Chicago Atheist Billboard Protested by Satirical Comedy Group

The Chicago Coalition of Reason billboard hasn’t evoked the same outrage as similar billboards have done in other areas. But that didn’t stop members of the (comedy group) Best* Church of God from protesting the sign!

The pics, courtesy of nancydukereporting.com, are part of an article about the billboard by Nancy Duke. I like the part when she gets reactions about the message of being “good without God”:

… definitely don’t tell that to homeless man Anthony Martin, who has been a Christian since miraculously living through a two-year coma induced by five bullets to the head in 1979. He was shot in the head five times after being chased down in an alley for $16 three decades ago and was in a coma from 1979 to 1981, he said.

“Was it luck that I lived or was it the grace of God?” Martin said.

A member of the Best* Church of God, Pastor Dave Shepherd, countered.

“Was it God’s grace that 6 million Jews died in the Holocaust?” Shepherd said.

Awkward silence ensued.

Well played, pastor. Well played.

"As they come marching out of their churches with sledge hammers."

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"They would have to come up several steps to be gullible."

Matthew

Or perhaps it was god’s grace that allowed Mr. Martin to be shot in the head multiple times, in a coma for 2 years, and homeless. I can see why he would really appreciate all the wonderful things god has done for him. God truly provides.

/sarcasm
Revyloution

Poes law and all that…

I wonder how many believers drove by and honked with a thumbs up, just because they saw protest signs with the word ‘God’ on it?
littlejohn

Surely we can forgive the delusions of a man with five bullets in his head. Maybe that’s what it takes to be so devout. Not that I recommend it.
Brielle

As I once heard…

People consider you insane if you hear voices in your head, but yet if god speaks to you, its considered a miracle.
Joffan

If God had really been looking after him, the bullets would have missed. Except then he would probably just think he was lucky. Of course, while the bullets not immediately killing him was luck, he lived through the two-year coma because of medical support.

My cynical nature wonders why Martin stole $16 from someone who was fit and armed in the first place…
Revyloution

My cynical nature wonders why Martin stole $16 from someone who was fit and armed in the first place…

Hrm… I assumed he was in possession of the $16 originally, and was assaulted by someone who intended to take it from him.
Feek

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, in your own intelligence rely not” -Proverbs 3:5

That says a lot doesn’t it? 🙂
KeithLM

They should have a woman standing away from the group with a sign referencing god’s views on menstruation.
Carol

This just might be a church I could join! 🙂

Verily, I say unto thee, check out some of Pastor Dave’s Best Church Services and enjoy. The one about “freedom” (7/6) is pretty good. 🙂
AxeGrrl

The pastor should have referred to ALL the people who died in the holocaust.

It always saddens me that the other 6+ million victims ~ all the gypsies, homosexuals, physically challenged people, etc ~ seem to be perpetually forgotten.

Sorry for not being on-topic, but it’s an almost universal omission that boggles my mind.
AxeGrrl

Where’s the “Ex-gays for Jesus” sign? 🙂
Narvi

@AxeGrrl: I agree about the non-Jewish victims. What the Nazis did to (for example) the short, dark-haired (non-Aryan) Eastern Europeans is horrible, but all we hear about is the Jews. I know the Jews were killed in great numbers, but there were other victims as well.
muggle

It always kills me that blacks are never mentioned when talking about concentration camps. With all the emphasis in this country (understandably given our history) on the wrongs to blacks, we almost never hear any mention that they too were put in concentration camps. And it seems like you only occassionally hear about the gypsies and homosexuals.

I didn’t know what to make of this at first! If it was Poe or real nutjobs badly advertising their religion. There’s the irony of Poe for you. So over top but you can think of real religious fundies every bit as over the top.
teammarty

Don’t forget the atheists who died inthe camps too. We wore purple triangles in the camps. Also those who died for just plain old dissent.
Shannon

Teamarty, where did you read that about atheists being identified? I can’t find anything online. From what I can find, purple is said to have been Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Angie

Very clever “protest”. I loved the signs!
Joffan

Revyloution, that’s what the easy reading is, but it doesn’t actually say that in the article. The coy description of the shooting suggests to me that someone is trying to pretty up a nasty incident that doesn’t reflect well on their chosen miracle man.

I told you, I’m cynical.
Randy

People seem to forget Stalin when it comes to mass murder also. Killed more of his own people than Hitler.