Televangelist Pat Robertson on Monday advised a mother to treat her gay son like “a drug addict.”

Robertson, an ardent opponent of gay rights, gave the advice during The 700 Club's Bring It On-Line segment, in which he answers viewers' questions.

“Dear Pat, not too long ago my son came 'out of the closet' and a year later he told us he was becoming an atheist. I want him to follow the path of Christ, but it's so hard. What can I do about it?” a viewer named Ann asked.

“You cannot go along and say, 'I agree with your lifestyle,'” Robertson answered. “So don't be an enabler, any more if he's a drug addict, you don't enable people to continue in their drug habits.”

“But you let him know you love him.”

“It's a very difficult relationship. You don't wanna shame, you want to have love. But you gotta let him know that you don't approve of the things that he's doing,” he added.