Westboro Baptist Church to pay $11 million for their hatred…

[From KSNT]

A jury in Baltimore is ordering Topeka’s Westboro Baptist Church to pay 11 million dollars to the father of a marine who was killed in Iraq.

“Matt and all of the military kept me going through all of this, “said Albert Snyder who sued the church after members demonstrated last year at the funeral of his son, Lance Corporal Matthew Snyder. He hopes Wednesdays ruling sets a precedent for the future.

“I hope it’s enough to deter them from doing this to other families and that was my goal the entire time,” said Snyder.

Wednesday the jury awarded 2.9 million dollars in compensatory damages, 6 million in punitive damages and another two million dollars for causing emotional distress.

The Phelps plan to appeal.

Read about it here.

[From me]

I’m grateful we have freedom of speech here in the US.  But a “minister” of the “Gospel” should be telling “Good News” not spewing hate.  I was able to meet Shirley Phelps-Roper of Westboro last summer.  You can watch my interview with her here.  It is sad.

Jesus told the woman caught in adultery to go and sin no more.  Many of these people whose funerals are being protested are not even involved in sinful lifestyles.  EVEN if they were, a funeral is NO TIME to be throwing stones.  I have participated in several funerals where the eternal condition of the person was in question.  Those were depressing services to say the least.  But the last thing in the world I would ever do is point out their sins after death.  Funerals are times to give comfort to people and give them hope.

Phelps and his crew should be pointing people to Jesus not scaring them away.

What do you think?

Ring cost more than my 1st house…

[Reuters]

Instead of walking down the aisle of a church, a former New York couple will traipse down the aisle of a court room to settle a fight over a $48,800 diamond engagement ring.

Dean Kuehnen Jr. is suing his ex-fiance, Andria Castellano, to compel her to either return the ring or give him cash — as well as cover his legal fees and costs, according to the complaint filed in New York State Court.

Read about it here.

[From me]

$48K?   I wonder if he makes $17K a month.  Aren’t you suppose to by a ring worth 3X your salary?  That ring cost more than our 1st home in Madison, AL.  We were fortunate that we bought my wife’s ring at the Atlanta Merchandise Mart.   Now days there is Costco, BJ’s and Sams!

What do you think?

IRS decides not to sanction anti-war church

[ABP News]

The Internal Revenue Service has informed a progressive California church that it will not be sanctioned for an anti-war sermon preached there in 2004 — but church leaders are asking for an apology for an investigation they believe may have been politically motivated. The investigation stemmed from a guest sermon that George Regas, the church’s rector emeritus, delivered just before the 2004 presidential election. In it, he strongly criticized the war in Iraq but also said he believed that both President Bush and his Democratic opponent, Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, were good Christians.

n a Sept. 10 letter, IRS officials informed Bacon and All Saints of their decision to drop the investigation without any sanction. However, the letter also noted the agency’s determination that the church “intervened in the 2004 presidential election campaign.”

It continued, “We note that this appears to be a one-time occurrence and that you have policies in place to ensure that the church complies with the prohibition against intervention in campaigns for public office.”

But Bacon, in a statement released by the church, said that was not a satisfactory conclusion to the investigation, which has cost the church hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees.

Read about it here.

[From me]

This kind of harassment scares me.  I’m on the other side of the political spectrum of this church but I think the IRS has better people to go after than churches.  This is why the Hate Crime Bill scares me.  If I preach what the Bible says about Homosexuality am I going be audited by the IRS.  Am I going to jail.  I’m not a hate person by any means.  But speech is not going to put someone in the grave or hospital.   The government should concern itself with cleaning itself up and leave churches alone.

What do you think?

‘God’ apparently responds to lawsuit

[Yahoo news]

Earlier story here.

A legislator who filed a lawsuit against God has gotten something he might not have expected: a response. One of two court filings from “God” came Wednesday under otherworldly circumstances, according to John Friend, clerk of the Douglas County District Court in Omaha.

Read about it here.

[From me]

That is what he gets for messing with God.  

State Senator Sues God

[KETV 7]

State Senator Ernie Chambers is suing God. He says it to prove a point about frivolous lawsuits. Chambers says senators periodically have offered bills prohibiting the filing of certain types of suits. He says his main objection is the constitution requires that the doors to the courthouse be open to all. Chambers said, “Thus anybody can file a lawsuit against anybody – even God.”

In the lawsuit Chambers says he’s tried to contact God numerous times, “Plaintiff, despite reasonable efforts to effectuate personal service upon Defendant (“Come out, come out, wherever you are”) has been unable to do so.” The suit also requests that the court given the “peculiar circumstances” of this case waive personal service. It says being Omniscient, the plaintiff assumes God will have actual knowledge of the action.

Read about it here.

[From me]

I wonder if the courthouse has a lightning rod? Who do you think will represent God in the lawsuit? What dream-team will He put together?

What do you think?

Christian Publishing Company in UK forced to remove catchphrase posters

[Chortle]

Religious groups have been forced to stop using catchphrases from Little Britain and Catherine Tate to try to persuade youngsters into church. Posters featuring such lines as ‘Yeah but no but yeah’ and ‘Am I bovvered?’ have been withdrawn after lawyers took action to stop the breach of copyright.

Read about it here.

[From me]

I wish this would happen in the US.  I can’t stand it when Christian t-shirt companies and bumper sticker producers take a TV show, movie or song and try to Christianese it.  What are some of the worst ones you have seen?

Here are a few I remember:

“This blood is for you”  -stolen from a bud commercial

“Lord’s Gym”-  From Gold’s gym

Tommy Hellfighter – Tommy Hilfiger

Jesus, the real thing–Coke

What other ones do you remember?

woman receives messages from God?

[NBC 11]

A woman being sued by the city of San Mateo for painting what she called messages from God on her house spent Friday painting new messages on a second home.

Read about it here.

[From me]

Well, at least God gave her messages using the “Red Letter Edition.”

What do you think?