JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (ABP) — A Baptist church in Florida is once again creating tension with its Muslim neighbors over a marquee message.
A sign posted outside First Conservative Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Fla., reads, "God loves you, Allah hates."
A local television station interviewed a Muslim woman who said she took offense. "What have I done?" asked the woman, who is not identified. "What have I done to deserve that kind of hatred in my neighborhood?"
She said she was driving by the church with her children when the sign caught her attention. "The thing that bothers me so much is that this is in my neighborhood, where I live with my children," she said. "To know that people that feel this way are in my neighborhood is scary."
It isn't the first time the independent Baptist church has grabbed attention with its marquee, which is updated regularly to confront passersby with messages about doctrinal, social or world-religion issues.
"We find it an integral part of communicating the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ," Pastor Gene Youngblood says on a website, Truthsthatfree.com.
In 2005 the church made news by posting a sign that read "Islam is evil and believes in murder, Surah 9-29" contrasted with, "Jesus teaches peace, Matt. 5-9."
In 2003 local Muslims were upset when the church sign read "Jesus forbade murder Matthew 26-52 Muhammad approved murder Surah 8-65."
Youngblood says on his website that he loves Muslims and would like to see many of them accept Christ, but the sign's purpose is to warn people of "false teachers" and "untruth from theologically unsound doctrine."
Since displaying the sign, he said, the church has received threats and vandalism but added, "We stand firmly on our First Amendment right: The freedom of speech is fundamental to American liberty."
Fawad Mansoori, president of the Jacksonville chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said Muslims also cherish the idea of free speech, but signs like this misrepresent facts and demonize fellow Americans.
"At times like these we as Americans must come together to solve our common problems — from a faltering economy to a dying planet," Mansoori said. "Religious institutions should take extra measures to bring people together by emphasizing the fact that what we have in common is far more important and meaningful than what divides us."
Mansoori said all three Abrahamic faiths believe in one true deity, and that “God” and “Allah” refer to the same being. "The 'Elohim' of the [Hebrew] Bible is linguistically the same as 'Allah,'" he said. "In fact Arabic-speaking Christians refer to God as ‘Allah.’"
Barbara Denman of the Florida Baptist Convention said First Conservative Baptist Church isn't affiliated with the state group or the Southern Baptist Convention.
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