Family says Tampa church canceled funeral because son was gay

WFLA-TV ^ | 8/6/2014 | Shannon Behnken

[DJ MacWoW]

No one is more against the queer agenda than I am, but I can’t see why they wouldn’t hold a funeral for him. It’s not at all like a wedding.

The church couldn't honor God and acknowledge a "husband". They did the right thing.

[The_Media_never_lie]

If they only burred non-sinners, their graveyard would be empty.

[NetAddicted]

No, he’s suffering in Hades now.

[DJ MacWoW]

The deceased had a "husband". The church could not acknowledge him. It wasn't about being homosexual. It was about a "husband" that isn't really a husband. Do you suggest they ignore him during the service? They couldn't honor God AND call him the dudes husband. What they did was right.

[rusty schucklefurd]

Re: “The church couldn’t honor God and acknowledge a “husband”. They did the right thing.”

Was the church being asked to “acknowledge” the “husband” during the service? If so, then I would agree with you, but I’m not sure from the information given in the article that that was the case.

[Chode]

it traded God for sex, it chose poorly... now reap the whirlwind

[DJ MacWoW]

What were they to do about the "husband"? They couldn't acknowledge him and honor God. That's why they cancelled.

[MNDude]

How would they have to acknowledge the “husband”? Couldn’t they just call him by name and not give him any title at all?

[NetAddicted]

If forced to hold the funeral, the pastor could’ve said he was now suffering because of his lifestyle. Proper thing to do.

[Chode]

better to tell them as soon as possible and give them all the advance warning they can so it's parents can tell those at the wake another venue needs to be found... just my 2c

[DJ MacWoW]

They were not asking him to accept homosexuality nor promote it.

Yes, they were. The church couldn't honor God and acknowledge a "husband". They did the right thing.

[NetAddicted]

Bravo!

[rusty schucklefurd]

I think the pastor could have spoken with the parents of the dead son and explained that while a funeral service could be given, he could not, as a Christian minister, acknowledge the “husband” during the service. If that was acceptable to them, the service could have preceded. If that was unacceptable to them, then the pastor did the correct thing.

[CA Conservative]

Comfort the broken heart.

How do you comfort the broken heart in this case? You can't tell them that their loved one is in Heaven and they will see him there some day. And it would just seem cruel to tell them the truth, that their loved one will suffer an eternity of torment because he loved his sin more than he loved his soul.

[NetAddicted]

Excellent point.

[xone]

I've never attended nor even heard of funeral services being held in a church.

Three deaths in the family, all the memorial services in church, deceased barely mentioned, not Catholic.

[rusty schucklefurd]

Re: “Yes, they were. The church couldn’t honor God and acknowledge a “husband”. They did the right thing.”

That’s my question - were the parents asking the pastor to acknowledge the “husband”? That is not all that clear from the information given.

[DJ MacWoW]

The church cancelled when they found the deceased had a "husband". It's in the article. They didn't know until they read the obituary. The surviving spouse is usually acknowledged. Also in the article was the family had their own preacher doing the service. Most likely it would have been a "gay" funeral. The family left out some details, don't you think?

Atwood's current pastor agreed to preach the funeral, but they needed a large church, like New Hope, to accommodate hundreds of mourners from across the country. New Hope agreed and the service was scheduled for July 26.

[NetAddicted]

I know for a fact he was not forgiven by G-d because of the Torah.

[CA Conservative]

Are you so confident that the young man has committed an unpardonable, unforgivable sin in the eyes of the Lord?

There is only one sin that is unforgivable. But for a sin to be forgiven, the person must repent. That does not just mean asking for forgiveness - it means to turn away from sin, to stop engaging in the sin. Since this man was "married" to his homosexual partner, there is nothing to indicate that he repented of his homosexual activity. And once he died, the opportunity for forgiveness was past.