Fire and Brimstone

A church in Columbus, Ohio, is displaying a sign which no doubt would be well received by Sarah Palin and her fellow churchgoers as aell as a good percentage of the attendees of the Republican Party Convention. Especially now that the GOP has become an unofficial religion based party. The sign was posted in reaction to Katy Perry's pop song lyrics "I kissed a girl and I liked it" which flirts with same-sex attraction. To me, the sign is illustrative of the Christianist mind set on display in St. Paul at the GOP Convention: condemn those who are different and subconsciously endorse the concept that these "others" can be mistreated with impunity. It's hardly the message of the Gospels, but it is the core of the Christianist religious beliefs. Here are some highlights from the Columbus Dispatch:

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I kissed a girl and I liked it. Those lyrics have made Katy Perry's pop song a big hit on the radio.
But when a local church put the song lyrics on its marquee -- followed by the words then I went to hell -- some people got angry. People driving by Havens Corners Church in Blacklick yesterday morning noticed the sign, aimed to warn people about what the church says is the sin of homosexuality.

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[Rev. Dave Allison] said "We meant that as a loving warning to teens. … The Scriptures tell us that you should not do what the song tells you to do. The Scriptures are not ambiguous on this issue."

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Lynne Bowman, director of Equality Ohio, a gay and transgender advocacy group, said every church has a right to its beliefs. Havens Corners has made it clear to everyone who drives by that it is not a welcoming place that accepts all people, she said. She noted that the church's vision, stated on its Web site, is to grow in membership. "Obviously they're making a statement as to how they don't want to do that," she said.

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She said Equality Ohio has identified at least 300 churches in Ohio that welcome gay people looking for a church home. "That sign just tells them where they cannot go to find the love and faith in Christ," she said.