Fred Phelps, Sr., the notorious preacher and founder of Westboro Baptist Church is in hospice care in Shawnee County Kansas. His son, Nate Phelps, reports that his father is nearing death and that he was kicked out of the church late last year. A church spokesman would not confirm whether or not Fred Phelps was excommunicated from Westboro Baptist Church, but he did confirm that the gay bashing preacher was in hospice care and in poor health.
Phelps is the founder of the anti-gay Westboro Church. He and his followers first gained national notoriety when they picketed the funeral of Matthew Shepard, a gay University of Wyoming student who was brutally murdered in a 1998 hate crime. Phelps and his parishioners carried “God hates fags” signs at the funeral, essentially celebrating Shepard’s murder as a righteous killing. Later, the group took to picketing all sorts of occasions, including the funerals of American military personnel killed in action. The group argued that soldiers were dying because God was casting judgement on the United States for being too tolerant of gays and lesbian.
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The Anti-Defamation League and Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) both monitor Westboro Baptist Church as a hate group. In addition to being hateful towards gays, the Church is also anti-Catholic, anti-Semitic, anti-Mormon, and anti-Islam. They also believe that Barack Obama is “the Beast” from the Book of Revelation and that his election will hasten the apocalypse.
In addition to being publicly hateful, Reverend Phelps also allegedly physically abused his children. He was a cruel man both publicly and privately. Over twenty members have fled the church in the last ten years, including many of Phelps’ family members.
As Fred Phelps approaches his final days, the temptation to attend his funeral, once he passes, with a “God hates Fred” sign, might be tough to resist. However, a stronger message would be to avoid his funeral altogether rather than answering hate with hate. Besides, if he was ex-communicated last year, it is almost a sure bet that the surviving members who have not yet left Westboro Baptist Church, will be picketing his funeral. Ironically they will be holding signs arguing that this bitter, hateful man was not hateful enough. If so, their hateful signs will serve as a tragically fitting reminder to the legacy Reverend Phelps will leave behind.
Keith Brekhus is a progressive American who currently resides in Red Lodge, Montana. He is co-host for the Liberal Fix radio show. He holds a Master’s Degree in Sociology from the University of Missouri. In 2002, he ran for Congress as a Green Party candidate in the state of Missouri. In 2014, he worked as a field organizer for Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick’s successful re-election bid in Arizona’s 1st Congressional District. He can be followed on Twitter @keithbrekhus or on Facebook.
