A church in Michigan stands against upcoming LGTBQ "pride" event by putting up a verse on a marquee signage
The Bible Believers Church, led by Pastor Josh Langdon, used the marquee signage of the Old Theater Mall, a popular theater in Lowell, Michigan, to oppose the much-awaited "Pride" event of the LGBTQ community by posting verses from the Scriptures. The signage was posted at the start of June in time of "pride" month and ahead of the schedule of Lowell's LGBTQ celebration.
This bold move by the church drew mixed reactions among the community but a majority of these are strong responses from the LGBT community and advocates, The Christian Post reported. Both Pastor Langdon and the Old Theater Mall received criticism for their action as it was seen to be "damaging and toxic" and entails "religious trauma."
The Church Rented Out The Signage And Venue; LGBT Community Responds
The Old Theater in Lowell, previously known as the Strand Theater is located about 15 miles east of Grand Rapids. The said theater is popular among the community of Lowell, which has a population of about 3,800, since it was a go-to place for films since 1928. Nowadays, it is known for comedy nights and other purposes such as concerts, weddings, and gatherings.
Occasionally, it is also regularly rented out for advertising and posting of announcements and greetings for the Lowell community.
Hence, when Pastor Langdon heard that the LGBTQ pride event was returning to Lowell after their 2021 event, he used the opportunity to rent out the theater's marquee signage and put up verses with high hopes that it will be a call for the LGTBQ community to "come to Christ for salvation."
He pointed out that posting the Bible verses is their way of taking a stand against any agenda by the LGBTQ community because it is "unbiblical and damaging to the culture." Once rented, they put the words of Acts 16:31 on the first half and Proverbs 11:2 on the second in the King James Version.
"It's an intense battle that we believe as a church that Christians need to stand against," Langdon shared.
Read More: Methodist Church To Self-Appoint LGBTQ Pastors Following Bishop's Refusal
Lowell Pride Board President and Lowell Church Pastor Share Insights With The Incident
In 2021, Lowell also organized a "pride" event which according to the board president of Lowell Pride, Nicole Lintemuth, is their way of celebrating diversity of LGBTQIA+ culture. She noted that such events are a way for them to "create a community that is safe and inclusive.
With regards to the Old Theater Mall marquee signage, Lintemuth said in an email interview that she was not surprised by this incident but definitely disappointed. This is in reference to the 2021 Pride Event where she claims that members of Bible Believers Church harassed the LGBTQIA community at last year's event. She further added that "The languages that have been passed down to the community are "harmful and toxic," leaving many in the community experiencing religious trauma."
Speaking from that experience, Lintemuth said that the verse referenced in the marquee has been misrepresented to bash the LGBQIA+ community. Hence, she called out the Old Theater Mall owners and said that they can do business but should not talk about being a "welcoming" space for the LGBTQ community on their Google page since they supported the actions of Langdon.
Old Theater Mall owners, David and Lisa Reed respond to the controversy by posting on Facebook a statement saying: "We rent the marquee to people that want to advertise messages of all sorts."
The owners explained that the marquee has previously been rented for bible verses without complaints. And since they did not think that the Bible verses Pastor Langdon wanted to place in it would be an "affront" to people, they allowed the message to be placed there.
"We are sorry and truly saddened that neighbors in our community were outraged or upset."
Langdon, on the other hand, takes a firm stand and believes that the church is facing cultural tensions in America that need to be heavily addressed. He challenges everyone to make a stand when the culture tells Christians to keep quiet. He further claims that they love homosexuals, but pointed out that Christians need to expose the error of their ways, make a stand, and speak the truth in love.
Related Article: People Identifying Themselves As LGBTQ Spike 'A New High'
