(December 20, 2014 Update Below)

For their Christmas party this year, Christ’s Commission Fellowship Executive Pastor Ricky Sarthou dressed up in traditional Arabic garments. The twist, however, is that strapped to his chest was a mock explosive device.

The Executive Pastor of one of the country’s largest Christian churches chose the outfit for their Church’s party’s theme, “Heroes and Villains.” The photo shown here is a screen-capture of a now-deleted post on Instagram by Ickhoy de Leon, another CCF Pastor. Along with a mock improvised explosive device, Pastor Sarthou can be seen in the photo wearing the traditional Arabic headdress called a keffiyeh.

While the intentions for dressing up in the costume may have been innocent, what message does it send for a high-ranking official in a Christian church to portray a violent stereotype of another religion?

Update (December 20, 2014): On the comments section of this article, a person claiming to relay the words of pastors from the CCF said the following.