Members of a Kansas church known for protests at the funerals of those who have died of AIDS and of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq say they will be in Red Deer next week.

The Westboro Baptist Church, based in Topeka, says it will speak out against Matchbox Theatre’s production of the Laramie Project.

As a result, planning for a number of counter-protests is also underway.

The Laramie Project tells how the town of Laramie, Wyo., copes the year after gay student Matthew Shepard is killed in 1998. The Westboro Baptist Church is portrayed within the production because the group protested outside the young man’s funeral.

Shirley Phelps-Roper, who is a member of Westboro Baptist Church, said six or seven people from the congregation of 70 will protest at the theatre in Red Deer on Friday, Aug. 8, and Saturday, Aug. 9, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

“The point is that this is where the rubber meets the road,” Phelps-Roper said.

“This is where you stand in your homes, in your churches and in your schools and you teach rebellion against God. That’s the whole point of that play. That Laramie Project has no function, but to teach rebellion to your people. . . .”

Among the signs Westboro Baptist Church members have prepared for their protest are: “God hates Canada” and “Canada is doomed,” as well as a number of signs against homosexuals.

“(The play) teaches rebellion against God and the standards of God and takes your people to hell and brings great wrath upon you,” Phelps-Roper said. “Those are all pretty compelling reasons for not liking it.”

She said it’s the first time the Westboro Baptist Church will visit Red Deer, but they’ve protested the play dozens of times before.

Matt Grue, who is the director of the Laramie Project, said the protest is drawing a lot of attention to the play, but not necessarily the attention they would like. However, he said they won’t let the protest put a dark cloud on the production.

“I believe everybody is entitled to their opinion. I think they have just as much right to express how they feel about the play as we do to put it on,” Grue said.

“What I don’t agree with is their tactics. I think they go a little too far when they condemn Canada, the nation, to hell because of a play like this and when they go around to people’s funerals and they slam this in the face of people who are obviously grieving.”

He said the discussion they want to provoke with the play is if people don’t break the cycle of hate, are they prepared to deal with the consequences?

“What the Laramie Project does is it forces us to examine ourselves and what our beliefs and opinions are and how we might be consciously or unconsciously contributing to the cycle of hate and violence,” Grue said. “So at the very least it provokes that discussion, but (with) the Westboro people coming down here I believe that will just resonate more strongly.”

Many people from different perspectives say they’d rather not see the Westboro Baptist Church protesters at all.

Jill Lanz, with the Central Alberta AIDS Network Society, is one of the organizers of a counter-protest. She said the counter-protesters’ message will be one of peace, acceptance and unity. It’s not about protecting certain members of the community, but about the well-being of the entire community, she said.

“I think what we need to do is make it very clear that their hate and their ignorance is not welcome in Red Deer and it is not a part of what we believe,” Lanz said. She encourages people to drop by the production at 5:30 on Aug. 8 and 9 and bring signs, pictures, poetry and guitars and have a peaceful disagreement.

Phelps-Roper, with the Westboro Baptist Church, said their protests are based on loving thy neighbour as thyself.

“Here is how you do that: you don’t hate them in your heart, but you don’t suffer their sin upon them,” she said. “If you’re not warning them that their sin is taking them to hell, then you hate your neighbour in their heart and you have not loved your neighbour as yourself.”

However, Stephen Boissoin, a former Red Deer pastor, said he thinks the Westboro Baptist Church coming to Red Deer is unfortunate.

“Their interpretation of the scripture and how they choose to manifest that interpretation is a disservice to the Christian gospel of God’s grace. Grace means unmerited favour and unmerited love to all human beings, who are all sinners,” Boissoin said.

Boissoin’s anti-gay letter to the Advocate was ruled by the Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission to have broken Alberta’s human rights law. He said it is unfortunate that in the middle of his appeal to the Court of Queen’s Bench, the Kansas group is coming here. He said it will cause further confusion about what other Christians — like himself — believe, which is that God loves all people equally, but not all of their behaviour.

“(The Westboro Baptist Church members) seem to attack the person and don’t have an understanding of their own unrighteousness,” Boissoin said.

Contact Stacy O’Brien at sobrien@reddeeradvocate.com