SERMON SLATED
A millionaire pastor is under fire over a sermon in which he claimed he was a victim because he was ‘‘white and old’’, called George Floyd a ‘‘villain’’ and said bisexuals were ‘‘gutless’’.
Murray Watkinson is the founder of Christchurch’s Celebration Centre church based in Wainoni.
The offending sermon, preached on June 9, has resulted in some members of the congregation refusing to go back and calling on others to leave as well.
In a 50-minute video of the service, seen by The Press, Watkinson said some of the issues he had addressed over the years had been ‘‘somewhat uncomfortable’’. ‘‘I do want to continue to be controversial and upset people if possible.’’
He then spoke about divorce statistics which showed over 50 per cent of marriages did not last.
‘‘If you can actually stand in covenant, in relationship, in commitment for a lifetime, you’re becoming a minority. So if you’re a minority then you might also be a victim.
‘‘I feel I might be a victim. I’ve been married too long, I’m also a victim because I’m white and old and have some financial substance.’’
Christchurch rapper Lucas Fahey calls on Pasifika and Ma¯ ori church members to leave.
Nearly 20 minutes into his preaching Watkinson talked about the death of George Floyd, who died on March 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into his neck for more than eight minutes.
Watkinson said Floyd had been ‘‘lifted up as a hero’’, but he had also had several stints in jail. ‘‘This ain’t no saint, he’s a villain.’’
Watkinson then talked about division, and referred to people who want to be bisexual, and ‘‘whites that pretend to be black or brown’’.
‘‘You’ve got half of the young people in society that they want to be black.
‘‘Yo man, they’re pants are down here ... They’ve got the black clothes, the black hair, the black attitude going on bro. They’ve got it all going on and you look at them and you think, ‘oh my goodness’. Talk about an identity crisis.’’
Members of the congregation can be heard laughing through his service. He then says it’s ‘‘so uncool’’ to be heterosexual, and says people who are bisexual ‘‘don’t know who they are’’.
‘‘I reckon they’re gutless, they don’t want to offend anybody, so they’re going to go every which way. We’re neither black, we’re not white. We’re neither righteous or ungodly, we’re not this, we’re not that. We don’t know who we are.’’
He goes on to say that at present ‘‘whites are the villains in the world’’.
‘‘The rich are villains, employed are villains, educated.’’
The pastor went on to say US President Donald Trump was ‘‘entertaining’’, and commended his stance against abortion. ‘‘Good on you Donald,’’ he said.
Watkinson has approached for comment.
Trina Watkin, a former leader in the church, said the service was a ‘‘complete misrepresentation’’ of the message Watkinson should be delivering.
‘‘I was so sad when I heard what he said and sad when I heard people laughing.’’
Watkin left the church about five years ago due to an ‘‘internal the the
been struggle’’ between what she was being told and what she knew was right. She was not surprised by Watkinson’s comments.
‘‘This is the bigoted Murray. The difference is people have different ears on now. People are saying ‘oh no, that’s not OK,’’ she said.
‘‘It was a deep sadness that everything that we enjoy as Pacific Islanders and Ma¯ori you would then chose to be in a space that abuses you.
One of those at the service, who declined to be named, said the preaching left a lot of people offended and hurt.
‘‘He was racially inappropriate and portrayed non-whites as lesser humans and joked and ridiculed people of colour ... his rant went on to include gays and bisexuals as well as transexual.
‘‘I have lots of really good friends in that church but it won’t be enough for me to attend again.’’
Christchurch rapper Big Sima, aka Lucas Fahey took to Facebook to call on all Pasifika and Ma¯ ori church members to leave.
‘‘This is your moment to truly show your solidarity in the face of white pride and privilege.’’
Fahey said he was concerned to hear people laughing at Watkinson’s ‘‘racist rhetoric’’.
‘‘It’s as dangerous as a loaded gun, they’ve got blind faith and will believe anything someone in a position of authority will tell them.’’
‘‘This is your moment to truly show your solidarity in the face of white pride and privilege.’’