Thankful: That God = Love.

 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. 

For whoever does not love their brother and sister, 

whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.

1 John 4:20

 

Earlier this week, we received word from the Catholic Church (right next door to the church facility where I work) that they would be having a funeral this morning at 8:00 a.m. for a young man killed in Afghanistan, and had somehow received notification that the Westboro Baptist Church would be showing up to protest.  I have no idea why they thought that this was going to happen, but they took the threat of picketing very seriously.  Fortunately, their information was either incorrect or the WBC changed their mind, and the funeral took place without any picketings or protests.

The Westboro Baptist is a church from Topeka, Kansas, that has made it their mission to protest at funerals of both soldiers and homosexuals.  The church believes that God hates soldiers (Soldiers die - God laughs; Thank God for dead soldiers!) because of the policy of allowing gay men to serve their country.  They believe that God hates homosexuals (their website is www.godhatesfags.com).  They also believe that God hates Islam, the media, Jews, the world in general, and anyone else who does not agree with their ideas and beliefs.

 

During my childhood in Arizona, my little church class learned a song that has stayed in my mind all these years.  I thought of it again today when I saw a photograph of a young child from Westboro Baptist holding a sign dripping with hatred.  I'm quite sure that the members of the Westboro Baptist Church would have no interest in learning my song, but it might do them a world of good:

God is love - we're His little children.

God is love - we should be like Him.

`Tis love that makes us happy,

`Tis love that smooths the way.

It helps us mind,

It makes us kind to others every day.