Church cancels man's funeral because his obit mentioned he was gay. (G/A/F?)

Status
Not open for further replies.

Wilsongt

Member
Go ahead and twist that knife, Christians. First a mother loses her son and a man loses his husband, then the day before he is to be laid to rest, the funeral is canceled.

TAMPA, FL (WFLA) -

Julie Atwood was standing at her son's casket when the phone rang. The church where her son's funeral was scheduled to be held the next day decided to abruptly cancel the service, after the pastor learned the deceased was gay and his obituary listed a surviving "husband."

Atwood said she was told it would be "blasphemous" to hold the services at the church because her son, Julion Evans, 42, was gay.

"It was devastating," she said. "I did feel like he was being denied the dignity of death."

Evans' husband, Kendall Capers, says the pair were partners for 17 years and married last year in Maryland. Evans died at home after a 4-year battle with a rare illness called Amyloidosis, which destroys organs in the body.

He says the obituary named him as "husband," and that their marriage was no secret.

"Everyone who knew us knew about our relationship," he said. "We didn't keep secrets."

The family asked for Evans' funeral to be held at New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in
Tampa.

Atwood, Evans' mother, says she was baptized at the church as a child and several of her family members still attend. Atwood's current pastor agreed to preach the funeral, but they needed a large church, like New Hope, to accommodate hundreds of mourners from across the country. New Hope agreed and the service was scheduled for July 26.

But when the obituary published in the local newspaper, everything changed.

T.W. Jenkins, pastor at New Hope says was not aware of that Evans had a husband or was gay until members of his congregation saw the obit and called to complain. They did not think it was right to have the funeral at their church.

Jenkins said his church preaches against gay marriage.


"Based on our preaching of the scripture, we would have been in error to allow the service in our church," Jenkins said. "I'm not trying to condemn anyone's lifestyle, but at the same time, I am a man of God, and I have to stand up for my principles."


Because of the late change of plans, Evans' family scrambled to make new funeral arrangements, with less than 24 hours to prepare. They were unable to notify everyone, though, and some mourners showed up at the church and missed the funeral.

Capers said that was the worst part. He wanted the funeral held in a church but said he would have understood the church's position. But to cancel during his husband's wake, he said, was “disrespectful” and “wrong.”

"This is 2014, this is not the 60s or the 70s,” Capers said. “So at the end of the day I just want his wrong-doing to be exposed.”

Cancel my thread because I am gay if old.

http://abc13.com/religion/church-cancels-mans-funeral-after-learning-he-was-gay/248678/
 
Clearly the christian thing to do.

Stutter.jpeg
 
Apparently the gay bug is contagious even after death...

What the fuck is wrong with these people? Pray for him if you're so inclined but damn...
 
"Based on our preaching of the scripture, we would have been in error to allow the service in our church," Jenkins said. "I'm not trying to condemn anyone's lifestyle, but at the same time, I am a man of God, and I have to stand up for my principles."

So, no one who (in your eyes) sins gets a funeral at your church? Cool.
 
Who the fuck reads an obituary and calls to try and get a funeral cancelled.

It would be funny if it wasn't so disgusting.
 
FUCK I keep guessing Alabama!! One of these days I'm gonna win when everybody else guesses Florida
 
"Based on our preaching of the scripture, we would have been in error to allow the service in our church," Jenkins said. "I'm not trying to condemn anyone's lifestyle, but at the same time, I am a man of God, and I have to stand up for my principles."

So only saints can receive a proper funeral? Everyone you've ever served was some sort of beacon of righteousness in the eyes of the Lord, unmarred by any sin throughout the entirety of their lives? Oh wait, no. Only homosexuality is the truly bad sin. All others are completely forgivable.

What a farce.
 
Even setting aside the "principles" line, this is a pretty awful way to treat fellow human beings, especially in their grieving period. Cancelling a funeral the day before is a dick move. And as Jesus said, don't be a dick.
 
"I'm not trying to condemn anyone's lifestyle, but at the same time, I am a man of God, and I have to stand up for my principles."
"I'm not trying to condemn anyone's lifestyle, but at the same time, I am a bigot, and I have to condemn this dead man's lifestyle."

Got it.
 
I trust no one who's had pre-marital sex, worn decadent clothes of more than 2 fabrics, been jealous, etc has also had their funeral there?
 
I'm not too terribly surprised... Unfortunately, the hatred against homosexuality runs very, very deep within the black Baptist church... It's sad, really.
 
So which is it, the bible does... not mention homosexuals, no? So the "Man of god" argument kinda fails in that case.
 
T.W. Jenkins, pastor at New Hope says was not aware of that Evans had a husband or was gay until members of his congregation saw the obit and called to complain. They did not think it was right to have the funeral at their church.

What spiteful hateful people.
 
This is so fucked up.

Are churches exempt from ALL taxes? No property tax, no real estate tax? Do pastors or the board of directors have to pay personal taxes?

Depends on the income. Money directly to the church from tithes and donations are not taxable at any level. Salaries paid to anyone working for the church are taxable under personal taxes. If the church is engaged in business like renting a building to another party, that is taxable. A lot of different laws regarding this but that's the jist of it.
 
Forgive me on asking this.

So if the funeral was cancelled the day before, the deceased can still be buried at the same place or what happens next?

My condolescence to that family btw.
 
Honestly, they should've been upfront about the deceased person being gay, it is well known that most Christians are not o.k with the gay life style, it was only logical that they would flip out and cancel.

Edit: Grammar
 
Honestly, they should've been upfront about the diseased person being gay, it is well known that most Christians are not o.k with the gay life style, it was only logical that they would flip out and cancel.

*Deceased

That's a bit of an ... unfortunate mistake.
 
Honestly, they should've been upfront about the diseased person being gay, it is well known that most Christians are not o.k with the gay life style, it was only logical that they would flip out and cancel.

They were, the family never hid it from them. Regardless, you shouldn't have to disclose a dead person's sexuality in order to make sure you can have a funeral somewhere.
 
Honestly, they should've been upfront about the diseased person being gay, it is well known that most Christians are not o.k with the gay life style, it was only logical that they would flip out and cancel.

Even if you're being facetious, this isn't even remotely appropriate.

If you aren't, I have no idea what to say. "Most Christians" would absolutely not cancel a fucking funeral because the deceased person is gay. That's such a bafflingly stupid line of thought that I feel ashamed for even entertaining it.
 
The homosexuality in regards to the church issue is always one I think is difficult. Jesus, within the Bible, doesn't comment about it, but the Bible does condemn homosexuality. If the specific church wishes to ban religious events centered on homosexuals as they see it as at odds with the teachings of the Bible, they should be allowed to do so. However, cancelling it literally the day before is an inhuman response in the face of the family's grief. Who knows though, it could even be a business related decision. If the church regulars would stop attending due to the funeral, it's a difficult but practical decision, if not still a monstrous one.
 
The spoiler tags and GAF nonsense were very unnecessary.

However, this is some next level awful shit. Fucking Christians
 
I love assholes like this. It's like they think being gay is the only thing in the bible considered a sin.

I wonder how many divorcees he's performed funerals for...

I don't believe that "sin" is a thing.
 
WHAT?!

Just....garbled nonsense in frustration spewing out of my head right now.

Absolutely disgusting. This isn't about principles or sins or what-have-you, this is about plain as day bigotry. The people who complained and the pastor who didn't stand up for him did an awful thing. He was another human being with family and friends who cared about him. Hopefully with word of mouth about this wrongdoing, they'll start to realize what they really did.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom