Brian Tamaki of destiny Church has claimed to his followers that earthquakes are caused by sins such as people being gay. Quoting the Bible, he says when the earth convulses it is talking to God. Of Christchurch and its disastrous earthquakes six years ago he says that city did anything but live up to its name, being 'a haven for those who were absolutely anti-Christ in every way.” He said in a sermon recorded last Sunday that it was the “representative from that city who first put in motion gay marriage in this country in 2003,” an apparent reference to the support of then-Labour MP for Christchurch Central, Tim Barnett's highly public support for the ultimately successful Civil Unions bill In a blog posted after the sermon he wrote: "No other sin in the whole of the bible has any connection to earthquakes, floods and volcanic eruptions, but sexual perversions alone." Tamaki also says he warned people of the forthcoming earthquake in an “inspired moment” before starting his sermon on Sunday. Bob Parker, mayor of Christchurch at the time of the Christchurch quakes says Tamaki's sermon is “utterly disgusting” and “removed from reality.” He also accuses the clean-shaven and appearance-conscious Tamaki of hypocrisy as, according to the part of the Bible he drew on in the sermon, Leviticus, “he should be wearing a beard, not cutting his hair and sacrificing animals on a fairly regular basis.” Tamaki has regularly heaped abuse on glbti people throughout his highly lucrative career as the founder and leader of Destiny Church. In 2004 he infamously led his fist pumping male followers in Auckland and Wellington marches against Civil Unions. After the embarrassing total failure of a campaign to have a political party connected with Destiny voted in to Parliament to 'take over the government of the country' Tamaki and Destiny were relatively quiet during the debate around the successful Marriage Equality bill. Following a controversial appearance at a Wellington function for transgender icon and former MP Georgina Beyer Tamaki and his pastor wife actively played down his past anti-gay rhetoric.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Wednesday, 16th November 2016 - 4:34pm