At Wake, Pastor Calls Mother To Cancel Her Son’s Funeral – Because He Was Gay

A Tampa church reneged on burying a legally-married gay man less than 24 hours before his scheduled funeral.

Pastor T.W. Jenkins of Tampa, Florida’s New Hope Missionary Baptist Church called Julie Atwood less than 24 hours before her 42-year old son, Julion Evans, was to be buried. She was standing at his casket during the wake when her phone rang. Pastor Jenkins told her that even though his church had agreed to bury her son, even though she and her son both grew up in his church, her son could not be buried there because he was gay. He reportedly used the word “blasphemous.”

“It was devastating,” Atwood told WFLA. “I did feel like he was being denied the dignity of death.”

Evans’ husband, Kendall Capers, says the pair were partners for 17 years and married last year in Maryland. Evans died at home after a 4-year battle with a rare illness called Amyloidosis, which destroys organs in the body.

He says the obituary named him as “husband,” and that their marriage was no secret.

“Everyone who knew us knew about our relationship,” he said. “We didn’t keep secrets.”

Parishioners reportedly complained to Pastor Jenkins after seeing the obituary printed in a local paper. 

Jenkins “says was not aware of that Evans had a husband or was gay” until parishioners complained.

Jenkins said his church preaches against gay marriage.

“Based on our preaching of the scripture, we would have been in error to allow the service in our church,” Jenkins said. “I’m not trying to condemn anyone’s lifestyle, but at the same time, I am a man of God, and I have to stand up for my principles.”

Pastor Jenkins did not state if his church had buried others who had lived a life in contradiction to his interpretation of the Bible.