I want to thank those of you who were praying that members of Fred Phelp's "Westover Baptist Church" (which is made up almost exclusively of members of his extended family) would not come to Fayetteville this Tuesday to protest at the funeral of a Ft. Bragg soldier.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Fred Phelps and Westover, it is their contention that God is using the War on Terror to punish America for permitting the sin of Homosexuality and that God has "irreversibly cursed" America for her national sins. Therefore, they attend military funerals carrying signs like "Thank God for IEDs" or "Thank God for 9/11." It would take too long to explain all the fundamental problems with Fred's theological perspective, but if I can, let me briefly contrast Fred's unchristian response to sin with the correct one:
In 1662 after the restoration of the debauched king Charles II to the throne, over two thousand of England's godliest Puritan ministers were ejected from their pulpits for refusing to sign the king's unbiblical "Act of Uniformity". The city of London at this time was given over to all kinds of immorality and the Puritans had frequently condemned the sins of the nation and its capital city in their sermons, calling on men to repent and believe the gospel of Jesus Christ. And yet, when the Bubonic Plague broke out in London these ejected ministers did not march into that sinful city carrying signs saying "Thank God for the Plague". While the King's hireling ministers ran for the country, the ejected Puritans saw the suffering inhabitants of the city as "sheep without a shepherd" - they streamed in to minister to the sick and dying, helping at hospitals and filling the empty pulpits. In many cases these men of God sacrificed their own lives to save the lost and dying Londoners. Literally they displayed the principle that "where sin abounded, grace abounded much more" (Romans 5:20).
I went down to the location of the funeral yesterday, and sure enough the Patriot Guard were there in force. I had a chance to speak with Patriot Guard Riders Ronnie and Joe and they indicated that the Phelps cult (I call them a cult because they show no indication that they understand the gospel and have no connection to the worldwide visible church of Christ) hadn't showed up at the Funeral, but that it was always possible that they would show up at the graveside service at the Cemetery. I've done a couple of services at the cemetery in question so I drove up there, but the protestors weren't there either. I wasn't sad not to see them, their not showing up was an answer to prayer. I'm glad that the family didn't have to go through that, and I know the Patriot Guard are happiest when they just get to perform their honor guard duties in peace.
In the article, Margie Phelps (another of the cult leader's daughters) blatantly lies yet again stating that they didn't show up because:
"Westboro targets "pep rallies" where, as she put it, the media, families and others make a spectacle of a death. "When the family stops using (a funeral) as a public platform we feel we should try to honor that," Phelps said during a telephone interview."
The above is to put it mildly, untrue. The Phelps cult simply gets a list of military funerals and then send out press releases indicating that they will be there to protest. It is their intention to draw the press to the funeral. When the family strongly indicates that the press will be kept out and the local press and law enforcement concur then these ghouls have no reason to attend. For them, causing anguish to the family is just an added bonus, what they want most of all is media attention.
While one might be tempted to respond to the Phelps family in kind, for Christians the prevailing principle must be "Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men"(Romans 12:17) and therefore sinking to their level by doing the same kind of evil must be avoided. Additionally, be assured that as Paul tells us: "Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord." (Romans 12:19). In that sense, knowing that Christ's words in Matthew 7:15-23 seem particularly applicable to Fred Phelps and his cult, I can do nothing but feel pity for them and pray that their eyes will be opened and that they will turn from this evil caricature of the faith.
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