Dear WBC

This might be seen as controversial. But this is really for everyone thoroughly tired at the WBC’s actions no matter what their faith. This is more or less a letter they’ll probably never see. It starts of vitriolic, and has some dark things within it. I wrote it myself in order to calm myself down when I heard of them endorsing the Arizona shootings.

If the moderators or someone wishes to take it down, I’ll understand, but please could you PM me with why too?

Dear Westboro Baptist Church of America,

Hello. I’m someone you’d absolutely despise on principle.

I was raised in a church not your own, protestant, which might help were it not for my own personal beliefs. Many of my friends come from Catholicism, Islam and no religion what so ever. I’m an atheist, not entirely straight in orientation, I’m a woman with opinions of her own and even worse I’m not American, yet someday I do consider there may be a day I’ll live there. Life is unpredictable like that, and despite your country obviously not always being wonderful (thanks, in part, to people like you), overall I find it fascinating and happen to like it even if you don’t. So anything is really possible in that department. Of course all of this means I’m a lesser person in your eyes, or if I’m more accurate, your version of your God’s eyes.

You’re probably getting a lot of hate mail, especially lately what with your praising of the murder of a nine year old girl and others as well as the endangerment of a large number of people in Arizona. It’s funny how people don’t seem to care much for that sort of thing, not to mention the fact you are now getting bikers who are seeing to prevent you from getting to close when you plan once again, to insult and hurt grieving people as they bury their loved ones. Soldiers, gay people, people of other faiths, even children it seems now it seems whose only ‘sin’ was to be there at the wrong time. Oh the girl is from a catholic family? The Congresswoman is Jewish on top of supporting all those things you hate? Guess that makes it okay then. After all, we should always do that to people who disagree with us in your book. Also, I mean it’s not like someone you worship was Jewish in any regard. What an idea! My christian friends and I had a good laugh at that.

I hope they keep you away or at least provide an adequate barrier in a non-violent manner. While your beliefs sicken me to the core, I have no desire to see blood needlessly spilled, no, not even yours. That’s my belief. Not yours.

For all I know, if you’re even reading this, you’ve looked away in disgust at the screen, you’ve skimmed through this, without bothering to read it, and if I get any reply at all it will not take into account anything I’ve actually written or said. You’ve already judged, or if I may be more accurate your own version of God already has and I am nothing more than a disgusting horrible person, quite like, ironically enough, many people (including your fellow Christian I might add) think of you.

Which is a shame really, since this isn’t exactly hate mail. Don’t get me wrong, this is not an exceedingly friendly letter, not to mention it would be easy to think that considering what I’ve already written- but there’s still something worth saying here which isn’t entirely hateful, though I will not spare all that many punches.

You do after all believe in crazy things, just like the shooter in question (except, I hope you’re sitting down, he’s actually an atheist. I’m not sure what you’re getting at by saying he’s somehow ‘heaven-sent’.) In any case, regardless, you think yourselves as holding onto some greater truth. You believe. You believe with all your heart that you’re right.

I’ve kind of been there myself actually. Once upon a time.

I also once believed something almost akin to what you believed. I can’t blame my parents or the church I was raised in. Since, well, they weren’t crazy. It was due to my own readings, my own twisted interpretations and various factors outside of my own control that I came to believe such things as a child- a child who in some ways could feel utterly lost and alone despite having a good family. The idea embedded in my head that we were all undeserving of love, and even when I felt love in its own way, there was also the idea I was nothing but a worthless worm who was nothing in the great scheme of things. To try and not love other people too much because that was wrong to do so in comparison to something bigger.

Such a shame I didn’t take more heart into verses such as loving the lesser of your brothers really meant you were loving ‘Him’. Ah well. We live and learn I suppose. And hindsight is funny like that isn’t it?

I believed whatever bad thing happened, we had coming to us. Because we were nothing. I won’t lie and say that ending it all for myself didn’t cross my mind more than once. Only fear held me back, fear of course in relation to the fact the idea of ending it was wrong in of itself. I escaped to fantasy for a while, but it only did so much and was a temporary solution. It was my friends, yes my family, knowledge and realising love is something we all deserve that saved me. We are all worth something.

Even people like you. You’re worth something, it’s just terrible instead you are using your abilities in preaching hate when you could be doing something so much more. You claim it’s because someone has to preach it. For your God you claim is not only one of love but of hate. To you, you’re merely telling the other side of the story. But that’s all you are about now. Hate. And yet you must be able to love, you must have some hope or else, why are you even still here? Is it just fear like I once was under? Or something else?

Are you actually happy WBC? I really don’t think you are. You feel the fire, the rage, and maybe you secretly think that’s better than feeling nothing, something you fear most of all. But there isn’t nothing out there. The world is so much more than simply black and white, sharp divisions of good and evil. It’s a child like mentality to think of the world like that. And while your Jesus also stated that children entered into the kingdom of heaven isn’t also written in the book you follow that you must grow up spiritually?

Of course certain verses about the “wicked” leading you astray may complicate matters here. For that’s all you think I am doing, isn’t it? That’s all I am. I’m not a person, I’m just a statistic. You may even think that of yourselves. Add people to the ranks, convince them of your way of thinking, you don’t even seem to care for the individuals and people you hurt on the way. The lives wasted, the hurt you’ve caused.

After all, it’s all for the greater good. What is a bit of pain and agony if you can save more people from everlasting torment?

You’re afraid WBC. Afraid of other people, your twisted version of God and maybe even yourselves. You lash out, you think you’re in the right when all you are is wrong, wrong, wrong. It is not your ignorance of science which aggravates me, but your ignorance about reality in general and people which makes you so dangerous.

I fear for your children as they grow up in such a poisonous environment and I wonder, are you making it more difficult for them to see what true love is really like? What type of men and women will they become? Do you hug them? Do you tell them that you love them at night? Please tell me that you do. Because nothing is sadder than a child with no love. Even in my case when I was contemplating the worst and love was slightly degraded at the time, it was one of those precious things you can’t ever take for granted, and the discovery of love itself and what it really means is a beautiful thing no matter if you believe in a deity or not. Even if the love of your deity is a twisted and cruel thing, I hope at least the children have some resemblance of structure, protection and TRUE love from you. And if not, that they are shown and find people who can. I hope they have a better future.

But what do I know of love? I clearly cannot by your definition. I’m just a twisted horrible wicked person who like everyone, deserves to die if for the greater good. I acknowledge that you hate me or feel compelled to hate me. Your actions are utterly repulsive, but maybe there’s something to be said in the old saying of hating the sin and not the sinner, even if I’m not one to use that sort of terminology. But if there comes a time I have to defend people against you, if I’m faced by someone in need against you I hope to every god I do not believe in that I do not walk by on the other side. I will not spill your blood, but I will attack your words, insidious and cruel words that they are. You think I could not possibly understand your way of thinking, but I do. I know only too well. I just wasn’t really in a cult myself at the time.

In the end fear after all, not just love, can make us feel and do strange things. But in the end the former is not something we should allow to control us. For bravery is to do the right thing in spite of fear, it is not the absence of it. Of course, the fact you think you are right means that fear is not only the issue here, but your ignorance too. It’s time to grow up. It’s time to take responsibility for your actions and see the world for what it really is.

I can’t pretend forgiveness will be automatic in this case even when you do open your eyes, and it will be necessary to at least try and undo the damage you have caused as impossible as it may be. In the end I’m disgusted by your actions, by your endorsement of the killing of people, of saying that so many people deserve things they never did deserve. I believed we all deserved that once, but I never took joy in it myself. But you are in a strange place mentally which makes the true instances of right and wrong become ever so twisted.

Whatever you may claim however, this world matters and history will judge us for our actions.
I as an atheist with my religious friends of various religious faiths ‘pray’ that someday your eyes are opened and you finally move forward whatever direction that might be. Perhaps there’s more to be done than just this, and hopefully the day will come when you too, realise what true love is.

Love, A person.

You are like literally my hero. I could go on, and on how much I disapprove with them.
It makes me ashamed that they’re in the same country as me, and claim to be worshipping the same God as I. (Which we don’t. I don’t believe in a God who will throw his own children in hell for loving the same sex)

To me they’re not true Christians. Being a Christian is being Christlike, and loving all despite differences. Treat your Neighbor as you treat yourself is the cornerstone of Christian Ethics. Jesus was the ultimate hippie of his time, he chilled with ‘ladies of the night’ and those with leoprosy (which is equel to homosexuals on todays standards of ‘taboo’, sadly) Chrisitianity may have a lot of blood and hate in it’s past, but it’s suppose to be a religion of love people!

I like when you said “Are you truly happy?” Because I honestly wonder that sometimes, and I feel bad for the kids. They don’t have a choice, they haven’t been expossed to anything else except all of that hate. It makes me thankful that my parents give me a choice in my religioius and political beliefs, even if they differ with my family’s.

Your letter is really well written, and it speaks a lot. I wish that God (or whatever’s watching over us) helps them see the light of love, but there is so much hate in their hearts.

I am touched by your heartfelt piece, mentalguru. The only qualm I have is that you misspelt ‘verses’ somewhere (always the critic, TDIT), but the rest is just pure, simple truth.

We need to love more. Condemning others, saying ‘they deserved it’, or not forgiving others for their actions is not helping anything. Hate is a powerful emotion, but ultimately, a corrupting one. Reading about WBC’s proclamation to burn the Quran a few months ago angered me, but after reading this piece, I now feel sorry for them.

To have died loving, is better than a life of hate.

Thank-you both. (And I’ve edited it TDIT- in fact it happened twice with ‘verses’! That’s microsoft word for you.)

I think in general I just really think they really believe this, and that’s the scariest and saddest thing of all. Their version is perhaps even -worse- than the one I once came up with in my head when I was younger. Which is really no easy feat to be honest. The one in my head claimed ‘love’ but the relationship just felt utterly wrong and scary.

But in the end this is the version of God they have in their heads. This is the deity they think and really truely believe sees all and knows all. He can hear your thoughts, knows all your actions and deeds! That is perhaps the ultimate nightmare fuel thinking of someone with that personality with that kind of power. And in a way at points it once was for me.

I think a part of it is fear in a way with them. Anyone would be terrified of that particular version of a deity that they have in their heads. It’s maybe even partially a bit of cowardice in the sense of a- ‘Look at their sin, not mine!’ Or they ultimately think this is how their deity wants them to act and it’s the right thing to do. Or a bit of both. But I think mostly the latter.

I said stupid stuff, insulting stuff at points when I was younger, and while I didn’t really ever express the same sentiments they did (I never was all that happy about it), I think it might work on the same principle. They ultimately think this will get them and other people to heaven (or more importantly not in hell). And they’re determined to ‘save’ other people too and speak out what they think is the ‘ultimate truth’. This doesn’t excuse their actions of course, which are still hurtful and cruel, but in their eyes they’re probably doing what’s ‘necessary’ and even ‘right’. Belief is a powerful thing and it’s not something which can change just like that. Especially not losing it at least or at the very least harmful aspects of it. Belief isn’t necessarily always a clear choice. You can’t decide one day just to automatically convert or de-convert from something because the mind doesn’t work like that. . Even when they’re just not pleasent or what we’d choose if… well given the actual meta-choice. It’s still what the mind would consider to be true. Minds can change, but not by force. It’s usually more gradual than anything.

There’s also the ‘martyr complex’ I think to consider with regards them as well. ‘Them against the world’. Which… only adds to it probably.

There’s still hope I think for some of them and the children though. Mark and Nate Phelps for instance (adult sons to Fred Phelps) want nothing to do with the church itself anymore. They left at 18. People can change and wake up, even those raised in such a toxic environment as that from a young age. Whether they go to proper churches or choose another religion or no religion at all it’s better than where they currently are in my book.

How Fred Phelps treats his kids is ultimately disgraceful though and he uses scripture to defend it- and a part of me has the feeling his followers are similar in this but I just hope they’re not as bad as him and actually love their kids. But some of the kids raised like that still found love and happiness away from them and I hope others can too in the future if so. To be honest, I do consider that to be child abuse what F.Phelp’s children have gone through.