FollowWow… just when you thought you saw it all.
Let me back up just a bit.
Most of you have probably read the very sad story of the death of Heath Ledger, the young actor who starred in The Patriot, A Knights Tale, The Four Feathers, Brokeback Mountain and many other films. Heath died yesterday in his New York apartment of a possible drug overdose.
He had a 2-year-old child.
My heart goes out to his family and friends. So sad.
Unfortunately, some weirdos have already emerged casting judgement on Heath for his role in Brokeback Mountain. This website (I don’t even want to type the address) from Westboro Baptist Church has posted a “flyer” how they will picket his funeral because he was a “pervert” and he is “now serving in Hell.” It’s so hateful, it is difficult to even read.
NOTE: that weblink is getting a lot of traffic today… so here is the image they have posted on their site:
Other sites have already began posting pictures of what are believed to be amongst the last images of Heath Ledger alive. Tragic.
I guess I just wonder what Bible this church is reading? If they call themselves Christians… what Christ do they belong to? Because the Christ I know was loving, forgiving and gracious to prostitutes, tax collectors and sinners. The worse the sinner, the more they were drawn to Jesus. And Jesus always showed love and grace, balanced with the truth– I just talked about this balance in my blog last week (I can’t help but think how he responded to the woman caught in adultery in John 8).
Pray for Heath’s family… his little girl.
And Jesus told us to pray for our enemies too. So I guess I better start praying for Westboro Baptist Church.
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It is amazing to me how people can choose which sins get people into Hell. He also played the Joker in the upcoming BAtman film, a role which was Dark and scary. The Joker is a murdering psychopathic maniac…what about that role? The JEsus that I love and serve forgave the theif on the cross…unless the people from that Church were WITH Heath Ledger when he died, they have no way of knowing where his Heart was before he died.
What a sad group of “Christians”.
The Jesus who lives in my heart is the man who forgave… even me. What makes my sins any greater than anyone elses?
To the people at this church, and who will picket: How many people will have their lives changed by the forgiving grace of our loving God during your picket?
When things like this have been done in the past the only thing I have seen come out of this is shame… The shame you bring to us christians who are loving sinners.
Let’s focus on the living who need a living Savior to love them.
I think we need to start referring to this group as the Westboro Baptist Cult, not church. Because they are not a church anymore than the KKK or any other hate group. This group needs to be ostracized and denounced by the leaders of the Christian church, and particularly the Baptists (only because they happen to claim the name Baptist). This group sickens me. I had to field a question from a girl new to our church a few months ago that went like this: “Pastor Jeff, why does the bible tell us to hate gay people?”
-Jeff-
This particular “church” picketed my high school graduation because our Senior Class President was gay. They came to “shed the Light of the Word for his wrongdoings” or so they said, but what they ended up doing was causing such anger in people that 5 parents got arrested for “harrassment” to this “church” group and didn’t get to see their children graduate high school. And that was 5 years ago. I can’t imagine what would unravel if they showed up at my old high school today. It’s a rougher place now than it was then. My heart breaks for this kind of “Christianity” because the God I know is loving, forgiving, and merciful. He doesn’t attack people until they give in….ugh. The last thing I need is for my youth kids to think that it’s okay to hate certain groups of people. There’s enough of that in most of their high schools and homes….
i was looking around about this church and apparently they have done this picketing thing at lots of funerals, like 300! including american soliders! i just can’t believe it! they are being sued by one family and it seems as though their church could no longerAA remain with the costs they are looking at. but they say they will keep going and that people who don’t agree with them are enablers and that God hates us too. So sad!!
That article posted by that church is so disappointing – So full of hate! It’s as if they take pleasure in his death.
We can’t discount the fact that while God is a loving and forgiving God, He’s also a just God.. and indeed, if Heath didn’t give His heart over to God,, then he is indeed in hell.
I don’t think it is anyone’s place however, to sit and comment on his demise and play the guessing game on where his soul now is.
It’s sad! Articles like that only does harm – No good will come of that.
Let’s continue to pray for the family, that they will grow in God.
Please let’s contue to pray for Heath Ledger’s family, friends, and the people in his industry. His untimely death rings lound in all communities. Westboro is way off in their thinking. God forgives everyone who comes to Him. This church seems to have forgotten that. Sadly another instance where they have flipped the switch and turned people off to Jesus.
Titus 3 gives us all cause to pause and obey the teachings of God given there.
“Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him. You may be sure that such a man is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.”
Let’s love God, love others, and serve World. Even if it means that we have to overcome the hate of a “church” to do so.