The Rose Parade is an American tradition and one watched all over the nation. The conservative American Family Association has issued a warning that the Parade may not be suitable for children to watch because a same sex marriage ceremony will be conducted on one of the floats during the parade.
From the AFA website:
Millions of television viewers will see two homosexual men take wedding vows on a float that will celebrate same-sex marriage.
Rather than risk exposing your children to the blatant promotion of a sinful lifestyle this Wednesday morning, we urge your family to simply skip watching the entire network televised parade altogether.
TAKE ACTION
Send a message to William Flinn, executive director of the Rose Bowl Parade, letting him know that you will not be tuning in to see this “in your face” promotion of homosexuality.
Here’s some great news!
Because of your efforts, A&E network has reversed its decision to suspend Phil Robertson from Duck Dynasty. More than 67,000 AFA supporters signed our petition to A&E, calling for the reversal.
“Duck Dynasty” patriarch Phil Robertson will return to work on A&E’s reality show despite his truthful and biblically-based comments about gay homosexuality.
SaveCalifornia has also come out warning about the parade:
The 2014 Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California, will feature the “wedding” of two men and will take place aboard a float sponsored by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. Millions of television viewers around the world as well as the hundreds of thousands along the parade route will see Aubrey Loots and Danny Leclair take wedding vows on a float that will celebrate same-sex marriage and proclaim that same-sex marriage helps reduce new HIV infections among homosexual men.
Randy Thomasson of SaveCalifornia.com laments that the 125th observance of the New Year’s Day parade has left its original intent.
“[At the beginning] it was pro-family and it was about God’s creation of flowers and fauna,” he says, “and now look what it’s become: against family values and against God’s natural design of sex and family.”
The theme of the AHF float – “Love is the Best Protection” – is a play on the theme of the 2014 Roses Parade, which is “Dreams Come True.” Thomasson finds the whole presentation offensive.
The folks at SaveCalifornia are wrong about the history of the Tournament of Roses and love as a family value.
This (the Rose Parade) event began as a promotional effort by Pasadena’s distinguished Valley Hunt Club. In the winter of 1890, the club members brainstormed ways to promote the “Mediterranean of the West.” They invited their former East Coast neighbors to a mid-winter holiday, where they could watch games such as chariot races, jousting, foot races, polo and tug-of-war under the warm California sun. The abundance of fresh flowers, even in the midst of winter, prompted the club to add another showcase for Pasadena’s charm: a parade would precede the competition, where entrants would decorate their carriages with hundreds of blooms. The Tournament of Roses was born.
“In New York, people are buried in snow,” announced Professor Charles F. Holder at a Club meeting. “Here our flowers are blooming and our oranges are about to bear. Let’s hold a festival to tell the world about our paradise.”
During the next few years, the festival expanded to include marching bands and motorized floats. The games on the town lot (which was re-named Tournament Park in 1900) included ostrich races, bronco busting demonstrations and a race between a camel and an elephant (the elephant won). Reviewing stands were built along the Parade route, and Eastern newspapers began to take notice of the event. In 1895, the Tournament of Roses Association was formed to take charge of the festival, which had grown too large for the Valley Hunt Club to handle.
Jesus predicted that just before His return as Judge, there will be a strange, dangerous fad – a spontaneous global steamroller notable for its speed, violence, and impudent in-your-face openness. In Luke 17 He called this worldwide craze the repeat of the “days of Lot” (see Genesis 19). By fulfilling this worldwide mania that’s secretly coordinated by unseen spirit beings, gays are really hurrying up Christ’s return and making the Bible even more believable!
They’ve actually invented strange architecture: closets opening not on to bedrooms but on to Main Streets where kids can see naked men having sex in “Madam” Nancy Pelosi’s San Francisco Brothel District. We wonder how soon S.F.’s underground saint – San Andreas – will get a 10-point jolt out of what goes on over his head (see the dire prediction about cities in Revelation 16:19, and Google “Obama Supports Public Depravity”).
What’s really scary is the “reprobate mind” phrase in Romans 1:28. A person can sear his conscience so much that God finally turns him over to S, the universal evil leader whose unseen agents can give a “possessed” person super-human strength that many cops with tasers have trouble subduing!
Remember, gays don’t have to stay bound to their slavery. Their emancipation is found in a 5-letter name starting with J (no, not James or Julia). As soon as they can find out the all-powerful J name, gays will really start living! (Google “God to Same-Sexers: Hurry Up,” “USA – from Puritans to Impure-itans,” and “The Background Obama Can’t Cover Up.”)
Was Jesus silent about gays? Google ” ‘Jesus Never Mentioned Homosexuality.’ When gays have birthdays….”
There are actually no references to gay marriage in the Bible nor in the Constitution. The Bible does condone slavery, rape, the murder of non-believers and so on….
Tell me Aaron, during the holidays, did you have any bacon-wrapped shrimp or scallops? Do you have any tattoos?
The parade can obviously do as they please with who and what they decide is appropriate for their event, but in my opinion this was not necessary. Why can’t the parade simply be a fun event for all and void stay void of any social commentary or display? The above religious post about the ‘gays’ was absurd.
The parade has a wedding every year. The couple was chosen at random in a lottery, as they do every year, and this year, again, as I said, AT RANDOM, a same sex couple was chosen, amongst thousands of couples both opposite and same sex.
So I’m really confused when you say, “Not necessary.” Should gay people be banned from being chosen and it should only be a straight couples who are allowed to be picked? It is “social commentary” to treat gay people just like you do straight people?
Yeah, I’m sure it was very ‘random’. I got a bridge to sell if you are interested. My point was that political statements (whether they be social or not) are not necessary for an event like the rose parade. I have a question for you Joe. What do you think the general motive is for all who both attend the parade and view it on TV? Call me crazy, but I’m thinking it’s to celebrate the new year watching some amazing flower covered floats. Does everything need to have a social commentary. I’d say no.