This is one of those times I’m actually not surprised at all. The childish antics of fundamentalist preachers have long since become far too predictable ever to surprise me any more. I knew something like this would happen, as soon as I found out about the song “I Kissed A Girl” by Katy Perry:
For 24 hours, the message board outside Havens Corners Church, 6696 Havens Corner Rd., read, “I kissed a girl and I liked it, then I went to Hell.”The message refers to the chart-topping song by pop artist Katy Perry “I Kissed A Girl.”Pastor David Allison said he didn’t put up the sign to draw attention to the church.“We didn’t intend to get into all this, but it’s become a bigger thing,” Allison said.
First and most obviously, the pastor’s assertion that he’s not trying to call attention to his church — by putting something on a billboard! — is as laughable as anything I’ve heard in the last few months. Of course he’s using it to call attention to his church … the purpose of any billboard, after all, is to call attention to things, is it not? I mean … what other purpose can a billboard possibly serve? The article continues with yet another false claim by the pastor:
He was just very concerned about the implications of the song for teenagers and what he called a music video so suggestive it borders on pornography.“If anyone’s seen the video and understands how lewd and suggestive the video is for this song, that is not something young people should go toward,” Allison said.
Please, if he’s going to post lyrics on his billboard for every song that’s ever had a suggestive video, he’d have to do it for most songs released, because almost all music videos are suggestive! Oh, and the article adds this wonderful remark by the pastor:
He thought the message would be a loving way to remind teenagers that the Bible denounces homosexuality.
Ah yes, what more loving a message can one offer to one’s fellow human being, than to threaten him or her with eternal perdition? How special. And this article ends with this final expression of love from Pastor Allison:
Allison said they do welcome the GLBT community but believe they are engaged in sin.
I’d say that this sentiment is far from “welcoming.” Although I’m by no means a fan of pop music these days, below is the video from YouTube as a kind of protest against wild-eyed fundie preachers like Pastor David Allison. Enjoy!
Tags: havens corners church, hell, homophobia, i kissed a girl, katy perry, pastor david allison
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It's not God's will that anyone perish. But you have to come His Way. God so loved the world that he "gave" His son. Jesus came to save sinners. If you're not a sinner, then don't come.
If it's true that "God's will" is that no one "perish," then — assuming God is truly omnipotent — then no one can. The will of an omnipotent being can never be thwarted, by anything — not by us, not by Satan. No one. That's part of the definition of "omnipotent."
If God chooses to save only those who come to him "his way," this means, logically, that he's saving some but not others … and furthermore, it means he knows some will, in fact, NOT be saved. This contradicts your earlier assertion that God's will is that no one "perish." So which is it? Does he wish only to save some, but not all? Or does he want to save all? It can't be both ways, it can only be one or the other. Choose which one is the case.
As for "saving sinners," if the Bible is correct, then ALL are "sinners," by definition, and merely by virtue of having been born human (see e.g. Rom 3:23). If it's true that God wants to save ALL "sinners," then he wants to save all humans. This means he wants to save everyone, not just some (i.e. those who come to him "his way").
Again, logic tells us that salvation is either universal, or it's only given to some but not to others. You need to decide which of these your God adheres to. You can't claim both assertions are simultaneously true. They're mutually exclusive.