RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) – Tom Murphy, the Rapid City council member who has said he plans to have a sex-change operation, praised the community for its support during two days of protests from members of an out-of-state church who called him an “abomination” in the eyes of God.

“I was very proud of Rapid City in the way people conducted themselves,” said Murphy. “They showed they were independent thinkers and don’t like what this group represents.”

Followers of the Rev. Fred Phelps, pastor of Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kan., carried pickets outside local churches and demonstrated near Sen. Tom Daschle’s office and in front of city call.

“I think Rapid City actually won out on hate,” Murphy said a few hours after the picketers left town, taking their “God Hates Fags” signs with them.

“At city hall they only lasted about 15 minutes. I think they had lost steam,” Murphy said.

Murphy confronted the group with peaceful criticism at most locations. He was joined by others who opposed the message of hate and sought to promote tolerance.

“I think it brought the community a little closer. I think that’s good,” said Murphy.

The Rev. David Cameron, rector of Emmanuel Episcopal Church, said the Phelps message “represents a theology that most of us find unacceptable.”

“Our message is that we respect their right to express publicly their views but that we are neither intimidated nor willing to honor their vile sentiments by recognizing them,” Cameron wrote in a letter to parishioners before the demonstration.

The executive director of the South Dakota Family Policy Council, a group that takes a strong conservative position on religious issues, said the Phelps group represents a tiny faction.

“The whole God Hates Fags.com, that’s not a Christian approach,” Robert Regier said, referring to Phelps’ website address. “And it does reflect poorly on the rest of us. Fred Phelps makes people like me look like a liberal. His road is loud. He’s like the Madonna of the Christian church, doing things for shock value.”

However, Regier said that condoning gay and lesbian lifestyles or supporting Murphy’s decision to have a sex-change operation also would run contrary to core Christian values and biblical truths.

“The people in support of Tom Murphy and the people in support of Fred Phelps are two extremes,” Regier said. “I think the Christian approach is somewhere in the middle.”

Murphy said he was relieved to see the group leave. “I’m just glad they’re gone,” he said. “Now we can get back into things we really need to think about.”