The Odd Quote That Forced a Christian Ministry to Quickly Cover Up Its Billboard

A Christian ministry in Alabama is apologizing over a billboard it posted featuring a quote attributed to Adolf Hitler.

Life Savers Ministries in Opelika, Alabama, reportedly rented billboard space from Lamar Advertising, posting the controversial message near a local mall last Friday.

A Hitler quote, which included the former German leader's name, was displayed next to a picture of five smiling children. It read, "He alone, who owns the youth, gains the future," according to the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.

This quote, the outlet claimed, dates back to one of Hitler's speeches in the 1930s.

The billboard also included a Bible verse from Proverbs 22:6, which reads, "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it."

Life Savers Ministries, a children's organization, has said that the billboard will be removed -- and at least one image floating around Twitter showed that the message was covered up as of Wednesday morning.

"We are pulling the billboard and certainly never intended to cause confusion. ... Herbert Hoover would have been a far better one to quote when he said, 'Children are our most valuable resource,'" James Anderegg, the group's founder, told the Ledger-Enquirer. "We are a children’s organization and had honorable intentions and nothing less."

It's unclear why the Hitler quote was chosen. A call to Life Savers Ministries seeking comment has not been returned to TheBlaze.

The organization, which was founded in 1996, serves local children living in "the roughest areas."

"We believe we have a responsibility that we cannot dodge," the Life Savers website proclaims. "In our teaching we are giving our children the time, attention, respect, and commitment they deserve and our God requires."

(H/T: Christian Post)