TORONTO — Phil Robertson, patriarch of the Duck Dynasty family, has refused to back down from the homophobic comments that got him suspended from the popular reality show.
“I will not give or back off from my path,” Robertson said Sunday during a Bible study gathering at the White’s Ferry Road Church of Christ in West Monroe, Louisiana.
According to the Daily Mail, the 67-year-old said: “I love all men and women. I am a lover of humanity, not a hater.”
Robertson came under fire last week for comments he made in an interview with GQ magazine about gay people.
“It seems like, to me, a vagina — as a man – would be more desirable than a man’s anus,” he was quoted as saying. “That’s just me. I’m just thinking: There’s more there! She’s got more to offer. I mean, come on, dudes! You know what I’m saying? But hey, sin: It’s not logical, my man. It’s just not logical.”
In a statement last week, A&E said it was disappointed by Robertson’s comments: “His personal views in no way reflect those of A&E Networks, who have always been strong supporters and champions of the LGBT community.”
On Sunday, Robertson added: “Sexual sins are numerous and many, I have a few myself. So what is your safest course of action? If you’re a man, find yourself a woman, marry them and keep your sex right there.
“Commonsense says we are not going to procreate the human race unless we have a man and a woman. From the beginning Jesus said, ‘It is a man and a woman.’ Adam was made and Eve was made for this reason. They left their fathers and mothers and be united to become one flesh, that’s what marriage is all about.”
Robertson further fueled the controversy by suggesting gay people could be saved.
“Jesus will take sins away, if you’re a homosexual he’ll take it away, if you’re an adulterer, if you’re a liar, what’s the difference? If you break one sin you may as well break them all,” he said, according to the Daily Mail.
The Duck Dynasty dad insisted his religious views are not the result of a lack of education.
“We are a bunch of rednecks from Louisiana, but I am not uneducated, I have a degree from Louisiana Tech,” said Robertson. “But this week I have been called an ignoramus.”
After Robertson’s GQ interview went public, the family responded with a statement.
“While some of Phil’s unfiltered comments to the reporter were coarse, his beliefs are grounded in the teachings of the Bible. Phil is a godly man. Phil would never incite or encourage hate.”
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