Here’s another one of those stories that sets the moronosphere frothing, but that turns out upon closer examination to be rather different than the original revelation.

If you rely exclusively on the URQ bloggers, this is a dire tale indeed…a group of “quiet, peace-loving Christians” attend a gay rally to pray silently for the participants, and get arrested…JUST FOR PRAYING SILENTLY!

Here’s a fairly typical account from the “Liars For Jesus” Brigade.

“A trial is scheduled to begin today in Elmira, N.Y., and lawyers for the defendants say it will be a test of whether the First Amendment affirmations of freedom of speech and freedom of religion still are valid in the United States. At issue is the arrest of several Christians at a “gay pride” event is Wisner Park in Elmira in 2007. Julian and Gloria Raven and several others entered the park to pray silently for the participants of the event celebrating homosexual behavior.

“It seems oxymoronic to say that by walking silently in a public park, with heads bowed, these people somehow disturbed the peace,” Oster said. “From the sit-ins of the 1960s to today, courts have repeatedly ruled that the police cannot arrest those who peacefully express their message in public places.”

And if you google any of the key terms in this story, you’ll find literally dozens of indignant folks foaming because these brave Christians were arrested for “praying silently” for the poor lost queers.

Except…sigh…that’s not what happened, of course. There are a few key details omitted from the dozens of fundie sites that are promulgating the expurgated version. However, with a bit of digging, you can find your way to the actual coverage of the event in the local paper, the Elmira Star-Gazette. And a little more detail comes to light - detail curiously omitted in all the moronosphere’s versions.

Turns out that Julian Raven, who led this group of seven (only four were charged), is a well known street preacher and activist, with a style described by another Christian minister in the Elmira Star-Gazette as “militant”.

Raven and seven Christian demonstrators approached the gay pride event wearing red T-shirts with the slogans “Liberated from Sin” and “By the Blood of Jesus.”

Sgt. Sharon Moyer, head of the Elmira traffic bureau, who was on duty at the event, requested that Raven “keep his group across North Main Street in the eastern portion of Wisner Park.”

“”He said he was there to preach the word of God,” Moyer told the court. “I explained he was welcome to be there (at the festival), but he would not be allowed to confront the participants.”

She characterized Mr. Raven’s response to her request as “antagonistic”. His group then moved across the street into the park. Sergeant Moyer did not obstruct them.

However, the group walked to the area directly to the front of the area where the event was being held, lay down in front of the stage, and refused to move until removed by police.

At that point they were arrested and charged with intent to cause a public inconvenience, disturbance of the peace, and obstructing vehicular or pedestrian traffic.

Summary: a shit disturber marches with followers into a gay pride event after having been asked politely by the cops not to, plants himself and fellow demonstrators in front of the stage, lays down, waits to get busted, succeeds, and becomes yet another bogus latter-day Christian martyr among bloggers in the moronosphere too stupid to check their sources or too dishonest to care.

Links to the actual trial coverage:

http://www.star-gazette.com/apps…0/1001/ ARCHIVES

http://www.stargazettenews.com/a…8/1001/ ARCHIVES

http://www.stargazettenews.com/a…8/1001/ ARCHIVES

http://www.stargazette.com/apps/…049/-1/ ARCHIVES

Please debate: are the bloggers who carried the bowdlerized version of this bullshit - the story that claimed that these yahoos were arrested for “praying silently”:

a) Fools
b) Liars
c) Fucking Liars
d) All of the above?

Discuss.