Graffiti at Focus on the Family references Club Q Shooting
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Focus on the Family is the target of graffiti referencing the Club Q shooting.
Someone spray-painted the sign in front of the Colorado Springs-based Christian organization. The message reads: "Their blood is on your hands. Five lives taken."
It's an apparent reference to the mass shooting at the gay nightclub, Club Q, where five people died Saturday night.
Jim Daly, the President of Focus on the Family, released a statement in response to the graffiti to KRDO NewsChannel 13:
"We recognize the community is hurting in the aftermath of the reckless and violent actions of a very disturbed individual. This is a time for prayer, grieving and healing, not vandalism and the spreading of hate. Focus on the Family is privileged to be one of many organizations in our city positioned to help and support the needs of struggling individuals and families. The families of the five individuals killed in Saturday night's senseless attack are in our prayers. We urge everyone to pray for peace and we also pray for the individual or group responsible for this mischievous and unwarranted defacing of our ministry's property."
Jim Daly, Focus on the Family
Focus on the Family is known for its public stance against same-sex marriage and other LGBTQ issues. Thursday evening, the writing was covered with a trash-bag-like material, but it blew off in the wind.
The organization's website has numerous "resources" for sexuality. That includes adultery, biblical manhood, dating, marriage crisis, homosexuality, and sexual identity.
Under the resources for homosexuality and sexual identity, there are video links, book recommendations, and more for parents and people looking for a "Christian" perspective.
In one of the organization's PDF handouts, Focus on the Family writes:
"The Bible also teaches that sin has entered the world and affects every area of life. Sin causes disconnection and separation from God and others. It also causes disconnection and brokenness within. “I’m a woman in a man’s body” is just one example of the effect of sin in our world. The errors taught by transgender activists, and believed by many today, are likewise a result of sin and deception entering into the world. The good news is that God made a way to deliver us from sin, through His Son, Jesus Christ!"
In another PDF handout, Focus on the Family encourages parents to tell their children that "Sin has confused them; they need God's help to follow Him," when discussing same-sex couples.
In an article published on Focus on the Family's website in 2016, it writes that "‘Gender Identity’ Laws Place Everyone at Risk." It goes on to claim, "Transgender-identified and gender dysphoric individuals are not necessarily more dangerous than anyone else. However, these laws and policies allow dangerous individuals open admission to public accommodations."
The article is written by Jeff Johnston. His biography for Focus on the Family says he's an Issues Analyst who "regularly shares his story of struggling as a Christian with same-sex attractions and how God brought healing and change to his life."
