“I believe in inclusion. In my heart, I know I do not have any phobia towards anyone.”
Israel Folau, who previously has stated that gay people are going to hell “unless they repent of their sins,” has come out to deny he is a bigot.
Folau, who is a player for Australia’s international rugby union team, received much negative attention earlier this month after making the anti-gay remark on his Instagram account.
Other rugby players in the league – and Riverdale star KJ Apa – strongly condemned his comment, but Folau doubled downed, even tweeting a cryptic Bible verse about ‘persecuted’ Christians.
Sadly, Rugby Australia leaders decided not to take action against the athlete.
Now he is up to crap again – writing on sport news site Players Voice – where he is a founding contributor – Folau claims he is not a homophobe
Instead, he claims, he was attempting to save LGBT people from eternal damnation.
The 29-year old Folau wrote: “I think of it this way: you see someone who is about to walk into a hole and have the chance to save him.
“He might be determined to maintain his course and doesn’t want to hear what you have to say.
“But if you don’t tell him the truth, as unpopular as it might be, he is going to fall into that hole. What do you do?”
His remarks of course are based on the belief that all gay people are going to burn in hell.
https://twitter.com/IzzyFolau/status/985820063532920835
Folau also added that he “didn’t agree” with Rugby Australia’s choice to support same-sex marriage in a postal vote last year. That vote, which was supported by many sports players and celebrities like Liam Hemsworth, led to the legislation of marriage equality.
But the athlete, playing 62 times for his team in Australia, says he doesn’t hate LGBT people.
He wrote: “Since my social media posts were publicised, it has been suggested that I am homophobic and bigoted and that I have a problem with gay people. This could not be further from the truth.”
Folau also wrote: “I believe in inclusion. In my heart, I know I do not have any phobia towards anyone.”
To add insult to injury, he then appeared to pull out the tired and old axiom: “hate the sin, love the sinner” justification and then suggested “some people I know are gay.”
“One of God’s commandments is to, ‘Love thy neighbour as thyself’. In other words, God loves each and every one of us. He just doesn’t love the sin we live in,” he said.
“I don’t expect everyone to believe what I believe. That goes for teammates, friends and even family members, some of whom are gay.”
He then preached to people everywhere in his ridiculous diatribe: “If you choose to believe in Him, repent, and be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ for the removal of your sins, you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
That will enable you to live the life that God has called us to live.”
Apparently, Folau has found a new mission in life in making sure he reminds people they are “sinful”. That's because Jesus himself wants him to do it. “But Jesus told us that when you stand up for Him in this world, you can expect backlash. I find peace in that.”
h/t: Pink News
