National Day of Prayer leader thinks marriage equality is Satan's war against the family

The pastor chosen the lead the National Day of Prayer on Thursday at the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill believes that same-sex marriage is a Satanic plot to destroy the family.

Pastor Greg Laurie, the senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in California, said last year that "Satan hates the family so much" he had "effectively declared war on it" in the form of same-sex marriage. Laurie also said he hated the word "homophobic" and that it should be replaced with the term "sinophobic."

Two LGBT rights groups, the Human Rights Campaign and OutServe-SLDN, have launched a campaign to get Laurie removed as the headline speaker for the Pentagon's Day of Prayer event on May 2. In a press release, the HRC noted that Laurie had a history of disparaging LGBT people and their relationships.

"People of faith are guided by the core tenets of their faith to love their neighbor as yourself and judge not," said Dr. Sharon Groves, director of HRC’s Religion & Faith Program.

"Pastor Laurie’s offensive teachings stand in direct contradiction to the core values of many people of faith and an increasing number of religious institutions that have encouraged full inclusion. It is time for him to listen to the religious voices that recognize supporting all LGBT people as a faith value."

Laurie appeared to address the criticism in a blog post published Monday. He thanked those who prayed in support of him and remarked that, "The enemy will always attack when we see to do God’s work, so let’s keep praying!"

Congress established the National Day of Prayer in 1952.