Search the Community

Firstly, on a personal note, it took great self-restraint when writing this topic. Every time I try to write about them, it turns into a very vitriolic rant... This topic is to explain who they are based on what I know / have read about them. What is Westboro Baptist Church? Thus, please remember that this is a topic where you share your knowledge about them, this is not a topic for ranting. If you wish to rant about this group, do open a topic in the vent section so that I too may join in Westboro's leader - Fred Phelps In 1954, A church in Topeka, Kansas called East Side Baptish Church hired Fred Phelps, he was the associate pastor. In 1955 , the East Side Baptist Church decided to expand by introducing a new branch called Westboro Baptist Church. They wanted Fred Phelps to be the pastor of the newly created branch, once Phelps was appointed to pastor, he broke all connections with the East Side Baptist and took complete charge over the Westboro Baptist Church. Before he was permanently disbarred from practicing law in 1989 , Phelps along with leading the church started his own law firm called "Phelps Chartered Law Firm". His initial career as a lawyer involved suing people to earn through settlement fees (settlement is when the two parties "settle" on an agreed sum of money in order to keep the case from going to court). Later on, his law firm focused on representing the non-white population in cases of racial discrimination now focusing on "civil rights". Many argue especially his estranged son Nathan Phelps, that this was another method for the firm & church to earn money. In 1989 , Fred Phelps agreed to permanently stop practicing law on the condition that his family is allowed to practice. Since then, his daughter Shirley has taken primary responsibility of the law firm, she would later on be the church's main spokesperson and representative. His first attempt at politics (running for governor of Kansas - 1991) is an utter failure, what stands out the most is that his campaign solely focused on spreading negatory remarks about competitors and other politicians through flyers. Westboro's Humble Beginnings - 1991 Now, you can see that since its first meeting in 1955 upto 1991 , Fred Phelps & The Westboro Baptist Church were not widely known for having anti-gay feelings. But suddenly, in 1991 , Westboro Baptist Church members started what they called "Great Gage Decency Drive" where they'd go down to Gage Park in Topeka to convince people about how wrong & dangerous being homosexual is (Hell, AIDS & all that jazz). Westboro's descent into inhumanity After having introduced themselves and their intentions to the world, The Westboro Baptist Church now began their onslaught with a single belief "God hates f*gs and that they all deserve to die" . They had proudly started picketing funerals with rude signs. The world knew where the church stood after they infamously picketed the funeral of Matthew Shephard, a 21 year old homosexual college student who had been tortured and murdered. Westboro's fight : The Evolution of their beliefs By this point, only the Westboro Baptist Church knew what they believed in because the world sure did not understand. They had started picketing funerals of anyone they deemed were "sinners" & "f*gs" . The list included fallen soldiers, jews, non-whites, mormons, victims of violence and so on. Their explanation to each picket was "No glory given to God , they enable f*gs, and are sinners" Funerals they have picketed include Steve Jobs, Matthew Shephard, and Twitter HQ are just a few examples not to mention the several funerals of fallen soldiers, including Sterling Wyatt, Donna Johnson, and Nicholas O'Brien. They take especial pride in the death of soldiers and victims of violence (Sandy Hook , Aurora shooting, and Boston bombing) because they feel the deceased "deserve" this punishment and in a way God removed the enablers. Westboro's supposed beliefs Fred Phelps has said himself that they are "Old School Baptist Church" where basically, if the bible says no, it means no. If you say otherwise, you deserve to die and are prone to go to hell. They are also supposedly followers of Calvinism which states 5 core points :- Total Depravity Unconditional Election Limited Atonement Irresistible Grace Perseverance of the Saints It is argued that these 5 points do not exist in the Bible. The 5 points explain that man has sin present in every part of his body, sin that has been inherited directly from Adam (Total Depravity) . It then goes onto say that Jesus Christ did not die for every believer but died for only a select few, bearing the sin only for the elect (Unconditional Election) , Next comes Irresistible Grace wherein the elect achieve salvation whether they wish to or not, basically when God comes down to save you, you cannot resist being saved (Irresistible Grace). Finally. Once you are saved by Jesus Christ, you can never be lost. The Westboro Baptist Church basically interpret these 5 as "We are the chosen ones, we are exempt from hell since we follow Jesus Christ and are the true believers unlike the other fake sinners. " In simple terms, anyone who is not a member of Westboro Baptist Church is a sinner doomed to hell since they are :- Not Christian. Not Christian enough (Indulge in premarital sex, divorce, homosexuality, transgender qualities, bisexuality, adultery, anal sex , children out of wedlock and so on). Not a part of Westboro Baptist Church. Westboro v/s the Public In the initial years, the public reacted (justifiably) angrily towards the picketing done by the church. It is common for Church members to yell at people walking by, in hopes of provoking them. They were often successful resulting in verbal altercations. In one incident however, Benjamin, the Phelps grandson spat at a passerby. Using these altercations to their benefit, The Phelps family would sue anyone who objected to their picketing. If you fought / assaulted a WBC member for ruining a loved one's funeral, they would sue you. They attempted to sue the city of Topeka for $1 million because they were not kept safe during pickets. After years of trying to fight fire with fire, the public has come to realize that it was pointless fighting against the Westboro Baptist Church and started using their appearances for much better causes. Jason Connell raised a lot of money for organizations that Westboro Baptist Church objects to (LGBT , AIDS & so on) Comedian Lisa Lampanelli donated $50,000 to a Gay Charity in the name of the church (She had earlier revealed that she would be donating $1000 for every member of WBC that showed up to protest her appearance) Petition signed by 357,950 people to legally recognize the church as a hate group. The creation of the "Patriot Guard Riders" , A motorcycle club whose members protect funerals from WBC. They stand forming a human chain often holding flags and sing patriotic songs if Church members try to shout / chant any obscenities. Efforts by online communities result in people getting together to form Human chains wherever the church decides to picket, this has resulted in the Westboro Baptist Church avoiding picketing (Roger Ebert's Funeral, Funeral of Aaron Swartz, Newton, Aurora , & Boston) Hacktivist group Anonymous waged war in January 2013 after the WBC brazenly announced via Twitter that they would picket Sandy Hook Elementary School. Angered by this announcement, Anonymous hacked into their website, published online, member personal information including name, address, phone numbers and social security number. Other acts included hacking into twitter accounts, revealing the hotels where members would be staying while in Connecticut, and hacking the Church's office Facebook Page. The facebook page is still being controlled by Anonymous who have been posting humorous images and posts that are completely opposite of what the Westboro Baptist Church preaches. Westboro's Current Status It has always been speculated that the church is comprised of mainly the Phelps family and their extended family, the size is not larger than 100 (some say 40).. Many of the main family members have realized the true nature of the group and have left it since. They have failed to appear at many locations despite announcing pickets via social networks. **Personal Comment :- If you want to have a good laugh at their unconventional ways, do watch the documentaries by Louis Theroux, you'll cringe in sheer embarrassment every time they open their mouth** http://youtu.be/rjmg69XmJp8 If you read this, you are a champ, If you open a rant in the vent with good fodder, I will buy you a beer.