NFL

Jets’ Tebow cancels speech at controversial Dallas church

Tim Tebow will pass on this brewing controversy.

The Jets backup quarterback tweeted out on Thursday morning that he has canceled his April 28 speaking engagement at First Baptist Church in Dallas. The pastor at the church, Rev. Robert Jeffress, has said that “70 percent of the gay population” has AIDS and that Islam, Judaism and Mormonism are religions that come from “the pit of hell.”

“While I was looking forward to sharing a message of hope and Christ’s unconditional love with the faithful members of the historic First Baptist Church of Dallas in April, due to new information that has been brought to my attention, I have decided to cancel my upcoming appearance,” Tebow wrote to his over 2 million followers on Twitter. “I will continue to use the platform God has blessed me with to bring Faith, Hope and Love to all those needing a brighter day. Thank you for all of your love and support. God Bless!”

Tebow has used his platform as a popular NFL player to share his beliefs in the past. He talked at Arizona’s Impact Church in Scottsdale on Feb. 3 and spoke in front of 30,000 at the Celebration Church in Georgetown, Texas.

His time with the Jets is unlikely to last much longer. The team, and new GM John Idzik, is expected to gauge his trade interested around the league at the scouting combine, which opens Thursday. If they don’t find any takers, a likely scenario, they will are expected to release him.

A rep for the church blamed the media for Tebow’s decision in comments to TMZ.

“We are saddened that Mr. Tebow felt pressure to back out of his long-planned commitment from numerous New York and national sports and news media who grossly misrepresented past comments made by our pastor, Dr. Robert Jeffress, specifically related to issues of homosexuality and AIDS, as well as Judaism,” the rep said, according to the gossip website.

“There are a disproportionate amount of assaults against children by homosexuals than by heterosexuals, you can’t deny that,” he said in July.

In November, he told his congregation that President Obama’s re-election was“paving the way for the future reign of the Antichrist.” Jeffress did say he will be changing the way he speaks about homosexuals from the pulpit – he’ll no longer single it out for special condemnation.

“It would be the height of hypocrisy to condemn homosexuality and not adultery or unbiblical divorce,” Jeffress said.