NC Pastor Who Told Congregants to Punch Their Effeminate Children Claims It's What Jesus Would Have Said
The North Carolina pastor who came under fire yesterday for telling his congregation to beat their male children if they exhibit effeminate behavior told a local TV station he was simply being hyperbolic like Jesus.
Rev. Sean Harris, senior pastor at Berean Baptist Church in Fayetteville, dedicated Sunday's service to the promotion of North Carolina's proposed same-sex marriage ban, the so-called "Amendment One."
During his 55-minute sermon, Harris repeatedly called on worshipers to "squash" their son's "girlish behavior," and "give him a good punch" if he starts "acting like a female." Same goes for daughters who start "acting too butch."
"If I had to do it again, would I say it differently, yes I would," Harris told WRAL-TV. (And he ain't lying: Good As You discovered that Pastor Harris "cleaned up" his sermon transcript after it went viral.)
His excuse for encouraging violence against children? It's what Jesus would have done:
He says Jesus often used hyperbole. For example, "If your eye causes you sin, pluck it out," as written in scripture.
Pastor Harris says he was employing the same technique.
But despite the scrubbed transcript and excuses, Harris refuses to retract his main message. "The Bible makes no compromise on effeminate behavior," he said. "God created you a male, God created you a female. If you were created a male, you are to act like a man."
And if you were created a douche, you apparently have no choice in that matter either.
