(RNS) The estranged son of a Kansas pastor famous for protesting the funerals of soldiers and AIDS victims has condemned his family’s plans to picket the funerals of the 26 people — including 20 children — who were killed when a gunman stormed a Connecticut elementary school.
Nate Phelps, shown here with fiancee Angela Feldstein, has broken with his father’s church, Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., which is best known for protesting the funerals of U.S. soldiers killed in action. Religion News Service photo courtesy of Nate Phelps
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In the wake of Friday’s massacre in Newtown, Conn., members of Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kan., posted Twitter messages saying they would picket outside Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown. The messages provided no information on the time of the planned picketing.
“Westboro ‘God hates Fags’ Baptist Church is planning to picket at Sandy Hook, to praise ‘God’s judgment,’” was posted by Margie Phelps, the daughter of Westboro leader Fred Phelps Sr. Her sister, Shirley Phelps-Roper, tweeted Saturday that the group would “sing praise to God for the glory of his work in executing his judgment.”
Church members also released a video titled “God Sent the Shooter,” in which members state that the shootings were God’s retribution for gay marriage.
In response, Nate Phelps, the sixth of pastor Fred Phelps’ 13 children, condemned the protest plans but says local leaders should allow the protests to continue by “calling their bluff” and exposing the group to public anger.
“My sincere hope is that the Sandy Hook community is able to grieve and mourn privately, and with whatever peace can be had in knowing the rest of the world mourns with you,” Phelps said in a statement.
Nate Phelps, 56, left his father’s church at age 18. He is now executive director of the Center for Inquiry Canada and is on the board of directors of the group Recovering from Religion. He is also an activist for gay rights.
Westboro members have protested the funerals of shooting victims before. In January 2011, they planned to picket outside the funeral of Christina Green, the 9-year-old killed in the Tucson shooting outside a shopping center. The group canceled those plans in exchange for radio air time.
Mourners embrace outside Green Funeral Home in Fairfield, CT during the funeral for Noah Pozner, a victim of the Newtown shootings. RNS photo by Robert Deutsch, USA TODAY
In his statement, Nate Phelps asked local leaders to “let them show up” to protest the Newtown funerals. He said his father’s church is “running out of money,” its reach is “limited,” and providing it with free media only helps the group.
“By allowing them this luxury, they get free publicity with no effort or expense on their part, while potentially traumatizing a much wider audience than those strong enough to stand against them in silent but effective counter-protest,” he said.
The hackers group Anonymous also reacted to Westboro’s proposed protest by posting the names, addresses and telephone numbers of Westboro members — of which there are less than 100 — online.
Anonymous also launched a petition on the White House webpage to have the group officially recognized as a hate group. As of Monday afternoon, the petition had more than 118,000 signatures.
KRE/AMB END WINSTON
16 Comments
Belief Blog's Morning Speed Read for Tuesday, December 18 – CNN Belief Blog - CNN.com Blogs
[...] Religion News Service: Fred Phelps’ son condemns Westboro’s plan to picket Newtown funerals The estranged son of a Kansas pastor famous for protesting the funerals of soldiers and AIDS victims has condemned his family’s plans to picket the funerals of the 26 people — including 20 children — who were killed when a gunman stormed a Connecticut elementary school. In the wake of Friday’s massacre in Newtown, Conn., members of Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kan., posted Twitter messages saying they would picket outside Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown. The messages provided no information on the time of the planned picketing. Church members also released a video titled “God Sent the Shooter,” in which members state that the shootings were God’s retribution for gay marriage. [...]
Charlie wyman
FRED PHELPS IS A VERY SICK INDIVIDUAL, HE SHOULD BE COMMITTED TO A MENATAL INSTITUTION
Charlie Wyman
FRED PHELPS IS A VERY SICK INDIVIDUAL, HE SHOULD BE COMMITTED TO A MENTAL INSTITUTION
Charlie Wyman
HE HAS INFECTED HIS OWN FAMILY WITH HIS HATRED AND MENTAL INSTABILITY
Kristin
God gave us the choice of free will. If i wanted to go to a elementary school right now and shoot it up, I could. This does not mean God sent me there to kill them all and that these poor children deserved it. If God was to punish a nation i doubt it would be through a craized twenty year old. If i wanted to come to Topeka, Kansas and start shooting up the Westboro Baptist Church I very well could, but does that mean God sent me there to get rid of these horrible people? No! It just means I have the free will to murder and make decisions on my own. “For God so Loved the world” why would God send his son down to die on the cross for about only 40 members of a church who commit insest? God made this world so beautiful ! It is very upsetting that you will live your life only seeing the evil in this world than the beauty. Do you guys even give to charity? Do you guys even consider that God made this earth, his only earth, with mountians, beaches, green grass and a beautiful blue sky. Do you ever stop to look at the magnificent wonders of this earth. I thank my God everyday of my life for just life and being able to live it on this planet. I think what really messes up the WBBC is the hate they think is doing good. I would love for this
church to show me where it states in the Bible that God absolutloey Hates homosexuals, and that God is causing all this pain and destruction on our planet. It is not just America, there are places worse off then here…. and if God were to punish these people for their actions…. why isn’t Vegas burned to the ground? Why isn’t SanFran under water? Why dose God still bless so many people even though he is causing all this pain? How come miricales still happen? Why do I fell the love, and joy, and peace of the Holy Spirit in my heart ? Why has God blessed me unimaginably through my life ? I know that when trying to explian these questions back to me it will be a whole lot of not well thought out mumbo jumbo… i know that the WBBC can not answer these questions because sadly they were born in to a cruel and unloving world. I feel more pain for the children that are being raised there learning that God killed 6 and 7 year olds… for pretty much no reason. There are bad people in this world, there are good people in this world, then there is faith. God did not kill 26 people on Friday. God saved about 400.
roy
for the people replying to this ignorant person. please dont use a capital g for their god because its not the God of our nationit is the god of evil
Adam Reynolds
Very well said…Thank you
and God bless you, Kristin.
Judy Chartrand
A funeral needs to be a time of piece for those who are grieving, A time to reach out and comfort the families. If it is not illegal to picket a funeral, it should be. Where is their love for those young children?
I agree with the one option, that the media should not give them coverage. It only encourages them, and it fuels their agenda, whatever that is, because they do not represent God.
Although we are not to condone what God says is wrong (supporting homosexual rights, such as same sex marriage, as our saying it is okay, will never make it right), however, we are to love everyone and encourage them in God’s love and mercy. God is not a God of hate, but a God of love.
God is the only one who can judge, and this tragedy has nothing to do with the gay issue this group is picketing over. Again, this group is judging, and God says we are not to judge. We are to love everyone, and we are to represent God in love.
Giving this group attention only evokes more hate of true Christians. The congregation of this, so called church, is so imprudent, and has no earthly idea who God really is, nor what Scripture says.
This church is not the traditional church we think about, but a cult, a people who are filled with hate, and with the intention to hurt all others who are not filled with the same hatred, and bitterness. Sounds similar to Nazification, and perhaps that is what it truly is.
We must pray for God to change the hearts of these people of hatred, and plan for Lamentation in the death of the innocent victims of the Connecticut shooting.
Pat Brown
Fred Phelps’ God is nothing more than a terrorist. He’s no better than Al Qaeda flying planes into buildings and killing thousands of innocent people to punish other people. A god that sends earthquakes to kill hundreds, tsunamis to wipe out thousands and volcanoes to wreck havoc on one group of people to punish another group is not a god anyone could worship. That god is a monster.
SR025: God’s Sovereignty, Joseph and MarySojourn Radio Podcast | Sojourn Radio Podcast
[...] Fred Phelps’ son condemns Westboro’s plan to picket Newtown funerals by Kimberly Winston | December 17, 2012 [...]
Carol Espinosa
This is one very sick person. He needs to leave these poeple to grive in peace. They have lost their family members and don’t need some sick person protesting
Brandt Hardin
Where in Christianity is hate-mongering an involved practice? What are Fred Phelps and the WBC afraid of anyhow? Rainbows? Unicorns? A flaming pink queer apocalypse? I attempted to address this with a portrait of the good reverend on my artist’s blog at http://dregstudiosart.blogspot.com/2011/03/fred-phelps-and-westboro-baptist-church.html Drop in and let me know what you think!
The Filter for December 21 - churchthought.com
[...] Fred Phelps’ son condemns Westboro’s plan to picket Newtown funerals [...]
Anonomys
By law Westboro has every right to protest at those funerals. They’re protected by Freedom of Speech just like The US Supreme Court said. As long as they’ve filled out the proper paper work and are 1,000 feet away from the funeral let them protest. They have a right to be there just like the mourners. I’m not on Westboro’s side, but I’m on the law’s side.
SR025: God’s Sovereignty, Joseph and Mary | Growing in Christ Podcast
[...] Fred Phelps’ son condemns Westboro’s plan to picket Newtown funerals by Kimberly Winston | December 17, 2012 [...]
armando meza
this guy seems not to know what love thy enemy mean in any way, God is God of love but also of judgement, and war when enemies arise, all I see him promoting is hatred and terrorism through out this nation and a bad name to real christians, for one they judge us all, not even Jesus did such things when preaching about the Heavens during his time, he showed love, understanding, but also anger when people didn’t listen if you all noticed some discriptions about how he looked at some people in mathews,