“Not ashamed”: Israel Folau speaks out after quiet streak
Former Rugby player has declared he is “not ashamed” of his actions or views in the wake of the controversial scandal which cost him his lucrative Australian Rugby Union contract.
The disgraced NSW Rugby player has surfaced to support Australian Christian Lobby chief Martyn Iles and announced he will be speaking at the Not Ashamed conference on October 19 in Sydney.
Folau, who was last pictured watching his wife Maria play netball in July has stated in a youtube video he would be a keynote speaker at the lobby’s national conference.
“Hey guys, it’s Israel Folau here, looking forward to being at the Not Ashamed conference on the 19th of October, see you all there,” he said.
A statement of the event details stated the message of the conference would be focussing on the need to “speak truth against lies.”
“Not Ashamed is an event to equip Christians in this generation to grow in our knowledge of the truth, especially in its application to this changing world around us,” the website reads.
“We live in times when once again we must boldly, unashamedly, shine the light in dark places and speak truth against lies. It is time to stand firm.
“This conviction, boldness, and confidence in the truth fuelled the efforts of the early Church, spreading the Christian faith like wildfire through a pagan world.
“As our own culture changes, truth is stumbling in the public squares, and the light of the Gospel itself is growing dim.
“Our desire is to recover that same conviction, boldness, and confidence that Paul spoke of when he declared he was not ashamed to share God’s truth and the Gospel.”
The lobby has stated Folau will be sharing his “story in person.”
While his unfair dismissal case against Rugby Australia is still underway and scheduled to go to court in February 2020, the former rugby player will be unable to publicly comment on the dispute.
The unfair dismissal case will center around his sacking after he took aim at homosexuals and the LGBTQ community, where he stated “the devil is trying to instil” homosexuality and gender fluidity into the world.
Folau’s contract was officially terminated by Rugby Australia in May after he took to social media to post an image which stated homosexuals, adulterers and others would go to hell.
It was not his first outlandish post or statement on his social profiles, he also stated homosexuals would go to “hell, if they do not repent.”
Rugby Australia also said the post he made breached its professional players code of conduct, a decision that was upheld by an independent tribunal.