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Video: Kansas churchgoers not messing around

posted at 2:26 pm on December 26, 2008 by Allahpundit
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Yet another reason for atheists to quit being so spiteful: This is what the backlash looks like.

“I know it’s a crazy idea,” said pastor Kelly Lohrke, whose 600 members attend services in Kansas City, Kan., and nearby Lee’s Summit, Mo. “I know it’s a radical idea. Christians can have fun with their faith and sharing their faith.”

Lohrke said he came up with the idea out of frustration over the removal of crosses, nativity scenes and other religious symbols from public view…

“We’ve gotten nothing but positives,” said Lohrke, who has dressed like Jesus at a Starbucks, a Target store and a post office.

Time’s piece on church attendance on Christmas makes an interesting point about pastors increasingly orienting holiday services toward first-time attendees, instead of regular congregants. These guys are just the opposite: Having Jesus sidle up next to you at Wal-Mart might not faze believers, but if you’re a “seeker” who’s thinking of dipping a toe into the Christian pool, you might want to start a little slower than the church where members wear, um, crowns of thorns.

Exit question: If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur, does that mean I have to be drunk all the time?


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Loopy protestants.

NoDonkey on December 26, 2008 at 2:30 PM

My best friend looks like popular images of Jesus. I mean EXACTLY like that. He often jokes about dressing up on Easter morning, standing out on the corner near two large churches near my house, and holding a sign that says, “I AM RISEN!”

Flip the sign over, it says, “WWID?”

Funny guy. : )

capitalist piglet on December 26, 2008 at 2:31 PM

Exit answer: H3ll yes.

Curious, though. I live in Lee’s Summit, and have never seen Jesus (manifestly speaking).

But I think these guy’s efforts would be better spent talking to these folks.

locomotivebreath1901 on December 26, 2008 at 2:39 PM

Time’s piece on church attendance on Christmas makes an interesting point about pastors increasingly orienting holiday services toward first-time attendees, instead of regular congregants.

-heh-

Leave it AP to find something interesting in that steaming pile of tripe.

I mean, imagine my surprise to find that the one service guaranteed to bring in a large amount of non-churched…

…has become a service GEARED toward the non-churched.

Religious_Zealot on December 26, 2008 at 2:40 PM

standing out on the corner near two large churches near my house, and holding a sign that says, “I AM RISEN!”

Flip the sign over, it says, “WWID?”

Funny guy. : )

capitalist piglet on December 26, 2008 at 2:31 PM

Blasphemy! /Obama supporter

baldilocks on December 26, 2008 at 2:46 PM

Umm. . . it’s always amusing when they mix up holidays. They should be all dressed up as BABY JESUS for this holiday. There were no thorns in the manger.

ThackerAgency on December 26, 2008 at 2:49 PM

extreme-worship

Kini on December 26, 2008 at 2:54 PM

ThackerAgency on December 26, 2008 at 2:49 PM

I would not want to see grown men in diapers.
For any reason.

Kini on December 26, 2008 at 2:55 PM

Umm. . . it’s always amusing when they mix up holidays. They should be all dressed up as BABY JESUS for this holiday. There were no thorns in the manger.

So I would imagine you only want booties and baby rattles on your next birthday.

Zaire67 on December 26, 2008 at 2:56 PM

Think Jesus had a “cool” goatee like that guy?

JetBoy on December 26, 2008 at 3:01 PM

Exit question: If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur, does that mean I have to be drunk all the time?

Only on days ending in y.

hillbillyjim on December 26, 2008 at 3:02 PM

Yet another reason for atheists to quit being so spiteful

Here’s another reason. I love the ad on this page on the right. Look how they hook you and reel you in. Time for you to convert, Allah.

Blake on December 26, 2008 at 3:10 PM

I go around smashing a pair of stones.

Hmmm, that didn’t come out right.

Attila (Pillage Idiot) on December 26, 2008 at 3:16 PM

Zealot, you really are kind of a humorless tool. The exact type of sanctimonious fundamentalist who gives Christians a bad name.

dakine on December 26, 2008 at 3:18 PM

I’m willing to bet that those throny crowns have been very, very carefully trimmed. They were probably purchased at a costume shop and made in China.

Pelayo on December 26, 2008 at 3:20 PM

Pelayo on December 26, 2008 at 3:20 PM

Made in China
Sold at WalMart

Kini on December 26, 2008 at 3:23 PM

dakine on December 26, 2008 at 3:18 PM

zzzzzzzzzzzzz…

…huh…what…did someone say something of interest?

Oh, they didn’t? Just more mindless, baseless insults?

Well, then…..

…zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Religious_Zealot on December 26, 2008 at 3:24 PM

Exit question: If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur, does that mean I have to be drunk all the time?

Worse.

It means you have to take up chain smoking, exfoliate regularly, and get your back, sack, and crack waxed.

Blake on December 26, 2008 at 3:36 PM

Loopy protestants.

NoDonkey on December 26, 2008 at 2:30 PM

Yeah, they should be doing something more productive like discovering images of Mary on cheese sandwitches and wood paneling like the Catholics.

Hollowpoint on December 26, 2008 at 3:38 PM

but if you’re a “seeker” who’s thinking of dipping a toe into the Christian pool, you might want to start a little slower than the church where members wear, um, crowns of thorns.

Was that a troll? If so, it worked:

Loopy protestants.
NoDonkey on December 26, 2008 at 2:30 PM

Yeah, they should be doing something more productive like discovering images of Mary on cheese sandwitches and wood paneling like the Catholics.

Hollowpoint on December 26, 2008 at 3:38 PM

unclesmrgol on December 26, 2008 at 3:42 PM

Yeah, they should be doing something more productive like discovering images of Mary on cheese sandwitches and wood paneling like the Catholics.

Hollowpoint on December 26, 2008 at 3:38 PM

*facepalm*

Even as a Catholic, I laughed out loud at that one!

JetBoy on December 26, 2008 at 3:44 PM

I’m willing to bet that those throny crowns have been very, very carefully trimmed. They were probably purchased at a costume shop and made in China. Pelayo on December 26, 2008 at 3:20 PM

They represent the real ones that required the death of the Creator as payment.

Mojave Mark on December 26, 2008 at 3:50 PM

Like I said Zealot…sanctimonious tool.

dakine on December 26, 2008 at 3:54 PM

dakine on December 26, 2008 at 3:54 PM

Oh look, another ad hominem attack.

One would think that there’s enough interesting stuff in the article to discuss/debate…

…but when you can’t do that, I suppose one must resort to strange, intellectually vacuous ad hominem attacks.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Religious_Zealot on December 26, 2008 at 4:10 PM

Religious_Zealot & dakine…

Well, Christmas and the spirit of the season didn’t last long.

JetBoy on December 26, 2008 at 4:14 PM

Gimmicky crap like this gets on my last nerve. We don’t need people to dress like Jesus. We need people to do what Jesus said to do. This pastor ought to be calling on his congregation to spend less time in front of the boob tube and more time volunteering. Don’t dress up like Jesus at the mall; stay out of the mall and give the money they would have spent to a charity instead. If they want to share the gospel, they should try living it.

Laura on December 26, 2008 at 4:14 PM

JetBoy on December 26, 2008 at 4:14 PM

Ah, I guess I shouldn’t be feeding the trolls.

It’s just that this one is such a small, scrawny, under nourished troll that I felt I should feed him a LITTLE bit.

You know, in the spirit of Christmas.

/

Religious_Zealot on December 26, 2008 at 4:19 PM

If they really want to be like Jesus, let’s nail ‘em to a couple of crosses. Then a Roman re-enactor can stick each of them in the gut with a gladius.

Dressing up like this is as phony as it can be.

Pelayo on December 26, 2008 at 4:37 PM

Phew! At least they didn’t go and do something…CRAZY!

ronsfi on December 26, 2008 at 4:39 PM

Kini on December 26, 2008 at 2:55 PM

Even for a cool grand?

ronsfi on December 26, 2008 at 4:42 PM

. Don’t dress up like Jesus at the mall; stay out of the mall and give the money they would have spent to a charity instead. If they want to share the gospel, they should try living it.

Laura on December 26, 2008 at 4:14 PM

Checkbook gospel is fine, but many people suffer in ways other than material. Giving people a chance to have a meaningful discussion with their neighbors is just as important, and if it opens someone’s heart it will have an even greater financial impact in the long run as they start being more charitable.

pedestrian on December 26, 2008 at 4:47 PM

Why don’t we send Jetboy? I’m sure that the Catholic Churches over there approve of his chosen recreational activity.

platypus on December 26, 2008 at 4:53 PM

pedestrian, right before I suggested that people should give more, I said they should volunteer more. Putting on a toga and a funny hat is a frat party, not an invitation to a serious conversation. We had a meaningful discussion about faith with a neighbor when we mowed her lawn for her. Service opens doors that costumes never will, in part because people can see how faith benefits them, and also because gimmicks like this are VERY offputting. (”You mean if I become a Christian I’ll have to do that too? No thanks!”)

Laura on December 26, 2008 at 4:55 PM

Laura on December 26, 2008 at 4:55 PM

My only real issue I would have with this church and this particular activity is if this was the ONLY means of which they were interacting with the community.

If this is IN ADDITION to the work they already do (feeding the hungry, providing clothing, etc.)…

…then I really don’t have too big a problem with it.

Sometimes one has to do something a bit different in order to get people’s attention.

Religious_Zealot on December 26, 2008 at 5:08 PM

Exit question: If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur, does that mean I have to be drunk all the time?

Which differs from now how, exactly? ;-)

Happy holidays, Allah!

nukemhill on December 26, 2008 at 5:15 PM

facepalm*

Even as a Catholic, I laughed out loud at that one!

JetBoy on December 26, 2008 at 3:44 PM

Glad you didn’t take offence- the point of the joke is most religious entities have people who take things a bit too far, or act just plain goofy. Catholic, Protestant, Mormon, Athiest- the actions of one church or individual shouldn’t be used to tar everyone else.

Hollowpoint on December 26, 2008 at 5:18 PM

They just couldn’t wait to show off their Halloween costumes.

RightOFLeft on December 26, 2008 at 5:25 PM

Zealot, I’m not sure you’ve ever posted anything original or interesting on this blog, so the notion of you calling anybody “vacuous” is pretty ironic.

dakine on December 26, 2008 at 5:32 PM

dakine on December 26, 2008 at 5:32 PM

zzzzzzzzzzzzz….

…[wake me up when you've got something, ANYTHING more substantial then pathetic ad hominem attacks]……

…zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Religious_Zealot on December 26, 2008 at 5:35 PM

If you keep spelling Walmart Wal-Mart is it because you are drunk?

Stephen M on December 26, 2008 at 5:37 PM

Stephen M on December 26, 2008 at 5:37 PM

That’s the original name of the chain, and still widely used by the company. In promo material they seldom use the dash, but in legal stuff, the dash is used; it’s the official name.

Laura on December 26, 2008 at 5:46 PM

Allahpundit – he’s as helpful as Leprosy!

grtflmark on December 26, 2008 at 5:47 PM

Exit question: If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur, does that mean I have to be drunk all the time?

That’s much easier than Catholics in the Philippines, some of whom routinely have themselves crucified every year.

Jim62sch on December 26, 2008 at 5:56 PM

Why don’t we send Jetboy? I’m sure that the Catholic Churches over there approve of his chosen recreational activity.

platypus on December 26, 2008 at 4:53 PM

Merry Christmas to ya, platypus!

JetBoy on December 26, 2008 at 6:00 PM

When a sect has abandoned the dominically instituted means of grace, it is left to its own devices and makes stuff up, in a fruitless (and often just plain tacky) effort to arrogate merit. It’s nothing, and leads to nothing– merely a foolish promise to scratch itching ears.

Scribbler on December 26, 2008 at 6:18 PM

Man, I miss my school days. There was a fairly devout Baptist church that would have their children try to get their classmates to come to church by telling them they would go to hell unless they joined that church. Imagine how much more motivated I would have been to dress up like the savior…sorry..that just seems really disrespectful.

It’s one thing to shave your entire body and put some hamburger patties on your chest and say you’re Barrack Obama..but to parade around in a crown of thorns…just doesn’t seem like you’re taking the whole religion thing too seriously.

austinnelly on December 26, 2008 at 6:18 PM

austinnelly on December 26, 2008 at 6:18 PM

Have you ever seen the documentary “Jesus Camp”? It’s unreal what some far-right Fundamentalists do to their kids…

HERE is the trailer, and the entire film is also available to watch on YouTube as well. If anyone has the time, it’s definitely worth a watch.

JetBoy on December 26, 2008 at 6:25 PM

Am I the only one that finds this a mite…cultish?

ronsfi on December 26, 2008 at 6:35 PM

If Jesus came back and saw what’s going on in his name, he’d never stop throwing up.

The Ugly American on December 26, 2008 at 7:27 PM

I’m fed up with the fake or destructive umbrage of Christians over their mythology not being shown in public. Besides the fact that they can freely practice and advertise their mythology, they, and many Americans, need to be informed about the utmost importance of the separation of church and state: http://www.rationalrevolution.net/articles/history_of_the_separation_of_chu.htm

“wall of separation” (Thomas Jefferson)

PeterReaper on December 26, 2008 at 7:35 PM

Exit question: If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur, does that mean I have to be drunk all the time?

Heh. “The leader of one’s sect”.

Jaibones on December 26, 2008 at 7:38 PM

As for the whole Jesus getup, I thought that if you masqueraded as the Lord of Lords, they twisted off your thumbs, or something. When did they stop that?

Jaibones on December 26, 2008 at 7:40 PM

AllahPundit and his attempts to diminish, disparage, and ridicule the Christian faith are SO predictable. Here’s my challenge to the HA readership: Sort back through previous posts regarding Christianity. I predict that you will find that AllahPundit (and others like him — he’s not even original BTW) very nearly ALWAYS draws attention to the “loopy” followers of Jesus, or their behavior, or their “leadership”, or the dogmas and/or histories of Christian churches during the past 2000 years. He is more consistent than Newton’s law of gravitational attraction on this. He RARELY attacks Jesus Himself or the events that the disciples witnessed in the Gospels — and when he does, it’s a drive-by comment in the threads, where he never really sticks around long enough to argue his case. He ALWAYS goes for the easy target — the low hanging fruit. This is why AllahPundit can NEVER be taken seriously on this stuff. His “challenges” are basically cowardly lowball comedy. Anyone, Christians included, can easily laugh off this stuff — even my dog knows why. Tell’em collie:

My collie says:

Pointing out the flaws and mistakes of people that CLAIM to be disciples of Jesus, or pointing out the mistakes that organized religion (aka Christian churches — including the RCC) have made over the centuries says ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about the ministry of Jesus or its value. In fact, precisely BECAUSE Jesus said that His kingdom is not of this world, but rather, a spiritual kingdom, all of the behaviors and events that people like AllahPundit are SO fond of using to bash the Christian faith, only serves to vindicate EVERYTHING that Jesus taught us.

Collie, you’re smarter than you look — in that respect, AllahPundit is exactly like the liberal loons, viz. his rhetoric/policies toward Christianity have EXACTLY the OPPOSITE of their intended effect.

CyberCipher on December 26, 2008 at 7:55 PM

If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur,

Jesus wants us to emulate his love, his holiness, & his faith, not his robe.

jgapinoy on December 26, 2008 at 7:59 PM

“wall of separation” (Thomas Jefferson)

Jefferson signed legislation giving federal paychecks to missionaries. Jefferson worshiped in a church that met in the Capitol building.
The “wall” he wrote of–to the Danbury Baptist Association–was intended to keep the gov’t out of the church’s business only, according to that letter..

jgapinoy on December 26, 2008 at 8:02 PM

Exit question: If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur, does that mean I have to be drunk all the time?

You mean you’re not?

Buford on December 27, 2008 at 10:07 AM

Jeez, Allah! What did you expect to result from the multiple attacks against Christianity on American soil? Tolerance?

Blowback is a bitch, ain’t it!.

DannoJyd on December 27, 2008 at 11:04 AM

An odd way to express one’s faith in Christ, perhaps, but it sure shows more commitment than most have anymore.

Dark-Star on December 27, 2008 at 4:15 PM

Exit question: If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur, does that mean I have to be drunk all the time?

Do you truly believe in Teddy the Red Nosed Senator?

unclesmrgol on December 28, 2008 at 10:46 AM

If emulating the leader of one’s sect is now de rigueur,

Jesus wants us to emulate his love, his holiness, & his faith, not his robe.

jgapinoy on December 26, 2008 at 7:59 PM

Yes, but if you can also do works in his behalf, does that not also count as faith? My point: wearing the robe, which encourages thoughtfulness about Jesus on his birthday, is a work of faith. And, while wearing the costume, one is constantly required to think WWJD thoughts.

I would expect that the net results are positive.

As a Catholic, I fully understand what these people are about, and approve of it.

unclesmrgol on December 28, 2008 at 11:07 AM

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