A church in Worthing has had the words “fake Christians” graffitied outside its building, after displaying flags in support of Pride Month.

The incident is thought to be the second time vandals have targeted Worthing Baptist Church in recent weeks, writing the message in chalk on the pavement outside its entrance.

Senior minister, Rev Mike Parker and assistant minister, Peter Heath told the Sussex Express the move was likely in response to the recent erection of Pride flags at the venue to support Worthing Pride and Pride Month.

Worthing Baptist church - which registered its building to conduct same-sex marriages in 2021 – states on its website that it is: “committed to the love and inclusion of all people, affirming diversity in sexuality, gender identity, ethnicity, age, physical ability, learning disability, neurodiversity, and mental health.”

The church began a series of sermons on same-sex relationships and the Bible in 2018 when its leadership began the move to be theologically LGBTQ+ affirming.

Following the recent incident, Mike and Peter stated that while they expected their “fully affirming” stance to receive some backlash, their main concern is that members of the LGBTQ+ community feel safe and the message outside their building could cause “unnecessary upset”.

Local police have launched an investigation, following the incident.