Megachurch pastor rejects his father’s bigotry: Jesus would want you to bake a gay wedding cake

The head of an Atlanta megachurch has rejected his pastor father’s hateful views on homosexuality and says the church should be the “safest place on the planet” for gay young people.

Andy Stanley, who has turned North Point Ministries into one the nation’s largest churches, said Christians must stop driving gay teens away from the church – saying that politics should not overrule biblical teachings, reported Project Q.

“There is not consensus in this room when it comes to same-sex attraction; there is not consensus in this room when it comes to gay marriage,” Stanley told a gathering of church leaders last month in California. “We just can’t continue to look into the filter of our politics at our spirituality. It’s got to be the other way around — and specifically when it comes to this issue.”

His views stand in stark contrast to his father – who once hired armed security guards on horseback to protect his church from Atlanta gay pride marchers.

Charles Stanley, pastor of the First Baptist Church Atlanta, has said AIDS is God’s punishment for America’s acceptance of homosexuality – which he describes as “destructive behavior.”

The anti-LGBT pastor teaches that being gay is a choice that can be overcome, and he said accepting gay people is “disobedience to God.”

His son, however, urged Christians to “take a break” from the culture wars for a year and lead by example.

Megachurch pastor rejects his father’s bigotry: Jesus would want you to bake a gay wedding cake