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Radar Watchlist: The Naked Pastor

  • Writer: RADAR News
    RADAR News
  • 1 day ago
  • 6 min read

A former minister who spent 30 years in the pulpit now peddles trans-affirming cartoons aimed straight at children, encouraging them to deconstruct their beliefs to achieve “spiritual freedom” and “authenticity.” While parents fight to protect their sons and daughters from school indoctrination and medical mutilation, The Naked Pastor and his sheep in rainbow clothing are on our watchlist for sneaking queer ideology into churches, homes, and young minds across the globe.



David Hayward, better known as The Naked Pastor, left the ministry in 2010 after decades of pastoring Presbyterian, Vineyard, and other religious congregations. He holds a Master’s in Theological Studies from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and another in Religious Studies and Ministry from McGill University. Raised Anglican from birth, baptized in a Baptist church as a teenager, and then an ordained Presbyterian, Hayward’s entire life revolved around the church…until it didn’t.



The Naked Pastor did not build this platform while serving in the church. It came after he walked away. Similar to groups that attempt to rewrite long-standing religious traditions in their own image, this muppet does not represent the values or traditions of Christian families or the Anglican church he once belonged to. Now based in New Brunswick, Canada, The Naked Pastor has traded the pulpit for queer cartoons, watercolors, and a global online community. His website proudly declares he is a “pastor turned artist,” focused on “deconstruction, spiritual journeying, freedom of thought, [and] looking for your authentic self.” He sells original drawings, stickers, books, and prints while running a newsletter read by over 18,000 people weekly and a social media following of 280,000.


Protect Trans Kids – The Naked Pastor


The Naked Pastor’s “art” isn’t as innocent as he makes it out to be. It is a deliberate, targeted propaganda campaign designed to erode boundaries and confuse children about what it means to be male or female. His signature sheep cartoons, once used to illustrate family-friendly lessons about faith, now celebrate “trans sheep,” and tell kids that “being LGBTQ+ is more than skin deep,” encouraging them to “come out” at a very young age, which could be very stressful.


Family Fun Transgender Digital Cartoon by The Naked Pastor


This messaging does not exist in a vacuum. It reflects a broader ideological framework rooted in queer theory, which is explicitly designed to destabilize, deconstruct, and dismantle long-standing norms and institutions. What looks like harmless cartoons is actually part of a larger effort to normalize this worldview for children, softening resistance early and encouraging them to reject what previous generations held as fixed and sacred. It reframes biological reality, religious belief, and family structure as oppressive systems that must be torn down to be replaced. By labeling tradition, faith, and the fundamental basis of what makes us human as harmful constructs, it creates a justification for radical zealots to burn those systems to the ground and rebuild society in their image – the religious parallels and cult mindset are hard to ignore.



Many reports from therapists note that some children and young adults report much distress from feeling pressured to choose a new identity label and “come out,” which is a very vulnerable position to be in, especially for teenagers who are learning about themselves and figuring out their place in the world. It’s part of growing up.


The Naked Pastor’s colorful cartoon animals appeal to children who are too young to grasp these complex topics and everything that gender transition entails. One of his most explicit pieces is titled “An Affirming Cartoon for Trans Children.” He has produced multiple trans-affirming cartoons, including “Jesus and the Transgender Sheep,” “Sheep Conversion Therapy Trans Version,” and “No To Conversion Therapy Sheep Print.” These are sold as originals, prints, and digital downloads on his site.


Sheep Conversion Therapy – The Naked Pastor


Many of his pieces overtly scaremonger about “trans conversion therapy” while ignoring the irreversible harm of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries on children. One commenter pushed back hard:


“My daughter came out to her dad and me when she was in middle school. Seriously, it was no big deal. Her partner of almost ten years transitioned to a male a couple of years ago, and that, I confess, has been somewhat difficult to fully wrap our heads around. I think providing puberty blockers to children is extremely problematic and simply shouldn’t be done. I don’t see myself changing that opinion anytime soon.” Some parents who were drawn into his orbit see the tragic reality: puberty blockers are experimental, sterilizing, and based on a lie. Yet The Naked Pastor doubles down, producing more content for “trans kids” and celebrating their coming out stories.


The Naked Pastor has released a children’s book called The Rainbow Sheep, introducing LGBTQIAXYZ+ topics to little kids using his cute, cuddly sheep characters. In an interview with The Transplaining Podcast, he openly discusses pulling up his art pieces and explains how they promote “love without the fine print” and indiscriminate acceptance. He describes a cartoon of colorful sheep playing together as a symbol of total inclusion, and another showing Jesus standing between the church and the marginalized to “protect” them from Biblical teaching.



He claims that he had a “mystical moment” realizing “we’re all one,” which he now uses to erase any distinction between male and female, right and wrong. “There’s something wrong with the human heart if you hate a trans person,” he says, treating common sense as inquisition-level cruelty. In that same episode, The Naked Pastor reveals his parenting philosophy: “We decided we’re going to let our kids be whoever they are… let them discover themselves and be their most authentic selves.” If he truly wanted children to be their authentic selves, then he wouldn’t be telling them that they were born in the wrong body and need lifelong medical attention to fix their problems.


Custom cartoon for Mormons Building Bridges


The Naked Pastor spoke at the 2022 Mormons Building Bridges conference and created a custom cartoon for the group. He has appeared on Latter-day Faith, A Family Story (“The Indiscriminate Nature of Love”), Spectrum Magazine, Rising Spirit Ministry, Radical Sacred, and Latter Gay Stories, where he “spills a lot of tea on marginalization and religion.” His brand targets faith communities that still hold to biological reality and parental authority.


His 2014 book “The Art of Coming Out: Cartoons for the LGBTQ Community” is marketed explicitly to help people [children] leave the “closet.” Other titles include Flip It Like This (2022), The Liberation of Sophia, and Questions Are the Answer. He challenges “problematic norms in religious spaces” by inviting his followers into the “in-between,” the space where the Bible is no longer valid, and a child’s “authentic self” is just a matter of which pronouns they pick that day.



Gays Against Groomers has warned for years about this exact tactic. Predators and ideologues don’t need to snatch kids off the street when they can infiltrate churches, youth groups, and family conversations with friendly cartoons about sexual identity. The toxic messaging treats the feelings of confused children as sacred, while family and faith are rebranded as oppressors. With cartoons that go “straight to the heart” and “start difficult conversations,” he is softening resistance in the very places parents trust most. While states pass laws and protections to keep kids safe, figures like The Naked Pastor keep the pipeline open by convincing religious families to affirm…or else.


We’ve reported on similar patterns, like Keshet pushing gender-neutral Bar Mitzvahs and non-binary Hebrew onto Jewish children, or The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the satanic drag brigade who dress up as Catholic nuns to mock sacred symbols during their sexualized stage performances for children. The Naked Pastor’s behavior is not representative of any historic faith tradition. It represents only himself and a fringe ideological project that seeks to reshape religion into something unrecognizable.



The radical queer project targets minors because they are vulnerable. While The Naked Pastor does not perform surgeries on kids, he inundates them with a culture that steers them in a harmful direction. His “naked truth” is nothing more than the same old lie wrapped in watercolor and farm animals.


Children should be told that their authentic self is not something that can be constructed or deconstructed. It was already perfectly designed, male or female, just as they were always meant to be. No cartoon, no podcast, no deconstruction seminar can change that.


🔍: Phil and Mandy, Research and Investigative Team 


✍️: Michael Costa, Editor-in-Chief


References:

Thank you to Phil and our investigative team, led by Mandy, whose work allows us to deliver robust investigations and well-sourced reporting.


Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta. 2026. “For People: David Hayward.”https://episcopalatlanta.org/for-people/for-people-hayward/



Gays Against Groomers Substack. 2026. “Mandy.”https://gaysagainstgroomers.substack.com/t/mandy


Gays Against Groomers Substack. 2026. “Phil.” https://gaysagainstgroomers.substack.com/t/phil


Hayward, D. 2026. Naked Pastor. “About.”https://nakedpastor.com/pages/about




Latter Day Faith. 2024. “197: Meet David Hayward, The Naked Pastor.” December 2024.https://www.latterdayfaith.org/2024/12/197-meet-david-hayward-the-naked-pastor/

Podcast. 2026. Apple Podcasts. “Radical Sacred.”https://podcasts.apple.com/fr/podcast/radical-sacred/id1722132249


Rising Spirit Ministry. 2026. “David Hayward: The Naked Pastor.”https://risingspiritministry.com/david-hayward-the-naked-pastor/


Sojourners. 2026. “Naked Pastor Biography.” 


Spectrum Magazine. 2026. “NakedPastor: Artist David Hayward Podcast.”https://spectrummagazine.org/podcast/nakedpastor-artist-david-hayward/


X (Twitter). 2026. “Video Post.”https://x.com/i/status/1983612701105647876





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