- Pastor Robert Jeffress of First Baptist Church of Dallas
You all remember Pastor Robert Jeffress over at First Baptist Church in Dallas, right? He’s the one who riled up the LGBT community a couple of years ago with his “Gay is Not OK” sermon.
Well, now Pastor Jeffress is at it again. He and his church have created a new website, GrinchAlert.com, to warn us all about those horrible business people who have the nerve to say something like “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas,” or who, even worse, don’t recognize the Christian holiday at all.
So if someone or some business pisses you off while you are out commercializing Christmas this year, you can go to this website and post a comment designating them as “naughty.” And if they spell out “Jesus is the Reason for the Season” on their chain link fence using colored plastic cups and Christmas lights, you can go to the site and reward them with a “nice” post.
Jeffress told Dallas Morning News: “Too many businesses have bowed down to political correctness. I thought this would be a fun way to call out businesses that are refusing to celebrate Christmas.”
He also told the Morning News that First Baptist isn’t creating any standards on what determines “naughty” or “nice,” and that the church won’t be monitoring the site to protect businesses owned by non-Christians. I wonder if that means if I go to the site and add a post declaring Pastor Jeffress and his church are “naughty” because he is a completely hateful, bigoted jackass, that they will leave it up there? Or would they remove it and add me to the “naughty” list instead?
It’s tempting, but I will refrain. Instead, I will just offer this reminder to Pastor Jeffress and others like him: In the New Testament, in one of the Gospels, there is a story about how the Pharisees tried to trick Jesus into saying something that would get him in trouble, so they asked him, “What is the most important commandment?” (The trick, of course, is that no one commandment should be considered more important than any other.)
Jesus replied, “Love your neighbor as yourself, and love God above all else. Do that, and you will be following all the commandments.”
So here’s my message to Pastor Jeffress: Jesus said love your neighbor as yourself, and guess what — not all your neighbors are Christians. Don’t you think is is a little less than loving to expect them to kowtow to your religious beliefs by saying Merry Christmas, and by chiding them on your ridiculous website because they prefer to say “Happy Holidays” instead?
I do not like him on my webs.
I do not like the words he says.
I do not like his ways and means.
I do not like the way he schemes.
Our eyes – together – do not see
I do not like hypocrisy
I do not like him Sam-I-Am
I do not like this bigoted man.
Macy’s has made the “naughty list” for an employee who said, “you too,” when told Merry Christmas. Apparently its not enough to accept a salutation with a cordial response. Instead, you must adopt a response which explicitly refers to Christmas, or you’re a a Grinch. Didn’t the Grinch try to steal Christmas? Didn’t the Grinch actively try to ruin the holiday? People who say “happy holidays” aren’t trying to steal Christmas at all. And, even if they were, if I remember correctly, wasn’t the Grinch’s hear won over by the Whos because they welcomed him and loved him? Maybe the story shouldn’t end with roast beast, but it should end with Jeffress giving a nasty sermon and condemning the Grinch to hell. That would be a much more Christian ending, apparently.
They are monitoring the submissions. Yesterday I added Dallas First Baptist to the naughty list, and the Cathedral of Hope to the nice list, and big surprise, neither has made it up there yet.
I think all Christians should be angry at the arrogance of this church. I could care less about being politically correct, but I wonder if Rev. Jeffress or any of his followers even know the origin of Christmas. It has absolutely nothing to do with Christ.
I nominated First Baptist Dallas for the naughty list, but I don’t expect to get a response. This was my nomination message:
“Dear Lord,
Thank you for completing Your work here on earth. It is obvious that all souls have been saved, hunger has been abolished, and peace has come between all countries for churches to have so much free time on their hands to focus on something so significant as making political statements about a holiday that has pagan origins. True, many people have chosen to acknowledge the birth of Christ on December 25, but Lord, You know as well as I do that Your Son has very little to do with this date. But since this church has decided to make a bold political statement about this holiday, I can’t imagine that they would be hypocritical enough to have a Druid worship tree in their houses or tell their children about Santa Claus because, after all, those take away from the birth of your Son.
I would pray that You give them the strength to truly focus on Your Son and what it is that is important to Him so that when the good Rev. Jeffrees stands before the Judgement Seat of Christ that he can give a report of the souls that he lead to Him rather than the countless people that are already offended by the arrogance of such a website.
And Father, I pray that you would give me the strength to continue to call myself a Baptist rather than the shame I feel for being associated with such churches.
Your Servant”
Maybe we should put all the gay-owned stores and bars Cedar Springs and elsewhere on the “Nice List”
Happy Pagan Winter Solstice Festival
There are so many needy grieving people who need the love and care that we can give to them. Why would a church that is supposed to be Christian give one second or one dollar to support such a biased, vindictive website. And Jefferies thinks that this will be fun? This campaign will do nothing but cause resentment among the residents of Dallas and detract from a season that is supposed to be about love and giving. This is more like a First Baptist Church Dallas hit list than “providing a forum”.
Tammye, in order to establish credibility, it is wise to proofread your article before hitting submit. Otherwise, you come of as uneducated. As for the article, since when did it become mandatory to be an atheist? The only reason that this time of year is considered “the holidays” is because of Christmas. Is it a sin to want people to acknowledge Christianity? I earn my money and I can choose to support whatever business that I choose. Perhaps, I do not want to support the de-christianization of America.
Well, Chris, if you had proofread your own post you would have realized that you used the word “of” rather than the one you meant, which was “off”, in one of your sentences. So I guess we can disregard your credibility and view you as “uneducated.” Jewish holidays often fall during this time of year, and they are of course not Christian holidays. I respect their faith as much as I do my own, and that’s why I always send out “Happy Holiday” cards rather than “Merry Christmas” ones. There are a lot of other things I would like to say to you about your intelligence and heritage, but I won’t because I’m a Christian, you moron.
Chris:
When I read your comment, I assumed I had made some sort of typo or factual error or something like that in my post. But when I went back and reread it — and then reread it again — I didn’t see anything like that. If there is such an error, please point it out to me specifically so that I can correct it.
If, however, you are implying I “come of as uneducated” because I hold an opinion that differs from yours, then we will just have to agree to disagree. And just to clarify, I am most definitely NOT an atheist, but I obviously have a much different definition than you of what it means to be Christian.
Thanks for stopping by Instant Tea.
Horray for Pastor Jeffrees. Keep up the good qwork. Keep Christmas in our vocabalary.
Merry CHRISTMAS to all !!!
Is Pastor Jeffrees studying under Fred Phelps a/k/a The Church of Fred? His majors are surely bigotry and close-mindedness. How appropriate for the Holiday Season, Robert. I’m also wondering if this is a time enhanced photo of the lovely Barbie’s boyfriend Ken. Plastic face with artificial tan and plastic hair? You’re my hero, Robert. Not.
Everyone loved tolerance and free thought a lot. But Rev Jeffress of First Baptist did not. He was against intelligence and reason. Now, please don’t ask why. No one quite knows the reason.
It could be that his head wasn’t screwed on quite right. It could be, perhaps, that his shoes were too tight. But I think that the most likely reason of all may have been that his ____________ was two sizes too small.
Fill in the blank…..
I am so tired of these people watering down OUR special day with their “Happy Holidays” wishes. It’s not about holidays, it’s about the most special, meaningful and beautiful day of the year.
Damn it! Put the FEST back in FESTivus
Rev Robert Jeffressc/o Grinch Alert
Bob, this is Jesus and I’m not very happy with you at the moment. I submitted a nice review for Madame Mary Magdalene’s House of Ill Repute and you have yet to post it. MM has been very good to your lord and savior, if you know what I mean (wink, wink). Hell, after the construction industry crashed and Joe lost his gig she even gave mom a job. But still you deny me. Unless you want to spend the rest of eternity breaking brimstone on a Hades chain gang I suggest you take care of this immediately.
Regards,
Jesus H. ChristLord and Savior
I encourage everybody to visit grinchalert.com and do two things:
First, deluge the site with submissions of FBC-Dallas to their own Naughty list. The fact that they are focusing their resources on something so petty as whether or not a cashier said “Merry Christmas” shows that they have, themselves, missed the true meaning of Christmas.
Second, if your own religious congregation (*cough* COH members *cough*) is engaged in any sort of on-going ministry for the sick, poor, widowed, orphaned, or any other “least of these,” or if they are doing any work toward peace on Earth and goodwill toward Humanity, submit them to the nice list, so that the people at FBC-Dallas can see what Christmas is REALLY about.
I tried to add them to the naughty list too… with this comment: Instead of reaching out and loving the community, they’ve decided to create a naughty and nice list to point out organizations that don’t say Merry Christmas… The life of Christ was to draw people NEAR to him and this church is rejecting and highlighting those who don’t know him yet, causing quite the opposite effect. Also, if you’re going to use the grinch for this, it is wise to remember that the who’s in whoville continued to LOVE eachother AND the Grinch… that is what caused his heart to grow 3 sizes, not them pointing out his lack of Christmas spirit.
Believe what you want and let others believe what they want. This is a multifaceted holiday/season, it’s not JUST about Jesus. But, if Jesus is the ‘reason for the season’, then what does that say about Jesus? What does your issue say about the pettiness of Christians in general and you in particular?
I’m doing my part. I am repeatedly entering FBC as naughty.
Please contact Susan Brandt, Executive VP of Licensing and Marketing of Dr. Seuss Enterprises and complain about the misuse of the “Grinch” Intellectual Property in such a hateful manner by Robert Jeffress and the First Baptist Church of Dallas on the website http://www.grinchalert.com.
Dr. Seuss Enterprises
Attn: Susan Brandt
1200 Prospect St Ste 575
La Jolla, CA 92037-3654
USA
Susan Brandt
Executive Vice President Licensing and Marketing
+1.858.459.9744
susanb@drseuss.com
Happy writing!
I place responsibility for the resulting negative consequences of the site directly on Jeffress, not on all members and employees of the church.
I just took a look at the website. You can review the lists together or separately. The “Nice” list is ten pages long while the “Naughty” list is only two. Based on that, I don’t see where some get the idea there is a “war on Christmas.” Most retail managers and employees don’t want to offend anyone and they are rarely acquainted with each individual customer, so they have no idea what particular holiday they celebrate.
Today, Sunday Dec 19, 2010, in Dr. Robert Jeffress opening of his broadcast sermon, he once again lambasted President and Michelle Obama for not having a nativity scene at the WH. This is in fact a ballfaced lie. The nativity crech is on display in the east room of the white house where it has historically always been. When God looks into this mans heart he will see a liar! How can one little old lady debunk this evil man when he uses his church and the TV airwaves to spew his hate? I changed the channel, but many do not.
I don’t quite understand why there’s so many negative comments. You all claim to be adults yet have nothing better to do then sit around a computer making hateful remarks. Why should it matter to you? If you don’t care about people saying happy holidays over Merry Christmas then why even go the website? I’d say your all pretty immature. If it’s so offensive to say Merry Christmas, then why isn’t it offensive when someone says Happy Halloween? I don’t celebrate the paganistic holiday but I’m not offended when someone tells me. You also wouldn’t be offended if someone told you Happy Hanukkah. It seems like nowadays so called adults have the feelings of two year olds. Why can’t everyone just grow up and stop being annoyed by silly little things. The funny thing is that that website wasn’t made for you who are making negative comments. The fact of the matter is that they probably don’t care that your making these comments, so why waste your time? And also, don’t quote the bible if you don’t know what your talking about lol. Just because you can pin point ONE verse and try to preach it doesn’t mean anything. Read around that verse. Read the rest of the bible. You can’t just make your own interpretation of it hahaha. That was a cute try though. Merry CHRIST-mas!! 🙂 Jesus loves you!