An Alabama pastor who has been fired from his job allegedly for inviting black children to church is claiming that he is receiving plenty of support.
Pastor Jonathan Greer, 26, told AL.com that he's been "flooded with support" after deacons at Mt. Sterling Baptist Church in Butler voted to oust him from the church.
The firing happened after he invited black children to the church's Vacation Bible School.
Greer said he was "told explicitly in a meeting with deacons that the church did not want me to invite black people to church."
"There was pushback about where the types of children we were bringing in, and I was asked to not invite black children to VBS," Greer told WTOK.
Church deacon Freedie Moore denied the accusation, saying the reason why Greer was fired was because he would not work with deacons and that he would not visit members of the church.
"This was a particular deacon that asked me, and ultimately, two deacons that had asked me not to invite black people," said Greer.
Moore says everyone is welcome to the church but Greer disagrees.
"What they really mean is that someone can wander in off the street and they won't stop them, but they specifically asked me, explicitly, not to invite black people. I tried to communicate with them that that's not consistent with Christianity," said Greer.
He added that the deacons wanted him to resign but chose not to based on church bylaws. His last church sermon was about racism.
"I wanted the church to know that this is not consistent with the gospel. This is not consistent with God's Word that we honour and give dignity to all people. That's what the Bible teaches us, and all people are worthy and in need of the gospel, and racism denies that to a certain amount of people," Greer said.
Greer served as the church's pastor for one year and six months.
He is hoping "to eventually find a church to pastor but I'm taking a break right now and not committing to anything."
