I am in New Orleans this week. I missed Jazz Fest by a day but have managed to score plenty of unhealthy food, overpotent beverages, and post-fest live jazz. The other big deal going on in town right now is ACOG, the annual meeting of the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists. ACOG was one of our clients when I worked at AVMG so I've seen many ACOG meetings in many cities, and there is always a hefty slew of protesters as close to whatever convention center as the local police will allow, holding signs of mangled, partially aborted babies and shouting how everyone inside is going to hell. New Orleans is no different, except this time they are right outside my hotel window.
Let's just set aside for a moment that A) not all ob-gyns and certainly not all conference participants perform or condone abortions, and B) there are plenty of other activities going on in New Orleans at each and every moment of the day that a conservative Christian-type could be protesting, and say this: how exactly is chanting "God hates whores" and blindly screaming your assuredness of one's eternal damnation going to change one's view on your religion and its beliefs and practices???
While I believe and 100% support everyone's right to his beliefs and his right to state them, I am most assuredly not OK with the following:
small child, maybe 7 or 8 years old, to me: God hates you!!!
me, with as much kindness as I could muster: I really don't think God hates me.
mother of said child: Yes He does, you whore!!!!!!
Really? REALLY??? This is being done in the name of God? I clearly know God a lot better than she does, but I am most distressed that she is teaching her children such blind, hateful, intolerant rage and connecting it with something that should be loving, kind, and good. How very opposite of Christ-like.
Inexplicably, this morning they were chanting "God hates fags." Which I'm pretty sure has nothing to do with ACOG.
5 comments:
That IS disheartening. Don't worry, J, God doesn't hate you. He loves you even more than we do.
Cheers,
Scotticus
Oh-- I realized after I sent my comment that I could have (and should have) made it rhyme. Re-do:
Don't worry, J, and I know you're not.
He loves you more than we do, and that's a lot.
Cheers again (and sorry for the blog-hog),
Scott
Have they never heard the term "Just not, lest ye be judged?"
Shut up, stupid people.
um, didn't jesus hang out with the whores and tax collectors back in the day?
seriously not cool, people. get a grip.
Been there, done that. And, yes, it's VERY disheartening.
Oh, and P.S.. . . what the @#$%^&*( is your phone number?!?!?!
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