It takes months of love and care to make an empty building come alive, but only three days to tear it all down.This week, the gothic signage and queer absurdist art commissioned for Divine Playhouse had to be removed and placed into storage, as volunteers whitewashed a vibrant mural that had been painted on its walls.After sitting empty for a year, Sydney’s St John the Evangelist church – which was deconsecrated in the 1930s – had been resurrected as an LGBTQ+ inclusive arts space, opening on 8 July with a year-long permit.For just three days, Divine Playhouse existed as intended, hosting an opening night party, a queer comedy night and a disco.The opening night at Divine Playhouse included a performance by Etcetera Etcetera. Photograph: Anna HayBut a day after religious groups gathered outside to protest its opening and called on the New South Wales government to withdraw its $100,000 arts grant, the venue’s landlord ordered the promoters, Heaps Gay Events, to cease “engaging in offensive trade” or risk eviction before terminating their lease a few days later.Heaps Gay had until 5pm on Friday to vacate, which gave them three days to clear a space that had been months in the making. Their lawyers, meanwhile, are exploring whether they can sue for damages and make a sex discrimination claim.Sign up for the Breaking News Australia email“It’s not just about Divine any more, it’s about censorship,” the promoter and founder of Heaps Gay, Kat Dopper, told Guardian Australia.“If we were to walk away, these groups will just get stronger and more powerful and louder.“We can’t allow that to happen.”‘Offensive trade’: legal questions raised over evictionLocated in the heart of Sydney’s central business district, the former church has housed a children’s school and a theatre since being deconsecrated nearly 100 years ago. As Divine Playhouse, it was intended to be a safe and inclusive queer-friendly arts space, organisers said.At its opening night party, titled the First Rite, hundreds gathered for performances from drag artist Etcetera Etcetera, a DJ set by Stereogamous, performances from the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, and a speech from the city’s deputy lord mayor, Jess Miller, who spoke of the “intergenerational magic” of spaces like this.The crowd at Divine Playhouse’s opening night. Photograph: Anna HayFrom the stage, Dopper announced the venue had changed its name from Unholy Playhouse at the last minute, answering concerns raised by people from the Christian community.But Christian groups, including Fit for the Kingdom and the Prodigal Sons, still gathered to protest, taking issue with what a spokesperson from Fit for the Kingdom described as “hateful blasphemy that mocks what we hold most sacred”.They pointed to social media images from the First Rite, featuring drag queens dressed as nuns, an attender wearing a corpus from a crucifix on a leather choker, and a performer in a pig costume offering french fries as holy communion.A day after that party, lawyers acting for the landlord sent a notice of breach to Divine Playhouse, claiming its “offensive trade has caused … grievance and disturbance”; “offensive trade” was later cited as grounds for the eviction under section 129 of the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW).The building is owned by developer Redevelop, founded by billionaires Anthony El-Hazouri and Charbel Hazzouri.