Former Green Bay Packers safety LeRoy
Butler said Wednesday that a Wisconsin church had rescinded its
invitation for him to speak because he had congratulated Jason
Collins on becoming the U.S.'s first openly gay professional athlete.
The 44-year-old Butler, who is credited
with inventing the touchdown celebration Lambeau Leap, said he has
previously spoken at the church.
“I speak about not bullying people
and then I do a football camp,” Butler told the Press-Gazette
Media.
He said that tweeting, “Congrats to
Jason Collins,” prompted a telephone call from a church
representative.
“They said, 'Well, we can't have you
talk about that.' Not that it was what I was gong to talk about
anyway, but I said, 'Why not?' And they said I had to talk to the
pastor, and that's when it got heated. I don't know the exact Bible
verse, but he was telling me that God doesn't like homosexuals.”
“They said, 'If you apologize and
take the tweet down and ask God for forgiveness, we'll let you
speak,' and I said I wouldn't do that.”
“I wasn't trying to be political or
anything, you know me, I love everyone, and I just want to come speak
to the kids and help the kids, but the pastor said some parents said
if the speaker supports gays and lesbians we will not attend.”
Butler said he was to be paid $8,500
for the speaking engagement, but that sponsors, not the church, pay
the fee.
“I have received an apology from the
church, but mainly thanking me for not releasing the church name, to
me that's not important,” Butler added in a tweet.