Louis Theroux did a documentary on America’s most hated family — the Phelps, of course:
That’s just part one — see the rest of the parts.
It’s almost enough to make you lose hope in humanity. Thankfully, crazy psychos like that are a minority. Right?
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64 Comments
Sometimes, in my weak moments, I wish there really was a hell so these people could go there.
Moments like that give me a bit of sympathy to the first cavemen that started the whole idea of eternal souls. There’s a natural desire to want to see some justice, to see people like that punished.
Took the words right out of my mouth….
my mouth, too. although it would be fun to have an egalitarian afterlife that everyone participates in, no matter who they were or what they did or what they believed in, in order to see the Phelps losing it for all eternity because Teh Evul Gayz got the same reward as everyone else.
beyond awful…. of course half of my family is from Kansas and I wonder sometimes if there is something in the water there….
If God really condemned the soldiers he would have killed all of them, not just some.
God works in mysterious ways — it seems quite random and chaotic, just like if a god didn’t exist, but that’s just to throw off the smart people so they go to hell.
LOL!
In the Catholic Church, it’s called “ineffable”.
In every day life, it’s called un-effing believable! ;)
Umm… http://unreasonablefaith.com/2009/04/17/i-cant-effing-swear-at-god/
almost entirely made up of a single family…better known as a cult, child abuse etc…
Wow, I just caught up with this blog! I’ve been reading for the past few months, from the beginning, always hitting the link for the next post when I finished the comments.
And then, just now, there was no link! Hard to believe I’m now current. This is my first comment, so may I just say how much I love this blog? I’ve had a great time reading through all of the (mostly) intelligent discussion, and I look forward to participating.
Oh yeah, and have you met the Truth? I hear he’s a good guy. A little hard to pin down, though.
That’s great to hear, glad you’re enjoying it!
I’d still throw a satchel bomb into Westboro Baptist Church on a Sunday morning without a second’s hesitation.
I’m with you. Except for the part about becoming what I beheld. Better to ensure these people continue to get publicity. Because the longer the fundies who won’t say the stuff the Phelch family says aloud continue to tacitly support them, the stupider the whole ediifce looks.
Child abuse.
I don’t hate them, mostly they just make me feel sad. Loathsome as their activities might be, these children are just doing what they have to do to win the approval of their parents, as their parents did before them. I’m curious to know what sort of horrors were inflicted during Fred Sr’s childhood that led him to start this whole chain. One of his sons, Nate, has managed to break away, to come out with the whole story of this abusive one-man mind-control cult. I only hope that all of them can do so, rather than training their own children as they were trained.
(I haven’t watched all of the videos yet so maybe this is discussed …)
Googling this place turns up some interesting stuff.
http://religionclause.blogspot.com/2008/02/punitive-damages-reduced-in-funeral.html
I know your question was somewhat rhetorical, Daniel, but I don’t think Phelps et al are enough to make any of us give up on humanity.
One inbred family who hates everyone else in the world is just that — one inbred family. We have to keep combating this hatred and damaging ideology with something better. For all our disagreements, I think that’s probably something we agree on (dare I say wholeheartedly?).
Yep, I agree.
@ brgulker
” For all our disagreements, I think that’s probably something we agree on (dare I say wholeheartedly?). ”
mark: But Brgulker dont you hold Yawhew at least partially responsible for allowing verses in his holy word (scriptures) that promote hatred against gay/lesbian folks.
After all if Yawhew had never put or allowed those anti gay verses in the bible the phelps family would have a harder time promoting thier redneck hatred against gay/lesbian folks.
Would you agree with this Brgulker?
Gays attract hatred everywhere because they are a challenge to our sense of identity.
If it wasn’t religion, they would have found something else, equally irrational, to justify such hatred.
Remember that for many people homosexuality is wrong because it is ‘against nature’ (then you ask them how do they define ‘nature’ and things get funny…), not because of the verse in the bible.
mark: But Brgulker dont you hold Yawhew at least partially responsible for allowing verses in his holy word (scriptures) that promote hatred against gay/lesbian folks.
This statement reminds me of the entire conversation around hate speech legislation that’s currently happening right now in the U.S. Hate speech, as clearly as I can understand it, is any speech that promotes or incites violence. I think such speech should be considered wrong; however, the difficulty lies in determining when hate speech is actually happening.
In some examples, it would be easy: “God hates fags, and they should be killed.” Is obvious, right?
But to me, there are plenty of folks who would say, “I don’t agree with the lifestyle, but it’s not my job to judge.”
Both read the bible but to very different conclusions with respect to how they choose to approach the issue (and probably homosexual people as well).
All that to say, it seems like you’re trying to get YHWH on the hook for hate speech, and I don’t think it’s as simple as that. The closest thing you could get to YHWH inciting violence is the Leviticus 18 passage, but even then, there’s not a call to violence. So, I guess I’m not convinced YHWH is on the hook for inciting violence, let alone the actions of the Phelps family.
After all if Yawhew had never put or allowed those anti gay verses in the bible the phelps family would have a harder time promoting thier redneck hatred against gay/lesbian folks.
I tend to agree with Francesco. I think some people are hateful, and they’ll find a way to justify that hate.
The difference is that one side has specific biblical support for their opinion. The other one doesn’t.
“In some examples, it would be easy: “God hates fags, and they should be killed.” Is obvious, right?
But to me, there are plenty of folks who would say, “I don’t agree with the lifestyle, but it’s not my job to judge.””
Yaweh Cannot be blamed for Man’s meanness even if it is allowed?
Freewill and man from the beginning has rebelled?
We have human spirit.evil/ spirit and holy spirit–which spirit is inspiring us to…………
Bad things happen because the evil spirit now is allowed and is Master over the world–we must not give in but he is cunning and strong so ………(choose to believe or not)
WE need to choose to believe that evil is evil……….No compromise?God loves us but hates sin–whoever commits it?Phelps for giving the wrong message or we for compromising??
Oh, and it’s saying something when Fox News calls you a soulless human being, don’t you think?
I’d be curious as to how they’d be covered by Faux News if they weren’t anti-military (an unforgivable sin to the right).
I watched the whole thing, and the only thing i feel is sorry for those people.
Their lives must be horrid, and i think they know and feel it, but can you imagine how hard it’ll be to get out of there?
I saw a movie of one of the sons too, one that did leave the church and it’s quite scary what he had to go through.
I have to admit as well that sometimes, i would wish there was a heaven. Not because i myself believe in an afterlife, but it would just be amusing to find out on which things you would really be judged, the fact that you believed in an invisible sky daddy who would forgive whatever nasty stuff you did if you go to churge and tell a priest in confession… or a person who just leads a honest and good life, helping and inspiring goodness in people and contributing to society as a whole.
I feel sorry for these people, too. There’s definitely quite a bit of anger and disgust in my feelings towards them, but also tremendous amounts of pity and sorrow. I remember (very clearly) how miserable I was on a daily basis as a Christian, and it breaks my heart to see other people living / wallowing in so much pain and hatred. I was just telling a friend the other day that I am a much better and more authentic “evangelist” for atheism than I ever was for Christianity – when I say that it’s changed my life for the better, this time I mean it, and I can’t stop talking about it.
Yea, freeing oneself from religious “duty” is a great liberty indeed. Ironically, its also the very same thing Christ does for us since religious duty is not at all what He offers, but life and liberty. You’re in good company, there are many here that think they have “rejected Christianity” when they actually rejected an oppressive “religious” experience, “church”, etc and wisely so.
Contrary to popular belief, Christ and religion (in it’s culturally understood context) are not one and the same, the former is liberating and the latter burdensome. Congratulations on discarding religious duty, the real journey has begun. perhaps now you can see Spirit more clearly w/o the lens of religious conditiong. All the best.
It’s not just the religious duty that I’ve discarded, it’s the whole thing. Christ enslaved me while I was a Christian. I am so, SO glad to be free, and atheist freedom has felt better than any “Christian” freedom I ever had, or pretended to have. And, John C, don’t pull the “no true Scotsman” thing on me. I was there, and I hated every moment. SO, so glad to be where I am now. Praise Zeus for ultimate freedom.
If you were “enslaved” then it wasn’t Christ, it was a religious “system”. Christ is Spirit, His burden is light Molly. Like I said, I’m sincerely glad you’re free from what burdened you, I really am. I celebrate your emancipation. All the best.
Yay Witnessing.
What liberty is there in telling someone that their perfectly natural wants/feelings, especially in regards to sex, is wrong?
Op, guess no one told that part of it to Catholic priests! Teehee.
John C, sometimes I don’t see the difference between the Jesus you are telling about and “I burned the house because that green leprechaun told me i have to”
After alot of soul searcing /praying and testamonies I believe in God and after life.
A great philosoper said ..better believe and die and not believe and die…because we had it if all the drama in Bible is true.
After 13 years a friend of mine who studied the Bible and tried to disprove Christ –could not——-He now is convicted in his faith.
I myself doubt alot even though………………But I pray /walk in faith and am learning to trust God.Ask God(choose to believe)to help you to know him and……………..
The holy spirit is real……………and if you open the Bible and ask God to……………you will find him,if not sooner than later>…………God hardens the heart of unbelievers so we who disbelieve MUST be ernest and vigilante in out seacrh of God.
Meh, Pascal’s Wager.
Except, how sure you are you’re worshiping the right god? For all you know, you’ll have a pretty pissed Wotan in your ass when you die…
Thinking about this more … yeah, these clowns are scary. I feel sorry for the little kids. The truth,
though, is that with things like Proposition 8 in California, people like Bill O’Reilly, organizations like the
Family Research Council and Focus on the Family, and our Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell laws, these idiots are
hardly a threat worth worrying about. The real threat comes from the big, powerful institutions with lots
of money, lots of followers, and ‘god’ on their side.
I fully second, joshr.
Yet, extremists, even if few, push the bar a bit farther and make easier for the less fundie (and more dangerous) ones to be accepted.
Then again, fighting the real dangerous ones will marginalize even more the nutjobs…
Ok, I’m confused.
Definitely the most hateful.
how have they avoided being beat down and/or shot?
The whole time I was watching that, I was fantasizing about just walking up and punching that mom in the face as hard as I could, then saying “Have God fix that.”
But your “hateful” act would merely prove the truth of her cause. Unbelievable!
The sad thing is to see all the hate one couple brought to this world, for the love of Jesus. They are the perfect spokespeople for Christianity. They read the bible, and fully comprehend the bible. They are preaching what it really says. It was too depressing to finish.
Don’t you find it strange when people spend sooooo much of their time thinking about homosexuals and, how did the looney say it, “taking it up the tailpipe”? I’m straight (and secure), and I spend, ummm, like no time thinking about gay sex.
I try to imagine going all day, every day thinking about how I will never, ever eat a chocolate bar, and how I hate anyone who does eat a chocolate bar, and chocolate, chocolate, chocolate… yep, eventually I’d try a bite.
You say that like there’s something wrong with gay sex :)
Oh, not in the slightest! But I would think that spending every day obsessing over it would eventually lead to a little dip in the pool, you know ;)
Bible says same sex unions not acceptable
What is wrong with abstinence and following the Bible because the Devil’s work must not win.Where is sense of sacifice if we need to choose a norm which appears to be right(procreation?).
I feel we can choose to tolerate it and pray about it but we cannot accept it only because it is not the norm and encouraging it will make it one???No compromise for ’sin’:whatever that is(we should know right from wrong).
Is Abortion and Same sex acts a right or a wrong,normal or wicked??
Normal. To both.
Typical Christian God, invent something then say you hate it, while fine-torturing people who didn’t ask for it in the first place. Pretty damn typical indeed.
Oh my. I want to say that I just feel sorry for them, but the truth is I feel as much sorry as disgusted. Maybe it’s because religious nuts aren’t quite the same here in South Africa. I think it’s the way she’s nodding and smiling when the guy calls her soulless. That attitude is the worst – she doesn’t even feel the need to defend or explain herself, she’s so smug – literally smiling with joy, and it’s probably because she’s ‘being persecuted’ and we all know how the Lord loves for his people to be persecuted! I will never forget being told that if people were mean to me because of my Christianity, then I must be doing something right because evil only attacked the agents of God. The worst thing about that attitude is that she will never, ever consider what someone who doesn’t share her beliefs is saying. She will never be able to have an intelligent discourse because she is overflowing with religious pride. Most of the evangelical Christians I know at the very least actually believe they are being humble and loving when they’re being offensive and patronising – but she, and the rest of her family are openly, gleefully hateful. I don’t feel very sorry for her, but I do feel sorry for her children.
I still get a twing of fear….”what if they (Phelps) are RIGHT ? ”
Just goes to show how deep the damage of being raised fundamentalist can run. I know these guys are simply following their sincere, albeit insane, convictions.
Even after twenty years of being an atheist I thought; “It could be me in that video”
Maybe they didn’t show the whole discussion (I use the word loosely), but I found the argument against gay sex because it goes against “thou shalt not commit adultery” very weak. I would like to have seen the speaker challenged about that.
I’m thinking…why do we give nutcases like Sarah Palin, Michael Jackson, Rush Limbaugh, and the Phelps so much airtime? Shouldn’t we be focusing on the real issues?
*replying to self* OK, maybe Michael Jackson actually earned some airtime. But the rest are empty suits.
You know, it’s hard to follow religion when certain people just don’t get struck by lightning…
:-)
Watched this a few weeks ago with my wife. And then immediately started downloading a torrent of other stuff that Theroux has done. I like that guy.
One part that will stay with me for a while is when they are protesting and someone chucks a giant drink cup full of pop out of a moving car at them. The cup hits a little kid. This kid is being attacked by strangers because he is acting exactly how the people who say they love him tell him to act. It makes me want to cry just thinking about it. Like others have said, the way these children are being raised is nothing short of child abuse.
Assuming the details and information are available, I will be picketing at Fred Phelps funeral when he dies. Please join me.
i really hate violence, but for these fucking people I would suggest the death penalty. poor kids.
Every time i hear about this “church”, and watch them in action like this, I want to weep.
I am a Christian, and I apologize for heartless people like this who claim to follow the same God as me. In fact, I apologize for every hypocritical, judgmental, and blind believer that you have met, because there is no way they should be living like that if they allegedly follow Christ and Scripture.
once again….sorry.
I promise that some Christians are actually loving and try to make the world a better place through social change, not mean-spirited taunting.
I know this “family” (and I mean that in the Manson/mafia sense of the word) does not represent most christians. I don’t think anyone here thinks that. Mainstream Christianity is damaging enough to people without the Phelps helping it along.
“Someone”,
I’m talking about the big organizations, not individuals like you, k?
Although, if mainstream christians did more to condemn the Phelps family, I’d be a lot happier. Like the murder of the women’s health doctors, many mainstream christians seem to be pretty happy that someone else is crazy enough to do the dirty work.
Thank you. I’ve been meaning to watch this for a while!
These people came to my school and protested…. I can’t help wondering if maybe they are just a big joke on the world, existing just to make money from lawsuits.
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