Ken Ham lights Ark Encounter with rainbow colors to reclaim symbol from LGBT community

Famed creationist Ken Ham has announced that the Ark Encounter theme park in Williamstown, Kentucky, will be permanently lit in rainbow colors in an attempt to reclaim the symbol from the LGBT community.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Ham shared a photo of the 500-foot-long replica of Noah's ark lit up in red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet.

"We now have new permanent rainbow lights at the Ark Encounter so all can see that it is God's rainbow and He determines its meaning in Genesis 6," Ham wrote.

He further explained that the rainbow serves as a reminder that "God will never again judge the wickedness of man with a global Flood-next time the world will be judged by fire."

"The Ark is lit permanently at night with a rainbow to remind the world that God owns it and He decreed it's a sign of His covenant with man after the Flood-Christians need to take back the rainbow as we do at the Ark Encounter," he added.

A majority of Ham's followers reacted positively to the announcement, with nearly 34,000 liking the post and over 8,000 expressing love for the move.

Ham first attempted to reclaim the rainbow when he lit up the theme park with rainbow lights last Christmas.

Chris Hartman, director of the Kentucky Fairness Campaign, said at the time that the rainbow symbolizes love, acceptance, unity and inclusion, "None of which Mr. Ham or his operation embrace or embody."

Josh Wagoner, co-chairman of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network of Greater Cincinnati, mocked Ham's Christmas campaign while expressing concern about how young people will receive the message. "I think the rainbow is big enough for all of us," he said at the time.

The use of the rainbow as a symbol for the gay rights movement was conceptualized by LGBT activist Gilbert Baker. In 1978, he was asked by San Francisco politician Harvey Milk to create a flag for the city's annual gay pride parade, and the rainbow flag has since become an international symbol for the movement.

In an interview with The Gospel Herald last month, Ham stated that issues surrounding gay and transgender rights have become "paw prints" in America, signaling the increasing secularization of the culture.

He contended that part of the problem lies with the Church, noting that many pastors and religious leaders "water down" the gospel and compromise God's word to "fit in" with the culture.