Landover Baptist Church facts for kids
"Where the worthwhile worship. Unsaved unwelcome!"
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| Owner | Americhrist Ltd. |
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| Created by | Chris Harper/Paul A. Bradley |
| Commercial | No |
| Registration | Optional |
| Launched | 1998 |
| Current status | Active |
The Landover Baptist Church website is a funny, made-up example of a very strict Baptist church. It makes fun of certain types of Christian churches and how some people take the Bible very literally. The website started as a joke about Liberty University.
What is Landover Baptist Church?
The Landover Baptist Church website pretends to be a real church. It's located in a made-up town called Freehold, Iowa. The website describes the church as having a very strict leader, called the "Pastor." This Pastor supposedly has all the power over the church, its members, and all its properties.
How the Church Controls Members
The website jokes that the church uses a system of fines to keep its members in line. It also claims the church can make members do anything it wants. A common phrase on the website is that a member "mandatorily volunteered" to do something. This means they were forced to do it, even if it sounded like they chose to. If someone is kicked out, they are also removed from the church's land. The website even says that "unsaved" people (those not part of their church) are not allowed within ten miles of the church property or even on its website.
The Church's Huge Property
In the Landover story, the church owns a lot of land. It supposedly has over 1,000 acres in Freehold. It also claims to have many paid pastors and hundreds of full-time staff members. The church's property is described as having many chapels, sanctuaries, and a huge amphitheater that can hold 100,000 people.
It also claims to have television studios, radio stations, a school, a university, and many housing areas. There's even a shopping mall, an amusement park, a golf course, and a retirement community. The website also mentions a fire department, police department, and many other facilities like fitness centers and swimming pools. Every year, the website features a story about the church's Halloween "hell house," which is a type of haunted house with a religious message.
The Church's Leaders
The website says the first pastor of Landover was Ben Ebeneezer Smith. After he died, his brother, Deacon Fred Smith, supposedly took over. Around 2010, the website told visitors about a "coup," where Pastor Harry Harkwell took over leadership. Later, the site said Deacon Fred was "restored" as pastor after a "reconciliation" during a big event called Glenn Beck's Restoring Honor rally.
Betty Bowers: America's Best Christian
The Landover website also features a character named Betty Bowers. She is a made-up person who appears on another funny website, BettyBowers.com. Betty Bowers is played by an actress named Deven Green. She appears in pictures and funny videos. Betty Bowers calls herself "America's Best Christian." She is listed as a member of the Landover Baptist Church. She also runs several Christian groups with funny names like "Bringing Integrity To Christian Homemakers" (B.I.T.C.H.) and "Baptists Are Saving Homosexuals" (B.A.S.H.). These names are part of the satire.
How the Website Started
The Landover Baptist Church website was created by Chris Harper. He got his master's degree in English literature in 1993. Before that, in 1989, he was kicked out of Liberty University. This university was started by Jerry Falwell. Chris Harper was expelled because he made a radio show that made fun of the school's rules. The university leaders found his show offensive.
After being expelled, Harper created the Landover Baptist Church website. People have said it's both a joke and a way to show what the religious culture at Liberty University was like.
When Jokes Are Taken Seriously
Sometimes, people don't realize the website is a joke. This is an example of something called Poe's law. This means that without clear signs, it's hard to tell if something online is a parody or if it's serious. Some people who are part of the Christian community have even believed some of the wild stories on the website. For example, a book about Hello Kitty once mistakenly used a joke article from the Landover site. The book thought the article was a serious example of how some very religious groups were against Japanese culture.
