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May 31st, 2012
05:17 AM ET
Church videos with harsh words for gays go viral onlineBy Richard Allen Greene and Dan Gilgoff, CNN First it was a Christian pastor in North Carolina who told his congregation on Mother's Day that the way "to get rid of all the lesbians and queers" was to put them behind an electric fence and wait for them to die out. That video went viral, fetching more than a million views on YouTube. On Sunday, Pastor Curtis Knapp of Kansas preached that the government should kill homosexuals, in another videotaped sermon that drew lots of online attention. "They won't, but they should," Knapp said, according to a recording of his sermon posted online. Since that sermon, another church video with harsh words for gays has caught fire online. This one shows a young boy singing an anti-gay song while the congregation cheers him on in what appears to be a church in Indiana. "I know the Bible’s right, somebody’s wrong,” the boy sings near the pulpit of a church. “Ain't no homos gonna make it to heaven." As the boy repeats the line “Ain't no homos gonna make it to heaven," congregants from the pews rise and cheer. The video, which was anonymously posted online and has received more than 300,000 views on YouTube, appears to show a service at the Apostolic Truth Tabernacle Church in Greensburg, Indiana. Calls to the church this week went to voicemail, with an automatic message saying the mailbox is full. But a message posted on the church’s website on Wednesday appears to address the controversy, offering no apology for the video. “The Pastor and members of Apostolic Truth Tabernacle do not condone, teach, or practice hate of any person for any reason. We believe and hope that every person can find true Bible salvation and the mercy and grace of God in their lives,” the statement says. “We are a strong advocate of the family unit according to the teachings and precepts found in the Holy Bible,” said the statement, which did not explicitly refer to the video or mention homosexuality. “We believe the Holy Bible is the Divinely-inspired Word of God and we will continue to uphold and preach that which is found in scripture.” The viral videos have drawn criticism from gay and lesbian groups and their allies. Charles Worley’s sermon at Providence Road Baptist Church in Maiden, North Carolina, sparked a protest that drew more than 1,500 people last weekend. In Kansas, Knapp's voicemail at the New Hope Baptist Church in Seneca was filled with messages saying "things you don't want your kids to hear," he told CNN affiliate KTKA. An official with the Kansas-Nebraska Convention of Southern Baptists issued a statement to CNN on Thursday saying that Knapp’s church had left the Southern Baptist fold in 2010. “Obviously, he has taken a radical and unbiblical stand in regards to homosexuality,” said Tim Boyd, communications director for the convention. “We look at homosexuals as we look at all sinners,” his statement said. “God loves them. Christ died for them. The Gospel calls them to repentance and salvation. Therefore, we as Christ-followers should hate the sin and love the sinner.” But Knapp is not backing away from his comments. "We punish pedophilia. We punish incest. We punish polygamy and various things. It's only homosexuality that is lifted out as an exemption," he said. He cited the Biblical verse Leviticus 20:13: "If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act. They shall surely be put to death." But he said gay people had nothing to worry about from the government or from him. "I don't believe I should lay a finger against them," said Knapp, of New Hope Baptist Church in Seneca, Kansas. "My hope is for their salvation, not for their death." Preaching against homosexuality the same day, another pastor appeared to wrestle with how conservative Christians should respond to proposals that people should literally mete out biblical punishments. "What about this guy down in North Carolina said build a big prison, a big fence and put them all in there and let them die out?" Dennis Leatherman asked in a sermon at the Mountain Lake Independent Baptist Church in Maryland. "Listen, I don't know that fellow. As far as I can tell, he seems like a decent guy, but he is dead wrong on that. That is not the scriptural response," Leatherman said in his sermon "Homosexuality & the Bible," according to a cached version of the transcript posted online. The audio of the sermon does not appear on his church's website. In the sermon, he floats the idea of killing homosexuals, whom he refers to as sodomites, then backs away from it. "There is a danger of reacting in the flesh, of responding not in a scriptural, spiritual way, but in a fleshly way. Kill them all. Right? I will be very honest with you. My flesh kind of likes that idea," Leatherman said. "But it grieves the Holy Spirit. It violates Scripture. It is wrong," he added immediately. The Southern Baptist Convention distanced itself from Worley's remarks. The nation's largest Baptist group said Providence Road Baptist in Maiden is not affiliated with its 16 million-member denomination and condemned the comments. But the influential head of the giant movement's seminary does argue that homosexuality "is the most pressing moral question of our times." In a comment piece for the Belief Blog in the wake of Worley's sermon, R. Albert Mohler Jr. dismissed critics who say conservative Christians focus on homosexuality while ignoring other things the Bible prohibits. He contends that laws about keeping kosher, for example, do not apply to Christians, while commandments about homosexuality do. "When it comes to homosexuality, the Bible's teaching is consistent, pervasive, uniform and set within a larger context of law and Gospel," he wrote. "Christians who are seriously committed to the authority of the Bible have no choice but to affirm all that the Bible teaches, including its condemnation of homosexuality," he said. A member of Worley's 300-member church defended him in an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper. "Of course he would never want that to be done," Stacey Pritchard said of the proposal to put homosexuals behind a fence and leave them there to die out. "But I agree with what the sermon was and what it was about." CNN Belief Blog co-editor Eric Marrapodi contributed to this report. soundoff (4,073 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 Next »
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The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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Is anyone else's gaydar in the red zone with this guy?
A lot of the most anti-gay zealots have turned out to be gay themselves.
He does sound a bit like a scorned lover.
Yeah, just like people who are against muslims are really muslims themselves.
Sorry Jack, but the research supports what Thomas posted.
The more hômophobic you are, the harder your wiener gets watching man-on-man pôrn.
Yeah, sorry Jack, but this is how it goes: "If our kids are exposed to gayness, they will find it attractive and become gay." Well, Rev, it's not really attractive. It's a guy in a dress. "But look at how attractive that guy in a dress is!" Don't see it, Rev. Makes me go 'yuck.' "No, no, gays are fabulous!" Get your hand off my knee, Rev.
Stop the bus and let our friend Jack off.
Christian hypocrisy, as usual. Quote Leviticus when it serves your needs...ignore Leviticus, along with the rest of the Old Testament, when it preaches something that you don't believe should apply to *you*.
Christians: "We have a new covenant which tells us the rules of the Old Testament no longer need apply to us"
Christians: "Oh, the Old Testament says gays are evil! We have to believe the Old Testament!"
...while the same Christians conveniently ignore the REST of Leviticus, mixing fibers, eating certain animals, not subjegating their women, etc.
Ah, stupidity. Thy name is Pastor Knapp.
People aren't the problem. Religion is.
No, people are. It's like a gun, a gun can't shoot anyone inless it's in a humans hand and they pull the trigger otherwise it can sit there forever and never fire on its own.
"they pull the trigger otherwise it can sit there forever and never fire on its own." Unless the bullets get old and corroded and pop, or a hangfire's been waiting for a bump to go off. That's why you store them somewhere safe.
Let's start with his dad. and then the Catholic Priests who has been molesting kids for the past hundreds of years. and then this bimbo himself. but let him watch his dad die first.
CNN has an agenda to bash christianity. To imply that all or most christians want to kill gays is simply irresponsible. Anything to sell news and gain ratings! Take your ratings and money to hell!
Christianity bashes itself.
Did you not notice that this is a Christian pastor calling for the murder of gays?
I think Christianity is doing a pretty good job all by itself.
You don't seem all that eager to denounce this man
Little bitter are we?
Where in this article CNN says that all Christians want us killed? I didn't see it. Looks to me like only the extreme bapists do like those two idiots. I don't think for one minute all Christians feel that way.
Right. The hate coming from the christian right is CNN's fault.
"all or most christians want to kill gays" Be fair; some of them hire gays as male escorts.
Hate speech should not be protected. These preachers are dangerous.
Anyone who lives their life by a 2,000 year old book written by a bunch of goat herders, is out of their mind.
Jesus is the way, the truth, the love. Period.
And gays should be murdered because God loves them so much?
So many preachers are preaching the love .. how can it be wrong! eh?
Take your Bible and shove it up your hole.
"Jesus is the way, the truth, the love. Period." Sorry, I'm not seeing a lot of truth or love from the preacher there. Find a new way, because this one's not working out.
Knapp wants to kill the gay inside of him. Classic.
U CAN JUST LOOK AT THIS GUY AND TELL HE HAVE SOMETHING TO HIDE.JUST COME OUT ALL READY AND BE THOUGH WITH IT.THE WAY HE MOVE HIS HANDS AND TALK TELL A LOST ABOUT THIS GUY WHEN DARK COME IN THAT TOWN I BET YOU ARE RIDING AROUND PICKING UP SOMEONE AND GO MOON LIGHTING,JUST STOP HATING AND TELL YOUR FAMILY THEY WANT HATE YOU FOR LONG MAYBE A COUPLE OF WEEKS THEN THEY WILL MOVE ON.
Jesus had two daddies and he turned out fine!
I am a christian and this guy is CRAZY! Don't let extreme individuals shape your opinion of a group. I believe that the Muslim faith is a peaceful religion so I'm not going to let Al quaida change my opinion of them. This guy is sick....
"Don't let extreme individuals shape your opinion of a group." Too late, sorry. And it's not extreme these days; read the article. You've all lost your Mitt-voting minds.
hey! stupid a$$ "in god we trust"-i was raised RC & dont believe in God because of people like you, the catholic church & this moron preacher-if you are "so" christian, why don't you love you fellow man & woman? mass muderers? like the reformation? the crusades? separation of church and state. the religious right is neither
Non-Christians should be put in prison, convert or leave this nation. Yes, I mean it!
Not sure if troll, or just stupid.
People who believe in invisible men in the sky that tell them things should be admitted to a mental hospital.
You should be forced to produce evidence for your Christian beliefs. If you can't produce it, you get the #@& out or shut up.
Ok Hitler. You really have a god??!!!?!?!?
Great thinking there, Nancy. Right in-line with the pilgrims that came to this country for religious freedom. Yayy!
I'm going to get you Nancy
so much for "loving your fellow man", uh nancy? you are a loon
and I bet you worhsip on Sunday, the counterfeit. Sunday is the mark of the ebast bu this truth is far from you. I can tell by the wickedness which pours out of your mouth
nancy you are a sad pathetic loser of an almost person...
Well Nancy-did someone beat you with a 'stupid stick'?
Nancy, why do you ignorant fundiots (fundamentalist îdiots) hate the constîtution?
A big bop from the Clown Hammer™ on your pointy little head, you unAmerican toad.
It's a statistical fact that atheists are more intelligent.
We are also, generally, far more knowledgable regarding all religion. In fact, that's how athiests are made.
As news articles go there is a tendency to focus on extremes and negatives and not to focus on the moderates who make up the majority. Most Christians (Even Many Evangelicals) would not condone the rhetoric of these preachers who have created tightly knit subcultures and who could care less what the outside world thinks of them.
Being gay is a sin, but abusing your spouse, commiting adultery and divorce are acceptable things amongst Christians.
According to whom? Your Bible? Take your Bible and shove it up your hole.
Being born gay is no more immoral, wrong, or a sin, than being born left-handed, green eyed, or black.
Sorry, but this is just one more thing, in a long list of things, that your god got completely wrong.
Killing gay people contradicts the ten commandments. Y,know, the whole "Thou shall not kill" thing? Oh wait, only 59% of christians in America have actually read it through.
If there is a preacher who preaches hate as those who preach my message of love, he has committed a detestable act. He shall surely be put to death.
I totally agreed, I don't they deserve to live in this world with so much hate
This pastor does NOT represent 2.2 billion Christians worldwide
No he is representing the Bible. In Matthew 5:17-19 Christ makes it very clear that all Mosaic Law is to be upheld.
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
How many times are you going to repeat that n8362? Jesus himself did not follow that law so why are we to just assume that is what he meant?
"This pastor does NOT represent 2.2 billion Christians worldwide"
To me he perfectly represents them. When 2.2 billion Christians come out against him, I'll believe you, because I like to have some proof for my beliefs.
In 2008, intelligence researcher Helmuth Nyborg examined whether IQ relates to denomination and income, using representative data from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth, which includes intelligence tests on a representative selection of white American youth, where they have also replied to questions about religious belief. His results, published in the scientific journal Intelligence, demonstrated that Atheists scored an average of 1.95 IQ points higher than Agnostics, 3.82 points higher than Liberal persuasions, and 5.89 IQ points higher than Dogmatic persuasions