Thank God For Albert Snyder & Snyder V. Phelps Lawsuit

Hi there, I have a similar request as the most recent blog post for I am also conducting questions for a research paper. The paper regards the Supreme Court Case Snyder v. Phelps. I have a few additional questions and if you would not mind answering them it would be a huge help to me and my understanding of this case!! The case deals with some of our fundamental rights as Americans and touches on controversial subjects that can only be addressed when all opinions regarding the case have been heard.

1) Please state your name and affiliation with the church.

My name is Paulette K. Phelps and I am a member of Westboro Baptist Church.
2) How long have you been a member? What are the requirements of membership of the church?

I have been a member since September 9, 1984.  The requirements of membership are that you make a confession of faith and that you live a sober, godly life.  The bible set out all the rules for that.

Exodus 20:12 ¶  Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

13  Thou shalt not kill.

14  Thou shalt not commit adultery.

15  Thou shalt not steal.

16  Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

17  Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.

 

James 2:5  Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?

6  But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?

7  Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called?

8 ¶  If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:

9  But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.

10  For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.

11  For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law.

12  So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.

13  For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.

14 ¶  What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?

15  If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,

16  And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?

17  Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

 

We strive against the works of the flesh and are desirous of the works of the spirit and strive to that end.

 

Galatians 5: 13 ¶  For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

14  For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

15  But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

17  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

18  But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

19  Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,

20  Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,

21  Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

24  And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

3) How do you choose which funerals or locations to protest at?

We seek God in all matters with prayer and supplication.

Philippians 4: 6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Heb 11:6  But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Mt 6:33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

We seek wisdom from Our God by prayer; by talking amongst ourselves and by reading the words He has given us in His Holy Word.
4) What other events do you choose to protest at and why?

We believe in getting His words in front of the eyes of as many people as we can.

Mark 13:10  And the gospel must first be published among all nations.

Matthew 24:14  And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

Maximum publication is our goal.  We go where the people are: sporting events, Super Bowl, etc.

We also put the words in front of the kings of this world; those that are in seats of government.  We know the rulers of this world hate this message because it criticizes them in their offices of power.  They hated Christ when he was dwelling on this earth.

Acts 4:26  The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.

Also, when someone like a ‘movie star’ or a person of great power with gifts given to him by The Lord die, say like Steve Jobs.  We preach to the living on those occasions.  There is no hope for those in hell.
5) Which of your core beliefs as a member of the church was directly affected by the Snyder funeral?

That there is great power in prayer.  We prayed for deliverance and we received deliverance.

James 5:16  Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
6) What is typical protocol for these kinds of protests and how long do they last/how many people attend?

Typical protocol?  None really.  It changes from event to event as The Lord deems fit.
7) What are your long term goals as a church organization and how do these types of protests help achieve those goals?

Westboro Baptist Church’s long term goals are to preach to every creature in this world.  Until we have done so Our Lord Jesus Christ will not come back in power and glory to redeem those that are his.

Mark 13: 4  Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?

5 ¶  And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you:

6  For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

7  And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet.

8  For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

9  But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them.

10  And the gospel must first be published among all nations.

11  But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.

12  Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.

13  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

14 ¶  But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains:

15  And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house:

16  And let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment.

17  But woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!

18  And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter.

19  For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.

20  And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days.

21  And then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here is Christ; or, lo, he is there; believe him not:

22  For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

23  But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.

24 ¶  But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,

25  And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.

26  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.

27  And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.

See this excerpt from a sermon of our pastor on many good words on our goals and why the church of The Lord Jesus Christ exists.

“Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka is an Old School or Primitive Baptist church. It has existed in this evil place, called Topeka, Kansas, for more than 57 years; “endur[ing] all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.” 2 Timothy 2:10. And, so far as mankind is concerned, that simple statement from 2nd Timothy is the only divinely authorized reason for any religious institution to exist on this earth, to wit: “to endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.” 2 Timothy 2:10. And, if you think otherwise, it is because your notions of God and your observations of the Bible are flawed and fatally faulty. The churches of Jesus Christ do not have a divine warrant to build hospitals or schools or sanitations systems in third world countries, or in any other of the myriads of extra-scriptural activities that occupy apostate Christianity today. Listen: God is now visiting the Gentiles to take out of them a people for his name.  And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written, that the remnant among the Gentiles, whom I have claimed for my own, may seek the Lord, whose work it is. And, known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. Acts 15:14-18. Applying these profound scriptural principles to Westboro Baptist Church, it goes like this: You evil reprobates who make up the population of this godforsaken place, should understand very clearly, that we have no intention, hope, or expectation whatsoever of winning your doomed and damned souls to Jesus Christ, or saving your evil souls from hell, or any other such stereotypical, frivolous nonsense. We leave all that absurdity to the likes of Jimmy Swaggart and Jerry Falwell and Billy Graham and all the rest of the army of heretics that fill the churches and the airwaves of this silly, depraved country. Listen: Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel:  “Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evil doer, even unto bonds; but the word of God is not bound.  Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us.”  2 Timothy 2:8-12. Don’t you understand what I am saying to you? When God Almighty places one of his true churches, in any given place, at any given time in history, it is for the purpose of reaching the tiny remnant of his elect; who are, by divine providence, living at that place, at that time. And, it is not for the purpose of trying to get everybody saved, or to build huge buildings for reprobates to play religion in; or to build hospitals, or schools, or anything else. God is now visiting the Gentiles to take out of them a people for his name. And that people is a very small remnant, a tiny group of elect souls at any given time at any given place, and all the rest are damned; and this is the work of God, planned and beloved of God from the beginning of the world,”
8) How do you respond to the negativity from the media that has resulted from these protests and what keeps you going?

It is a most welcome token of our calling and election.

2 Peter 1: 10  Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:  11  For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:28  And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.

2 Thessolians 1: 5¶  Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer:

6  Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you;

7  And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,

8  In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:

9  Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;

10  When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.

11 ¶  Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:

12  That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
9) What have you, as an organization, learned from the Snyder v. Phelps decision and how has it since affected your organization? What does it say about the importance of constitutional rights?

It has certainly made us stronger.

Philippians 4:11  Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.

2 Timothy 3: 13  But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

14  But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;

15  And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

16  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

17  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

The Lord God gave this country those laws; amendments and constitutional rights. Every individual-not just those that have pretty, enabling words, but also those that insist on preaching the bible standards this country was founded on, has the same God-given rights.  He worked upon the hearts of those men and women on the Supreme Court and they followed the law (except the dissenter).

We fully expect that someday this land will not bear the words any longer.  They will shut down this little church of nobodies and then will their destruction come.

I understand that these questions may be somewhat similar to the ones already posted but we are required to conduct our own interviews and cannot share with others, which is why I wanted to go into further detail. Thank you for your time and consideration and your answers will give me a much better understanding of your organization’s mission and it’s relation to freedom of speech. I hope to hear back from you soon!

You are welcome.  Thank you for writing.

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