A circulating image on social media claims that the Massachusetts Church in Boston caught fire due to a gay wedding taking place within its walls. The Explainer’s fact-checkers have investigated this claim and found it to be false. The results of the Explainer fact-check reveal that the fire was caused by natural factors—lightning.
The image, posted by Victoria Odujinrin on Facebook, mocks the church’s Lesbian Gay Bi-Sexual Transgender, Queer and Intersex (LGBTQIA+) policy and attempts to connect it to the fire. Odujinrin’s caption states, “Fire gutted a church in Boston on June 3rd as two famous homosexuals were getting married.
Suddenly, a powerful lightning struck this church which immediately caught uncontrollable fire despite having lightning conductors. This church was famous for LGBTQ+ pride, and many gay individuals traveled there to wed. No single fire-fighting truck was able to reach it to extinguish the fire before it completely vanished. Surely, heaven has had enough of gay nonsense.”
However, according to findings by the Explainer, the fire was caused by a natural occurrence—lightning. On June 2, during a thunderstorm in the area, the church was struck by lightning, resulting in the fire. Robert Parsons, the Spencer Fire Chief, confirmed this information, stating, “There were no services at the time of the fire, and the church was vacant and locked.”
Additionally, regarding the claim that firefighters did not arrive on time, Parsons clarified that the fire team reached the scene within four minutes of receiving calls about the fire. The 235-year-old First Congregational Church was destroyed on June 2, 2023, due to a fire that originated in its steeple. The Explainer’s investigation confirms that lightning was the sole cause of the fire and that any connection to a gay wedding is entirely false.
