A Sad Waste of Life

Glad I'm Not the First to Make this Comparison

So, on the day of the 2014 vernal equinox, the Reverend Fred Phelps (one of, if not THE most hated men in America) kicked the bucket. Bought the farm. Expired. Became an ex-human. Oh, wait -- maybe not that last one. Seems like he'd already done that to himself a long time ago.

Westboro Baptist started in 1955 as a branch of a small church in Topeka, where Fred Phelps was the assistant pastor. After his promotion to pastor of the new church on the other side of town, Phelps soon cut off all relations with the founding group. In 1964, Phelps earned his Juris Doctorate at Washburn and became a civil rights activist, defeating Jim Crow laws in Kansas. Somewhere along the way, Phelps lost his mind and became a religious fanatic, forcing his views on his family with threats and beatings (according to many who have since left the WBC, including Phelps' son Nate, now an LGBT rights activist in Canada). Disbarred in Kansas in 1979 and in Federal Court ten years later, Phelps and his followers (now mostly just members of his family) began their infamous picketing in 1991. By 2001, everyone knew the Westboro Baptist Church and their message of "God's" hatred of homosexuality. Phelps infamously told talk-show host (and original Tracy Turnblad) Ricki Lake the he "...worshiped her rectum..." after appearing on her show in 1994. Lake reportedly had Phelps forcibly removed from the studio.

But then a wonderful thing happened along the way... people started to hear and see Phelps' message for the lies and hate it was. A spotlight was shone on their bigotry and people took notice and started to rethink their own thoughts on LGBT people. So that was good, I suppose. 

Last year, a sort of coup was staged at WBC. Phelps, ailing and possibly softening his views, was excommunicated and the church elected a group of 8 Elders while ousting Shirley Phelps-Roper as WBC's official spokesperson. These details are just coming to light after it was announced earlier this week that Phelps was near death.

And while some might rejoice at the news of Phelps' death, I can't help but think of the sad waste of time and energy that was his life. If he and his congregation had spent just a tenth of that time and energy helping those in need as they did spreading hatred, the world would be a much better place.  Meanwhile, the WBC (having learned nothing) has announced that it's business and picketing* as usual for the SPLC-identified hate group. And of course, this could be the next step toward drinking the Kool-Aid -- and how sad would that be? There are still children there, being indoctrinated in hatred by fear. So, very sad...

Still, I can't imagine anyone wants to leave this world known for their hateful, hurtful actions, even if they are insane enough to truly believe they are doing the opposite. I'd like to believe that maybe Fred did soften near the end. maybe even felt bad about he'd done, or at least how he'd done it. I'd like to, but I don't. 

Here's what TMZ had to say:

*On a side note - in a purely self-serving move to generate publicity for JTMF's production of The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told, we tried desperately to get WBC to come protest. Sadly, their protest calendar was already full that summer. 

More, anon.
Prospero

Blue Moonies

Sun Myung Moon

When I was a teenager in the 70's, 'religious cults' were all the rage in the news. Of course, the Manson murders and the Jonestown mass suicides had a lot to do with that. There were tons of stories about parents hiring 'deprogrammers' to rescue their children from religious cults. 

Among the most infamous and most visible of these cults were the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (known as the 'Hare Krishnas')* and The Holy Spirit Association  for the Unification of World Christianity, or more simply the Unification Church, led by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon. Moon claimed that Jesus came to him at the age of 15 and implored him to spread a message that combined Christianity, Judaism, Islam and traditional Korean beliefs. The 'Moonies' are probably best known for the mass-marriages performed by Moon himself -- most notably at Madison Square Garden in 1982. 

Moon died today at the age of 92, his 'church' having become a rather lucrative business over the years, which includes the ownership of The Washington Times. I am sure that Moonies all over the world are wailing and gnashing their teeth. Moon's children have long ago taken over running the church, so I doubt his death will stop the flow of millions of dollars, yen and baht to their pockets.

Here's the thing: To me, all religions are cults. They indoctrinate their followers with promises of eternal life and threats of eternal damnation. 'God' says to them "I love you but if you don't obey me, I'll send you to hell." Really? Did your parents ever tell you that if you didn't listen to them you would suffer eternal damnation?  I'm so sorry if they did.

Religion grew out of fear of the unknown. Early men (and women) ascribed all kinds of powers to invisible beings who controlled things they didn't understand, like lightning and earthquakes. The smarter and more ambitious of them used this ignorance to their advantage in order to control and dominate the weaker and less intelligent members of their tribes. As language evolved and writing came into regular use, the priests and shamans carved their gods' rules into tablets and inked them onto scrolls, claiming they were dictated directly by whatever deity they followed. Sadly, men remain rather superstitious creatures and still follow ancient texts written by ignorant men who only wanted to control others through fear. 

Sun Myung Moon and his ilk are no different from Joseph Smith, the Pope, Pat Robertson and Billy Graham. Deluded by texts written by people who had no knowledge of science, these men still believe that Bronze-Age barbarians had conversations with a 'higher being' who told them that pork and shellfish are 'abominations' and sex is filthy and should only ever be used for procreation. All of it makes my head hurt.

*In 1967, James Rado, Gerome Ragni and Galt Macdermot used the Hare Krishnas' mantra as part of a number in their anti-establishment musical Hair. It's one of my favorite numbers from that show. Below is Academy Award-winning director Milos Forman's hallucinogenic version of it from his 1979 film version (one of the few movies I saw on a 'date' with girl):

Of course, science has proven that many of the 'visions' described in the Bible were probably the result of ingesting one of the many natural hallucinogens available to ancient 'prophets,' much like those ingested or smoked by the shamans of indigenous Western peoples. Today, xenophobia and homophobia remain the most powerful building blocks for modern religions. Here's hoping that one day, those fears will be absolutely refuted and religion will fall the way of the dinosaurs.

More, anon.
Prospero

Please Drink the Kool-Aid, Already

Fred Phelps and his family still pop up to protest at funerals, plays and pro-LGBT functions whenever and wherever they can. Phelps, now 80 (and hopefully closer to his "reward" than one can hope), is a disbarred lawyer who used to argue for civil rights. These days, he's simply a lunatic fringe preacher who claims all of America's ills are to blame on our tolerance of homosexual behavior. His equally insane daughter Shirley, herself a lawyer, claims that the 'church' and its members are spreading 'God's Word.'

The Westboro Baptist Church may well be the most well-known hate group in America. They are also one of the most frightening cults in America. I say this, because of the photo I have posted above. Not one of those children can possibly be over the age of 12, yet they have spent their entire lives being fed the hateful lies and rhetoric of an obvious madman. Thanks to Phelps' misinterpretation of the Bible, these poor kids actually believe that God hates everyone. The 80 or so members of the WBC are all related, either through blood or marriage, and have fallen under the spell of Phelps' preachings.

Truth be told, I did my best to exploit the WBC and their antics. Using a series of fake names (mine was Margaret White - and bonus points to you if you understand why) and email addresses, the JTMF tried to lure the WBC into protesting our production of The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told, a play they have protested against on more than one occasion, in an effort to garner publicity and the support of our local LGBT community. Unfortunately for us, the WBC's protest schedule (available on their odious website) did not allow for a stop-over in central NJ.

Lately, Phelps' son Nate, a 'defector' from the family, has begun to speak out against his father's insanity. Below, you'll find an ABC News report on Nate and his efforts to disparage his father's and sister's outrageous behavior.

A few years ago, a friend of mine became a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses. I always thought of N as a rational, intelligent person who knew the difference between religion and blind-faith. But he was going through a personal rough spot and when his nephews (also Witnesses) brought him into the fold, he was ripe for the picking. N is now an ordained minister of the church and has shunned me because I am gay. I consider this his and my loss. We have both lost not only our friendship, but the rational exchange of ideas toward a greater good (or at least, a personal understanding).

Here's the thing:

When blind obedience to one person or one group clouds one's judgment, it may be time to step back and consider rationality. Sadly, folks like N and the members of the Phelps family who did not escape are so spiritually weakened (either by personal experience or fear-induced dogma), they can no longer function as rational human beings and are reduced to drones in thrall to those who have laid claim to their minds through lies and promises of an unknowable future reward. They then become perfect fodder for racism; homophobia and terrorist attacks. Sound like any other extremist fundamentalist you might have heard about?

While I certainly wish no ill-will on my former friend (or any other person), I certainly hope that (barring some awful Jonestown-like event), they will eventually see the error of their ways and return to rational, humanistic ideals. And if they can't or won't... then "Praise Jesus and Pass the Arsenic." One gets what one deserves.

Ouch! That sounded horrible, didn't it? But I somehow can't help but feel that way about people who are so weak they have to rely on unsubstantiated rhetoric to find purpose in their own existence.

Okay - I'm ranting for a second night in a row. I get it. "We want nonsense, Uncle P." It's coming - as soon as I can get off this high-horse (not an easy task, for those who know me well).

More, anon.
Prospero