We have reached the point now where even appearing to approve of problematic language can land a person in hot water.
Case in point: Alabama’s largest church lost its leases this week after its senior pastor was caught “liking” social media posts by pro-Trump activist Charlie Kirk.
The Associated Press reports that the Birmingham City Schools Board of Education voted Tuesday to end its leases with the Church of the Highlands, which had been holding services inside two high schools. Prior to the reportedly unanimous vote to terminate the leases, the megachurch paid the school district roughly $12,000 per month to hold services. The board has not said why it chose to end its profitable relationship with the Church of the Highlands.
Earlier than that, on Monday, the Housing Authority of the Birmingham District Board of Commissioners voted to terminate its partnerships with the church, including their shared outreach and social services programs. In 2017, the church and the housing authority entered into a memorandum of understanding to launch a number of community-based initiatives, including “mentoring, community support groups, and faith and social service activities that promote volunteerism,” according to AL.com.
In a statement explaining its decision to end its relationship with the church, the housing authority said the views that pastor Chris Hodges “liked” are incompatible with its own.
The trouble for the church started after a local English teacher, Jasmine Faith Clisby, published a note on Facebook outing Hodges as a fan of Kirk. Her social media post included screenshots showing that the senior pastor had “liked” some of the right-wing activist’s social media posts.
“Pastor Hodges only follows about 300+ people, and he chooses to follow Mr. Kirk and continuously likes the hate and misinformation that he spews,” wrote Clisby, who is not a member of the Church of the Highlands. “I can’t stand in judgment and question his faith. However, it’s problematic for me that he uses his platform to support a man with clear biases and limited perspective.”
Elsewhere, in a statement to AL.com, she said, “I would be upset if it comes off as me judging him. It’s not that. I’m not saying he’s a racist. I’m saying he likes someone who posts things that do not seem culturally sensitive to me.”
Clisby said she found it troubling and newsworthy that Hodges would not just follow Kirk but that he would also “like” his social media posts.
“One of the main things Kirk harps on is white privilege being a myth,” Clisby said. “I found something troubling. I can’t see into Pastor Chris Hodges’ heart.”
As for the posts she found offensive, which she included in her original Facebook post, here they are:
Hodges issued a lengthy apology shortly after the media picked up Clisby’s Facebook post, but it seems it was to no avail. City officials have stripped the church of its leases. Now, the Church of the Highlands has lost its homes, and the city of Birmingham has lost several key community outreach and social services programs — all because a pastor liked some fairly innocuous posts on Instagram.
Good work, everyone!
If nothing else, Hodges has been gracious in the face of adversity.
“We want to publicly thank the Birmingham Housing Authority for the opportunity they provided us to serve them over the years,” he said following the board’s vote to end its relationship with the Church of the Highlands. “We continue to support their work and encourage others to do the same.”
