Liberty University’s campus pastor apologized for “sinful behavior” by the evangelical university’s disgraced former president — who was infuriated by the remarks.
Jerry Falwell Jr. resigned this week over a sex scandal and alleged extortion plot involving his wife and a former pool boy they had met at a Miami hotel, and campus pastor David Nasser personally apologized to the school’s students for the ousted president’s actions, reported The News & Advance.
“I am sorry,” said Nasser, who also serves as a senior vice president at the university. “In my opinion, you as a Liberty student deserve better, and the embarrassment that’s been brought upon you as a Liberty student, and more importantly brought upon the name of Christ, is wrong.”
“I know that many of you are hurting and that breaks my heart,” he added. “Your concerns — if you’re concerned — are valid. If you’re not concerned, you should be concerned.”
Nasser apologized to students during the first campus-wide worship service of the academic year, and his remarks are the first public criticism of Falwell by a current Liberty official since his resignation Monday.
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“It’s okay to call sin, sin,” Nasser told students. “You know why? Because it is the only way to actually start to deal with it. It is not love to simply stay in the dark, and not call shameful what God calls shameful. And if we’re not willing to stand on that truth, then what in the world are we calling ourselves Christians for in the first place?”
Nasser’s apology clearly irked Falwell, who told the newspaper he demanded an explanation afterward.
“I called Nasser and asked him exactly what sin I committed,” Falwell said. “He couldn’t and wouldn’t answer. He just hung up and now won’t answer.”