Anonymous flier calls on Christians to surround Akron Pride with a prayer circle
The flier decried city officials for "having festivals to celebrate Sodomy/LGBTQ"
An anonymous flier has been circulated around Akron, Ohio, asking Christians to surround the city’s upcoming Pride Festival, scheduled for Aug. 25, in order to “save the city” from “intrinsically evil acts,” gay app Hornet reports.
Hornet says it was contacted by an organizer of Akron Pride about the fliers, which urge readers to contact Mayor Dan Horrigan and express their displeasure about the Pride Festival.
“We need to save souls, our city and our neighborhood from intrinsically evil acts being pushed upon us! On August 25th, 2018, there will be a huge festival to celebrate Sodomy/LGBTQ in Hardesty Park…between the hours of 12:00 to 6:00 p.m.,” a female author writes.
“My husband and I are making a call out to all Christians of all Faiths who believe in Gods (sic) holy word through the holy bible (sic) and as followers of Jesus Christ to make a stand with us to let the city of Akron’s Mayor Dan Horrigan know: That we are very much offended by him and the other city officials for having festivals to celebrate Sodomy/LGBTQ.
“It has been said that ‘When Good Men Do Nothing, Evil Triumphs.’ With that being said I am asking for all Christians to join my husband and I…to surround the park and flood it with prayers…. So please come by yourself or in groups praying and if you are called to, hand out evangelizing literature to anyone who might interact with us.”
The flier also calls on Catholics, specifically, to attend the anti-LGBTQ vigil and pray the Rosary.
The author recommends that only those 18 and over come to the park. It also provides links for websites affiliated with Church Militant and Mass Resistance, two anti-LGBTQ organizations.
Church Militant is a radical Catholic group that considers homosexuality a sin deserving of being punished by being sent to Hell. It also rails against other socially liberal causes and counts the American Civil Liberties Union, the Human Rights Campaign, and Planned Parenthood among its enemies, listing them as “hate groups.”
Church Militant is run by Michael Voris, a “reborn” Catholic who previously identified as bisexual, but has since embraced a life of celibacy. Voris believes homosexuality is an expression of avoidance and pain caused by past emotional trauma, and Church Militant’s official position on transgenderism is that it’s a mental illness.
Mass Resistance is an anti-LGBTQ group that has been designated a “hate group” by the Southern Poverty Law Center. It typically advocates for socially conservative causes, and speaks out harshly against homosexuality, abortion, and pro-LGBTQ policies.
Mass Resistance was flagged as a hate group by the SPLC for various inflammatory and untrue statements it has made, including that gay people pose a danger to children and that they are “trying to get legislation passed to allow sex with animals.”
The organizer of Akron Pride who reached out to Hornet says the flier has been shared in private Facebook groups and with other organizers so that they can create a contingency plan and response to any demonstrations, in order to ensure that Pride remains safe, peaceful, and welcoming.
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