An Australian church was told that they could not use the word “Jesus” in their advertisements for their Easter church events.
The Daily Mail reports that Elim Church in New South Wales, Australia paid for digital signs which they wanted to display at Erina Fair shopping center. The signs were to read “the greatness of His Power. Jesus is Alive!”
The shopping center manager, however, told Martin Duffy, the pastor of the church, that the word “Jesus” was offensive and would have to be replaced with “Risen Christ.”
But, argued Duffy, “The phrase 'Jesus is alive'... is the core message of the Christian faith and what Easter's really all about.”
“It's a good message. I think there's a minority group out there that are constantly distorting the message of Jesus Christ. It's just going on and on,” he continued.
The manager of the shopping center, Lendlease, has since reversed the decision and will allow the word “Jesus” to be printed on the church’s sign.
“It was an error of judgment to ask Elim Church to change its messaging, and we apologise unreservedly,” they said. “Lendlease values diversity and inclusion, and we welcome people of all backgrounds at our shopping centres.”
Photo courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
Publication date: March 16, 2018
