Sean Harris, the North Carolina pastor
who created controversy when called on parents to discipline children
to conform to gender stereotypes, believes being gay is a choice.
Harris' Sunday sermon in support of
Amendment One, which would ban marriage, civil unions and possibly
domestic partnerships for gay and lesbian couples in North Carolina,
was part of a campaign encouraging religious leaders to reach out to
congregants in support of the amendment.
After insisting that marriage equality
is not a civil rights issue – no one was born gay, he said –
Harris called on parents to squash non-conforming behaviors out of
their children.
“Can I make it any clearer? Dads,
the second you see that son dropping the limp wrist, you walk over
there and crack that wrist. Man up. Give them a good punch. OK?”
On Friday, Harris dialed in to
Toronto-based KiSS 92.5's Roz
and Mocha in the Morning radio show to offer an halfhearted
apology.
“If I had to say it again, I would
say it differently, no doubt,” Harris said. “Those weren't
planned words, but what I do stand by is that the word of God makes
it clear that effeminate behavior is ungodly. I'm not going to
compromise on that.”
“You chose to be gay,” Harris
added, “like you choose to be selfish or to commit an adulterous
relationship.” (The audio is embedded in the right panel of this
page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)