I had an encounter with two lost men at Atlanta’s Pride weekend.  I spotted them when I was marching with my P-FLAG group in the Gay Pride Parade.    They were the ones not cheering, but instead, screaming at the parade participants, “YOU’RE WICKED!!!” and holding signs warning everyone that “God Hates Fags” and things like that.  My heart went out to them.

I enjoyed my day with my wife, Melissa, my friends and with my wonderful parents, who carried the banner for PFLAG proudly.  We enjoyed Atlanta’s Piedmont Park and all of the festivities and booths.  The weather was lovely and the park was full of families and people celebrating diversity.  We had a beautiful day.

As I was leaving the park, I saw the two men again at the exit.  One was an angry, obese man and the other was a young guy who didn’t seem quite as hate-filled.  I’ll call them Angry and Young.  Angry was still shouting out to people, “You’re WICKED!” and I just decided to speak with them to see if I could get them to embrace their hypocrisy.

Me: “Why are you shouting at these people?”

Angry: “To save them from their wickedness.  Jesus said to tell people the good news…”

Me: “Mark 16:15 says, ‘Jesus said to them, ‘Go unto all the world and preach the good news to all creation.’ ‘  “

Yelling at people that they are wicked is not preaching good news, is it?”

Angry:  “The Bible says that your lifestyle disgusts God and He hates you!  The law of God stands.”

Me:  In Matthew 22, Jesus was asked by the religious zealots who were trying to trap him with a question what the greatest commandment was.  He said it was to love God with all of your heart, soul and mind.  But he added that the second greatest was to love your neighbor as yourself.  Do you love me as much as you would love yourself?

Angry: “You’re wicked!”

Young: We do love you.  That’s why we’re here…

Me: Do you honestly hope to draw anyone here to Jesus Christ with these tactics?  You both embrace the love of law more than you embrace the law of love.  Jesus never did anything like this.

Angry:  “Yes he did!  He went on an angry rampage!”

Me: He did go on an angry rampage at the temple because they had allowed it to become a money machine where people were selling goods for worship and price-gouging people who had to come from afar to pray and offer sacrifices.  He was disgusted by how the priests allowed it to become a business, not a house of worship and praise.  His anger was directed towards the church, and I have a sneaking suspicion he feels the same way about it today.”

Young: The Bible says that…

Me: The Bible says, in James, that true religion is this: to visit the widows and orphans in the time of their affliction.  When was the last time that either of you visited widows or orphans in the time of their affliction?  And be honest because God will hold you accountable for every word that you utter on judgment day.

Angry: (crickets)

Young: What do you mean?

Me: Why are you spending an entire day shouting at people when you could be ministering to people?  When was the last time that you ministered to a widow or an orphan?

Young: You mean literally?

Me: Isn’t that how you take the Bible?  Literally?  Yes, I mean literally.  When?

Young: My mom’s a widow.  So I guess it was her.

Me: Really?  That’s great.  But who, outside of your family?

Young: I guess nobody.

Me: Well then why don’t you go do that instead?  Jesus did not scream at people, he taught them and helped them and you are doing neither.  Micah 6 says that the Lord requires of you only this: to act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly before your God.  You are not acting merciful nor are you acting humble.  Rather, you are full of spiritual pride and you can’t even speak to me normally, but feel the need to shout at me and the people around here.  You need to keep reading that Bible, brother.

Angry: I aint your brother!  You people are wicked and God says you are an abomination!

Me: God says that He knit me in my mother’s womb and that I am fearfully and wonderfully made.  He made me this way and He loves me this way.  I love him and that is why I am not shouting at you that you are wicked.  You obviously live a sinful lifestyle of gluttony and sloth as evidenced by your obesity.  I would never stand on a street corner and condemn you for your sinful lifestyle.  Your sin is between you and God and I believe we are all sinners and that God’s grace will cover us.  Jesus said that ALL who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.  See you in Heaven…