For Antigay Church, Losing Its Cause before Its Founder - Essay Example

For Antigay Church, Losing Its Cause before Its Founder For Antigay Church, Losing Its Cause before Its Founder Michael Paulson’s article “For Antigay Church, Losing Its Cause before Its Founder” provides insight into the diminishing influence of Westboro Baptist Church in Missouri’s Kansas City. Paulson examines the church, within the larger context of declining public resistance to gay rights. The church, whose leader was the deceased Fred Phelps; a controversial anti-gay sermonizer, has increasingly encountered public disdain.

This is primarily attributable to its ruthless advocacy against gay people and their rights, as well as, its anti-military tirades. According to Paulson (2014), the church has been laden with internal wrangles even before its founder died, most of which can be blamed on dissatisfaction of power distribution and waning religious radicalism among some members. As a result, the church’s future is not confidently optimistic. This future is made even bleaker by the fact that virtually all members belong to Phelps’ family, which implies that there is limited external support.

According to the article, the fanatical members of the Phelps’ family isolates itself from their neighbors, despite the latter’s efforts to associate with them. All these are factors continually deteriorating the church’s popularity, especially because their fanaticism seems more like an attempt to spread cultural hate. The public has met this harsh intolerance with counter protests, like buffering veterans’ funerals, car honking and jeering (Paulson, 2014).In my opinion, the Westboro Baptist Church is trying too hard to go against the dominant course of the contemporary society.

This is because the American public is progressively embracing gay rights and religious communities are gradually reducing their hostility toward gay people. Further, the church is clearly not adopting some of the principal bible teachings; for instance the explicit provision to love one’s neighbor unconditionally and to refrain from making harsh judgments about others. Christianity is also a religion primarily founded on compassion and tolerance, as clearly illustrated by the death of Christ.

Therefore, the church in question is evidently going against fundamental Christian values, by discriminating against gays and spreading hate speech, thus inflicting harm on innocent people. ReferencePaulson, M. (2014, March 22). For Antigay Church, Losing Its Cause before Its Founder. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/23/us/for-antigay-church-losing-its-cause-before-its-founder-fred-phelps.html?rref=us&module=Ribbon&version=context®ion=Header&action=click&contentCollection=U.S.&pgtype=article