DENVER, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- A church sign saying "Jews killed the Lord Jesus" packed a Denver, Co., church parking lot with a diverse crowd of protesters, it was reported Thursday.
The Rev. Maurice Gordon of Lovingway United Pentecostal Church said the message on the sign was not hateful, Rocky Mountain News reported Thursday.
"It would be hateful if it pointed at anybody alive today," Gordon, 73, said. "But this has been part of the record for 2,000 years."
The incident occurred against the backdrop of Wednesday's opening of Mel Gibson's movie, The Passion of the Christ, which chronicles the last 12 hours of Jesus' life. It has drawn charges of anti-Semitism.
The United Pentecostal Church International, headquartered in Hazelwood, Mo., said in a statement it did not condone Gordon's action.
About 200 people gathered in front of the Denver church to protest the sign.
The crowd of Jews and Christians waved signs with phrases like "God killed Jesus" written on them.
The sign was down before the end of the evening.
