Christian James Lhuillier/FacebookA pastor has been filmed demanding that a person in drag leave his church in Chicago and ‘put on man clothes’.
The footage shows pastor Antonio Rocquemore of Power House International Ministries addressing somebody in the audience cannot be seen.
The pastor begins by requesting that the unidentified person leave his church, before going on to talk for three minutes about why he won’t allow it.
The video was posted to Facebook by Christian James Lhuillier on Monday (November 12), with an accompanying message saying he was ‘tired of this sh*t.’
He wrote:
In a place that is supposed to be a place of change a place of deliverance whatever you want to call it why would you destroy someone in front of a room full of people. This is the kind of bullsh*t that causes people to go home and commit suicide.
In the week since it was posted, the video has gained thousands of likes and has been viewed more than 500K times, causing outrage among those who watch it.
You can watch the video below:
#longpostalert Some of y’all are going to have to excuse my language but I am tired of this shit. In a place that is supposed to be a place of change a place of deliverance whatever you want to call it why would you destroy someone in front of a room full of people. This is the kind of BS that causes people to go home and commit suicide. This is the reason that the church has no power in 2018 because they are so worried about the wrong things. I know drag queens and transsexuals that can pray you out of sickness faster and some of these preachers that collect your love offerings every Sunday. We spend too much time trying to make ppl comfortable in church on some BS that I truly believe that Is on the bottom of gods list if it’s there at all. Hear me and hear me well I know a lot of you do not agree with the way that I live my life notice I didn’t say choose! I was made this way. If it makes you uncomfortable avoid me but keep your comments thoughts and prayers on that topic to yourself I don’t need them me and God are OK. I would have turned that church clean out do you hear me!!!!!!!!! It’s time for us to stand up for what we believe and stand in our truth and walk away from these ministries that bash who we are. Too many illegitimate relationships have been created trying to conform to a mold you were never meant to fit. I have a great deal of respect for the house of God. But I wish upon wishes upon wishes that had been me. The city of Chicago would never forget my name!
Posted by Christian James Lhuillier on Monday, 12 November 2018
Rocquemore can first of all be heard asking the person to stand out in the aisle, singling them out so he can address them.
He then goes on to say:
Can you leave my church and go put on man clothes? And don’t come here like that no more. I hold a standard in here. Whatever you do on the outside is your business, but I will not let drag queens come in here. If y’all gonna come in here you’re gonna dress like a man.
Throughout his speech, people in the church can be heard shouting ‘thank you Jesus,’ ‘Amen,’ and ‘Hallelujah,’ suggesting that they agree with everything the pastor is saying.
Rocquemore keeps reiterating that the person can do whatever they like on the ‘outside,’ implying that he only has a problem with people dressing in drag inside his church.
He states:
I don’t bash, I don’t judge, but when you come in here you will not be a drag queen. With the holy ghost and my spirit [unknown] drag queen sitting here with wigs on, I’m gonna ask you to be removed from the sanctuary cause we can not, I will not play this game.
Again, people applaud him and he doesn’t need any more encouragement to continue his spiel, saying he ‘doesn’t care’ if people don’t clap or if people don’t like what he is saying. He tells people to stay away from his church if they don’t like his methods.
He then addresses the person again, saying he will not be fooled by their wig because he has ‘the holy ghost for real’ and therefore can pick up on spirits.
Continuing to speak, he says:
That’s a man, that’s not a woman… If I know you’re a man with a wig on, I either gonna snatch that wig off or you gotta get up out of here… You not gonna wear no heels in here…
Anyone who knows my preaching you know I don’t call f*gs, I don’t do no bad sh*t because everyone is struggling with something. But what I’m not gonna do is allow you to disrespect the house of God because that I can’t do.
Before ending by telling his congregation they can spread this all over the world, and to ‘tell every drag to come and try me cause I stand for holiness.’
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A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).