'The Hemp Father' Protests Anti-Marijuana Sign At Grove Church

A Green Country man is making a strong statement in favor of medical marijuana after a church displayed a sign asking people to vote it down.

Chad Bibler says he’s received some backlash for calling himself "The Hemp Father,” but he says he’s only trying to make a point – that the church shouldn’t involve itself in political issues.

“I feel like I’m not representing God, I’m not representing Jesus.  I’m representing a natural herb that comes from the earth,” he said.

Bibler says he’s not afraid of taking a stand for what he thinks is right.  He says it’s wrong of the church to display that sign.

“I was driving on our local roads and I saw a sign that said, ‘No on 788,’” he said.  “Their sign is wrong. They’re lying to their patrons; they’re lying to the people, because they are uneducated.”

He donned a Jesus-like outfit to protest at the First Baptist Church in Grove last Sunday under the moniker “The Hemp Father.”

“We should be able to have those rights to take any medication that we choose, especially if it’s a natural, God-given herb,” declared Bibler.

The pastor at Grove's First Baptist Church's, Jim Paslay, spoke to Bibler during his protest.

“Invited him to our Bible study and worship time, but informed him that, if he was there to protest, that we were asking him to do that off of church property,” Paslay said. 

“He said, ‘can I bring my flag in?’  And I said, ‘no, that would be a distraction.’”

Paslay says his concern is not with medical marijuana, but with the idea that people will use it recreationally.

He says he has every right to express that opinion.

“We believe that Jesus has told us to be salt and light in the world in which we live, so we don’t lose our rights to be able to share our views,” said Paslay.

Bibler says he’s not going anywhere.

Paslay says that to him this is a moral issue, not a political one.