Aussie Pro Rugger Israel Folau: ‘God’s Plan for Gay People Is Hell’
Australian professional rugby player Israel Folau is in hot water after he recently said on Instagram that God’s plan for gay people was “HELL… Unless they repent of their sins and turn to God.”
Seeing as the Pope himself recently said hell doesn’t exist, Folau must be feeling pretty foolish right about now. (Though he most likely isn’t.) The rugger condemned gay people to the non-existent inferno while celebrating his 29th birthday last Tuesday.
For some reason we don’t quite understand, an Instagram user asked Folau, “What was gods [sic] plan for gay people??” Ever the devout Christian and theologian, Folau provided his aforementioned answer. And this isn’t the first time the athlete has made a homophobic comment.
Last year before the public postal plebiscite on same-sex marriage in Australia, Falou tweeted, “I love and respect all people for who they are and their opinions. but personally, I will not support gay marriage.”
RELATED | Gay Rugby Player Proposes to His Boyfriend at London Pride (Video)
The LGBTQ sports blog Outsports notes Israel Folau’s comments may violate Rugby Australia’s inclusion policy. Adopted in 2014, the policy states, “There is no place for homophobia or any form of discrimination in our game and our actions and words both on and off the field must reflect this.”
Folau’s homophobia stands in contrast to rugby players like British rugger Ben Cohen and Aussie rugger David Pocock, both of whom have been vocally supportive of LGBTQ rights.
