By james art 
Alabama Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth says the recent actions of a Birmingham church do nothing to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ.
“Churches should spread the gospel, offer messages of God’s love and share the life of Christ, not threaten, intimidate and insult those who exercise their right to vote and support the candidate who is best for them,” said Ainsworth on X. “Those responsible for this sign should be ashamed.”
Churches should spread the gospel, offer messages of God’s love and share the life of Christ, not threaten, intimidate and insult those who exercise their right to vote and support the candidate that is best for them. Those responsible for this sign should be ashamed.
— Will Ainsworth (@willainsworthAL) October 31, 2024
Ainsworth was responding to a sign put up by New Era Baptist Church, a predominantly black congregation in the city’s West End neighborhood, that had inflammatory remarks about African-American men who might support Donald Trump for president.
The lieutenant governor discussed the issue Monday on WVNN’s “The Yaffee Program.”
“Churches are there for worship, they’re there for discipleship … certainly not to engage in politics just with crazy lies trying to scare people into thinking slavery is coming back,” Ainsworth said. “I mean, it’s one of the worst things I’ve ever seen, maybe not the worst, but certainly from a simple church lie, right? I mean this is not a good image and it really offended me when I saw it.
Ainsworth emphasized that sending these kinds of messages should not be the goal of the local church.
“And I think from a church perspective, their goal should be how can we help lost people,” he said. “How can we help people become more like Christ, not how to spread lies. And try to use fear to sway the presidential race.
He also claimed that even though the message was in bad taste, he still thinks Trump will win the election.
“I think it’s hateful, and certainly probably ignorant as well,” he said. “And I haven’t talked to them, so I don’t know exactly what his goals are, but I just know it’s the right thing to do, which we certainly don’t need in Alabama, we don’t need in our country, and there’s not going to be any benefit. But I really feel good about the presidential race, about the Republicans taking the Senate, and one of the reasons for that is the economic problem. And people are tired of what’s going on in the economy. They are tired of inflation. They are tired of what is happening at the border.
Yaffee is a contributor to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays from 9 to 11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on X @Yafi
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