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This past Sunday, a Dallas "church" found itself at the center of a firestorm of controversy as it hosted drag queens for a service during Dallas “Pride Weekend”. The gathering had a plethora of children in attendance. There was an absence of scriptural readings, instead opting to celebrate drag queens. The event also featured mockery directed at the Catholic Church and an astonishing announcement that they intended to adopt the "Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence" as their official nuns. To top it off, offerings were collected for the drag queens, all while the event's message purported to be about "love," a word that is being used to mask an implicit endorsement of sinful behavior.
One of the most contentious aspects of this event was the overt praise showered upon the drag queens. There wasn’t a single scriptural teaching, instead the event instead lavished admiration on these performers. Moreover, there was an abundance of mockery aimed at the Catholic Church, as the church leaders even expressed a desire to formally recognize the "Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence" as nuns. Nuns as we know are supposed to be abstinent and refrain from sexual desires, but a “sister of perpetual indulgence” was caught allegedly publicly masturbating just a few weeks ago, which doesn’t exactly fit the description.
Equally as troubling was the collection of offerings for drag queens. The donations are to be put towards the “drag defense fund” which would help drag queens going through financial hardship due to the lack of venues willing to host them. After the offering took place they were invited on stage where the attendees said a pledge to be allies and defend them.
The pastor took time to mock Ken Paxton because of his recent trial, even though he won. The laugh that the congregation had at the joke brought feelings of a satanic presence in the room. They, of course, are mocking him because he is highly against these sexually guided drag shows for children in the state of Texas.
The central message from the preachers were the concepts of “family values” and “love”. They claimed that the religious right has “hijacked” the meaning of family values. That family values just means to love and accept whatever your child wants to be/do. Not punish or teach them that what they’re doing is wrong, but accept them as they are.
Furthermore, reports emerged of individuals feeling ostracized or excluded due to their viewpoints during the event. One attendee, a social media personality that goes by “Bodittle” as well as a TFP volunteer, were physically removed from the church while attempting to engage in conversation and “just ask questions''. Reports say that the police officer that removed them said that she “hopes they trip and fall over a rope” on their way being escorted out. It was a hostile environment for anyone that was skeptical of this gathering.
In summary, the Dallas "church's" decision to host a drag queen event during Pride Weekend has ignited a fierce debate about the sanctity of religious spaces and the erosion of traditional values. These lost souls are not following the same God we follow but a false, made up one that followers of Christianity see as a betrayal of the fundamental tenets of their faith.