sticks for all eternity.
It is true that those that hate (appose) God will burn for all eternity like a faggot of sticks. There is no way around it.
Pam's House Blend (http://www.pamspaulding.com/weblog/) is a good source of info. on Fred Phelps -- or Rotting CryptkeeperTM has she calls him.
Her latest post is something else:
"What are you doing for Labor Day weekend? Guess where the Phelps family and followers are going? They are hitting the road to picket a Pride celebration in Duluth, MN..."
http://www.pamspaulding.com/weblog/2005/08/labor-day-fun-for-phelps-clan.html
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This man is no better than the kkk,he is a worthless peice of trash,who's 15 minutes of fame is up,so phelps take your ass and those retards you call a family and start clicking your shoes together and head back to kansas.
It amazes me the stupid things people do (because "GOD" belives in this and not that) I personally haven't spoken with him on a daily basis and I don't believe anyone else in America, the land of the free if I might add, has either so who are they to bash people like this. It's just the same as the congressmen and women who believe the world will end if we let gay men and women get married. Maybe the soldiers in Iraq are being killed because we have no plan. All we've got is some little boy pretending to be a leader telling us to go shoot some people and at the end of many years see who has the most people standing, us or them.
By the way, Wannabeleader, I like your site. :-)
Mind if I add you to my blogroll?
Well, I suppose the good news in all of this is that any time Fred Phelps and his crew show up for anything, they end up looking like complete asses. My only concern with them is the hurt they inflict on others. I'm all for free speech, but showing up and picketing someones funeral is, in my opinion, crossing the line. At least, it crosses the line of decency.
With the rise of anti-war sentiment, and the bodies of soldiers coming, I would tread very lightly on this if I were Fred Phelps. He can get away with bashing gays and picketing their funerals because, let's face it, most of society simply doesn't like us very much. But if he continues on his present course, desecrating the memories of loved ones of "normal people", who knows what will happen? Imagine the worst, and I think it could happen.
The "Fags Hate God" poster is worse, I agree. Hopefully, the people seeing it will know some of us and see it for what it is. We can hope.
There is a new sign by the "God Hates Fags" organization, which I think is worse than the original. It says, "Fags hate God."
Wannabeleader