Biblical Billboards Near Strip Clubs, Abortuaries, Throw down the Gauntlet to Culture of Death
By Kathleen Gilbert
KALAMAZOO, Michigan, December 15, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Billboards proclaiming Bible verses against pornography, abortion, and homosexuality have popped up around the city of Kalamazoo, and their placement next door to offending establishments is sending the message with sniper precision.
One billboard silently condemns two strip clubs across the way with the message: "Anyone that looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Matthew 5:28."
"Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman: that is detestable. Leviticus 18:12," proclaims a second billboard near two bars popular among homosexuals.
Another, aimed at a nearby Planned Parenthood abortion clinic, reads, "How is an unborn baby not a human being? Jeremiah 1:5."
Meg Smillie, chief operating officer at Planned Parenthood of South Central Michigan, said the nearby billboard is "not something we agree with."
"Billboards are expensive and the money could be used in a more effective way of preventing the need for abortion," Smillie said.
Each billboard starts with the words "God said" and displays the website JesusChrist1st.com, which discusses faith in Christ and the biblical imperatives against abortion and homosexuality. Creator Shawn Arnett, a non-denominational Christian who says he isn't affiliated with any church, felt called by God one evening to launch the billboards and website that he had contemplated for some time.
"One Sunday I prayed. I asked God if it was really him, and to give me a definite sign," Arnett said. He described an encounter with a Southern gospel singer who mentioned that God speaks to people through the Internet, and Arnett said at that moment God "put it on my heart" to start the website.
Arnett hopes to purchase more billboards in the future.
