John Hagee: “Rising Sea Levels Are An Illusion, Sinful Cities Are Actually Sinking”

“In 2006, Pastor John Hagee – whose endorsement Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said recently he was “glad to have” – told NPR’s Terry Gross that “Hurricane Katrina was, in fact, the judgment of God against the city of New Orleans.” “New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God,” Hagee said, because “there was to be a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina came.”

“On his radio show recently, right-wing talker Dennis Prager asked Hagee to respond to “the various charges made against him” in a fact sheet put out by the Democratic National Committee. Asked about his comments on Hurricane Katrina, Hagee said “the topic of that day was cursing and blessing”: “Yes. The topic of that day was cursing and blessing…What happened in New Orleans looked like the curse of God, in time if New Orleans recovers and becomes the pristine city it can become it may be in time called a blessing. But at this time it’s called a curse.”

Hagee then went on to claim that Hurricane Katrina was “a part of God’s vengeance” and that “people who believe that the sea levels are rising are actually wrong” because, apparently, it’s “quite the opposite.”

“Modern science has it that global warming causes the polar ice caps to melt, which causes ocean and sea levels to rise rapidly. However, science is wrong here, yet again. God saw to it that the most sinful cities, New Orleans being one of them, slowly sink to the bottom of the sea and their sins are drowned into oblivion,” the controversial pastor stated. “The Lord does work in mysterious ways, but to me as a believer, there is nothing mysterious about that. I know exactly why everything that happened happened.”

Hagee also claimed that “sinners better start learning to swim,” mentioning specifically members of the LGBT community in America. “This used to be a great country,” he said. “But now, today, it is a mere shadow of its former self. Gays are walking freely, displaying their sins openly and without an ounce of shame. But, God sees everything. And He will strike down with furious anger those who aim to pervert His word. The Second Flood is coming, and if we don’t change our ways, we are all doomed.”