A pastor has caused a furore after insinuating that the best persons to rape married women are their husbands.
Burnett Robinson, the Senior Pastor of Grand Concourse Seventh-day Adventist, located in the Bronx borough of the US state of New York, said this on 13 November while preaching about wifely submission.
In a 1 minute and 21-second video clip, Robison is seen telling his congregation: “I would say to you gentlemen, the best person to rape is your wife.”
The pastor was apparently preaching from a passage from the New Testament’s Letter to the Ephesians, in which the Apostle Paul said: “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.”
He added: “In this matter of submission, I want you to know upfront ladies, that once you get married, you are no longer your own. You are your husband’s. You understand what I’m saying? I emphasize that because I saw in court the other day on TV where a lady sued her husband for rape. And I would say to you gentlemen, the best person to rape is your wife. But then it has become legalized.”
However, Robinson’s sermon has led to an uproar, especially among women, who have called for his resignation. As of Thursday morning, the Change.org petition calling for Robinson’s resignation had gathered 2,621 signatures.
Neither Robinson nor the Seventh-day Adventist Church, which are best known for observing Saturday as their Sabbath, have responded to media enquiries, according to religionnews.com.
