“Just look the other way. If you have moral objections, you don’t have to participate. Just live and let live.”
That’s what Christians have been told over and over again. When we’ve objected to risqué shows on TV, they told us to change the channel. When communities oppose adult-oriented businesses, they tell us to just drive on by. The makers of violent videogames urge people who don’t like the games not to play them.
Well now that’s not good enough. Gay activists recently announced plans to host an event at Magic Springs theme park on Gay Pride Day. When the First Methodist Church of Glenwood urged its members to just drive on by Magic Springs, they were shouted down.
The church Facebook page simply said, “Please avoid taking your children to Magic Springs on June 30th. It is LGBT Pride Day.”
Gay activists immediately attacked the church claiming they had said LGBT individuals are going to Hell. Of course the church never implied such a thing, but biased news reports and the nature of social media comments prompted the church to shut down its Facebook page and refuse media interviews.
Now, let’s stop and think for a minute. If the church had urged its members to avoid a rock concert at Verizon Arena or to avoid Florida’s Panama City Beach during Spring Break, nothing would have been said about it. How is Gay Pride Day any different? If a church can’t urge its members to engage in what it believes to be good behavior, what have we come to?
So much for live and let live. I guess when it comes to gay pride, looking the other way is not allowed.
Photo Credit: By Glen Gaboury.
