Phelps says he is an old school
Baptist, which includes
John Calvin's doctrine of
unconditional election, the belief that
God has elected certain people for salvation before birth.[
citation needed]
Two of his sons, Mark and Nate, insist that the church is actually a carefully planned
cult that allows Phelps to see himself as a
demigod, wielding absolute control over the lives of his family and congregants, essentially turning them into slaves that he can use for the sole purpose of gratifying his every whim and acting as the structure for his delusion that he is the only righteous man on Earth.
[18] In 1995, Mark Phelps wrote a letter to the people of Topeka to this effect; it was run in the
Topeka Capital-Journal.
[19] The children's claim is partially backed up by B.H. McAllister, the Baptist minister who ordained Phelps. McAllister said in a 1993 interview that Phelps developed a delusion wherein he was one of the few people on Earth worthy of God's grace and that everyone else in the world was going to Hell, and that salvation or damnation could be directly obtained by either aligning with or opposing Phelps. As of 2006, Phelps maintains this belief.
[18] Phelps and his family picket approximately six locations every day, including many in Topeka and some events farther afield. On Sundays, up to 15 churches may receive pickets.
[20] By their own count, WBC has conducted over 30,000 pickets, in all 50 states, in over 500 cities and towns.
[21] Their travel budget exceeds $200,000 annually.
[22]Click to expand...
