Since the earliest war, soldiers who
have fought and died in battle have been remembered as heroes.
Serving your home and your country has always been an act of
bravery and deserved honor. But, lately, those who have died in
combat have not received quite the goodbye anyone would have
expected. Although some choose to weep and mourn over the loss, and
remember each soldier's gallantry, others choose to hold signs
outside the funeral thanking God for dead soldiers.
Fred Phelps, Pastor of Westboro Baptist Church
(WBC), is a belligerent, gay- bashing activist who uses the Bible
in defense for his hostility against homosexuality. Typically, any
Christian person would agree with him. But Phelps has not only
taken action against homosexuals. He has publicly stated that God
is judging the nation's tolerance of homosexuals by allowing
soldiers to die in the war in Iraq. The members of WOB actively
support their pastor's reasoning by traveling around the country
picketing at the funerals of American soldiers. The church compares
today's world as the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah mentioned in
Genesis 19. They also use verses from Psalm 56, along with many
other passages, to justify that God is delivering the righteous
from the hand of the wicked. This seems rather ridiculous to us,
but they truly believe these things. A lawyer who legally
confronted Phelps said: "That guy has more integrity about him than
almost anybody I've ever met because he sincerely believes these
things." This isn't just another trend to get people to buy
something; these people are serious.
To the Americans, as well as to
Christians, Phelps and his church members are giving a faulty
impression of God, as well as a defective impression of
Christianity. When they hold signs that say: "God hates you," "Fags
die, God laughs" or "Thank God for dead soldiers," they imply that
God is not a God of love but of hatred and violence. One veteran
stated, "If this is what they base their religious beliefs on, and
they are dwelling on the negative things, how are they ever going
to accomplish anything positive?"
Source: RockyMountainNews.com