'Jews Killed Jesus' Sign Causing Controversy: Pastor Refuses To Remove Or Change Saying On Outdoor Marquee (thanks to Dan Michalski!!)
It's settled. The word of God is the final word.... If I can get people to rediscover their bible...if I can get people to go back and look...what does it actually say?
- Pastor Maurice Gorden
It is ironic that a church named 'Lovingway' would advance such an attitude of hurtfulness. Christ gave his life for all people. To blame a particular group of people, then or now, is a misuse of the Gospel of love and grace. The Colorado Council of Churches wishes to make it clear that this one congregation does not speak for the vast majority of the Christian community. In fact, we stand in direct opposition to the message on this sign and its implications.
- Rev. Jim Ryan
I grew up around a bunc of repressed Lutherans. While they were hardly the most exciting people to be around, they did teach me that Faith, Love, and Charity were at the bedrock of Christianity. What in the Hell were THOSE folks thinking, eh? Sadly, Christians (or at least those who label themselves as such) are no more immune to ignorance, bigotry, and fear-mongering than anyone else. As Exhibit A, I offer our latest DUMB@$$ AWARD wiener: Pastor Maurice Gorden, the Pastor of the "Not Exactly The Church That Love Built" in Denver:
DENVER -- A billboard unveiled on Ash Wednesday, the same day that a controversial movie depicting the last hours of Jesus Christ premiered, is sparking criticism from people of all faiths.
The large-size outdoor marquee, which sits on the property of the Lovingway United Pentecostal Church at Colorado and Mississippi, says, "Jews Killed The Lord Jesus" and the word "Settled!" ....
The Anti-Defamation League asked for the marquee to be changed because it is anti-Semitic, but the church only amended the billboard slightly by removing the word "settled" and attributing the line to biblical Scriptures.
That, however, is still not appeasing critics.
"Immediately, I picked up the phone and called the pastor and had a spirited but good and respectful discussion with him in which I tried to explain to him that that kind of message is divisive and exactly the kind of message which has fueled anti-Semitism for thousands of years," said Bruce DeBoskey, the Mountain States Regional Director for the Anti-Defamation League....
The Colorado Council of Churches also tried to get Pastor Maurice Gordon to change the sign but he refused and wouldn't even answer the phone or answer the door, 7NEWS reported.
Rev. Jim Ryan, a spokesman for the council, was quick to point out that it is a small minority who feel this way about Jews and that most Christians don't share that sentiment. Although the "Jews Killed the Lord Jesus" line comes from First Thessalonians, second chapter, verses 14 and 15, many Christian scholars interpret that passage to mean that when Paul refers to the Jews, he is referring to certain Jews who opposed Jesus' teachings and does not mean all Jews.
Apparently, such intellectual agility is something that escapes Pastor Gorden. I do find it ironic that a man who shepherds a church call "Lovingway" should be advancing such a hateful and hurtful message. This is someone who calls himself a man of God? Thankfully, most Christians want no part of this troll's God.
Of course, this sort of narrow-minded, ignorant anti-Semitism is hardly limited to Christians (see "al-Qaeda"; also "radical Islamofascism"). It's just that with "The Passion of the Christ" out in general release now, we'll probably see more DUMB@$$E$ like this scurrying about like the rats they are. This sort of discrimination has no place in Christianity or any other organized religion. Pastor Gorden deserves to be marginalized and, if necessary, ostracized for preaching a Gospel that does not even resemble the actual Gospel.
Can't we all just get along? Of course, if we could, there would be no DUMB@$$E$, and I'd have to find some other way to entertain myself. Would you REALLY want to be responsible for that? I didn't think so.
