We all, as Americans, have the luxury of civil rights granted to us by those who fought and died for them. As Christians, we should use these rights to spread the message of God’s love.  Too often do we use these rights for our own gain rather than that of God. People need love, not hate; and the message we give them should reflect that.  Westboro Baptist Church provides us with an example of how we must not abuse what we have been given.

In 2006, the family of Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew A. Snyder honored his memory. Unfortunately, they were forced to listen to the voices of Fred Phelps and his congregation from Westboro Baptist Church yelling at them about God’s judgment and holding signs with highly offensive messages. In this instance the protesters were condemning Snyder’s family because he was a homosexual, but the group held similar protests against other groups they said were being punished by God. Snyder’s family refused to accept such actions as legitimate application of the first amendment rights of the protesters. They sued in court, but were rejected. They appealed to the Supreme Court in October, and on March 2 the Supreme Court issued its ruling. Chief Justice John Roberts read the ruling, stating that “Speech is powerful;” but, despite the offensive nature of what was spoken, the church had followed proper legal regulations and was under “special protection” of the First Amendment because of the public nature of the protests. Justice Samuel Alito cast the only vote of the nine justices in favor of Snyder’s family, stating that he considered the protesters as using their rights to speech and protest to “brutalize” the Snyder family.

            As Christians, what should we take from this? The people of Westboro Baptist Church should sit down for a long Bible lesson, perhaps from the words of Matthew 7:1-2: “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” I am perhaps a hypocrite in saying these words, as I am judging the members of Westboro Baptist Church for what they are doing. We all are sinners. That is the central point of being a Christian. Telling others that they are worse sinners than we are is making a judgment that is God’s alone to make. God created us all for a reason, and loves us all the same. Perhaps it comes down to the old saying, “Love the sinner; hate the sin.” As examples of God’s love, we should treat others as greater than ourselves. We need to do what is God’s will, and not that of our own selfish desires.