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Claim: A Facebook user, Yekeh Kolubah, alleged that members in the neighbourhood of the New Georgia United Methodist Church were plotting to burn the church over a gay wedding held in the church.
Verdict: False! Some members of the New Georgia United Methodist Church were resisting the removal of the pastor for being anti-gay.
Full Text
On Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024, a story went viral on social media (Facebook) that the New Georgia United Methodist Church was conducting a gay wedding.
Several blogs and Facebook users, including Yekeh Kolubah and Stress-Free Blog, took to their official pages to claim that the church was conducting a wedding between two men.
Facebook user Yekeh Kolubah wrote, “Wedding at Methodist Church between two men. The neighbourhood is bringing gas to light the church and Pastor in New Georgia.”
Some of the comments under this post are seen in the screenshot below.
This post generated over 90 comments, over 40 emojis, and six shares.
Stress-Free Blog also took to its page, saying, “I just got hold of the photos from the Gay wedding that was going on in New Georgia at the Methodist Church. News reached us that they came from the States to get married in Liberia here because their Mom is a Liberian.”
This post, too, had over 50 emojis, 20 comments, and 19 shares.
Verification
DUBAWA had to verify the claim due to its virality and the controversy it generated within the context of the local culture and tradition.
To investigate this, DUBAWA had to find out two things;
- Whether or not there was gay marriage
- Whether or not people in the community were ready to burn the church because of the gay marriage.
To begin with, we contacted the claimants via WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger to prove their respective claims, but they did not respond, as seen in the screenshots below.
The researcher then investigated the claim to ascertain the facts and discovered that normal church activities came to a standstill when some New Georgia United Methodist Church members tried to prevent the removal of their pastor, Rev. Leo T. Mayson.
According to a live Facebook feed of journalist Nyantee Samuel Togba from the grounds of the church compound, there was never a gay marriage conducted. Rather, some church members were resisting the removal of the church’s pastor by the head Bishop of the United Methodist Church of Liberia, Bishop Samuel Quire Jr.
According to Journalist Togba, Rev. Leo T. Mayson’s removal is attributed to his alleged critical stand against same-sex marriage being discussed within the circle of the United Methodist Church worldwide.
Following this incident, the head of the United Methodist Church in Liberia, Bishop Samuel Quire, confirmed to journalists at an elaborate press conference that he had suspended two pastors, Rev. Leo T. Mayson of the New Georgia United Methodist Church and the head Pastor of the 72nd United Methodist Church.
Bishop Quire said that the United Methodist Church in Liberia is not a gay church and will never adopt any such identity. He added that members of the United Methodist Church of Liberia firmly uphold the sacredness of marriage as a union between one man and one woman.
Bishop Quire said, “It was a rumour that I, the Bishop, was going to the New Georgia United Methodist Church to perform a gay wedding between two men, and they got this information on Saturday, and they started sharing it within the community with the intent that the people can come to prevent it.”
Bishop Quire furthered, “All of the pastors of the United Methodist Church are under the appointment of the Bishop, and I had suspended six local church pastors because they complained, but they all have refused to honour their suspension letters.”
The Bishop of the United Methodist Church in Liberia revealed that he was going to the New Georgia United Methodist Church to induct a new pastor. However, when he heard that there was a protest, he did not go again.
Also, the researcher then investigated the photo posted by Stress Free-Blog using a Google reverse image search to authenticate whether or not the photo was indeed taken in Liberia, and it was discovered that the photo was first used on Instagram by one Leo Ayala.
The picture was posted on July 15, 2024, by an Instagram user, Leo Ayala, when his older brother and best friends, James and Jayson, got married. The wedding was held on July 13, 2024, in Gig Harbor, Washington.
Conclusion
Based on the accounts from the incident and the clarity provided by the Bishop of the United Methodist Church in Liberia, Bishop Samuel Quire, the claim made by Facebook user Yekeh Kolubah and the Stress-Free Blog is False..
