A onetime political commentator, Robinson is no stranger to controversy. He claimed in 2022 that he’d been blocked from becoming a priest in the Church of England due to his “anti-woke views.” (The Diocese of London has said there were limited positions available and “no suitable option” for Robinson.)
Robinson is known for his strong opposition to feminism and women’s ordination, which he has compared to “cancer,” and for his criticism of the “liberal infestation of the church.” He has also been associated with several conservative Anglican jurisdictions since 2022, including the Free Church of England (also known as the Reformed Episcopal Church of the United Kingdom and Ireland), where he was ordained as a deacon.
In 2023, he left the Free Church of England and was ordained as a priest in the Nordic Catholic Church in England. The next year he left the United Kingdom for Grand Rapids, where he was licensed by the Anglican Catholic Church and became rector of St. Paul’s.
Robinson initially characterized his gesture at the National Pro-Life Summit as an “attempt at dry wit, in that typical British way,” but has apologized since. “And would I do it again? Absolutely not. Do I apologize for it? Absolutely I do,” Robinson said in a video posted online on Monday.
This article originally appeared here.
