A homosexual group calling itself “Angry Queers” claimed responsibility for smashing nine windows in a church in Portland, Oregon. The damage is estimated to be several thousand dollars. The vandals sent an e-mail laced with obscenities to local television station KOIN-TV stating that the church is anti-gay and anti-woman, adding, “We hope this small act of vengeance will strike some fear into the hearts of all of Mars Hill’s pastors.” The church is one of 14 branch locations of Mars Hill Church, led by pastor Mark Driscoll of Seattle. The church postponed its opening last September after learning LGBT activists planned to protest, and 20 protesters blocked the entrance at the actual opening in October, screaming, “Shame on you homophobes. You’re not welcome here. You’re going to burn in hell.” The church holds what it calls “traditional Bible-based views on homosexuality.” Portland campus pastor ,” Tim Smith wrote, “This certainly saddens us greatly as our pastors in Portland have made many efforts to build relationships with the homosexual community…Even though they chose to destroy our property and scare away people trying to worship Jesus, we wish them no harm…We love Jesus, and we love people. Broken glass and angry vandals aren’t going to stop us from preaching about Jesus.”
