Homophobic rabbi claims coronavirus outbreak is God’s divine punishment for Pride parades
![Rabbi Meir Mazuz coronavirus](https://www.thepinknews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/meir-mazuz-rabbi-israel.jpg?w=792&h=416&crop=1)
Meir Mazuz (YouTube)
An ultra-Orthodox rabbi from Israel has claimed that that the current outbreak of coronavirus, or Covid19, is happening because of Pride parades.
In a bizarre rant on Saturday at the Kiseh Rahamim yeshiva in Bnei Brak, Rabbi Meir Mazuz hit out at LGBT+ people and blamed them for the spread of the virus, the Israel Hayom reports.
Speaking at the event, Mazuz said a pride parade is “a parade against nature”, and added: “When someone goes against nature, the one who created nature takes revenge on him.”
Rabbi Meir Mazuz said Arab countries will be spared from the coronavirus because they ‘don’t have this evil inclination’.
Incredibly, the rabbi then tried to claim that Arab countries are being spared from the coronavirus because they “don’t have this evil inclination.”
Furthermore, he blamed the outbreak of coronavirus in Iran – where almost 200 people have died from the virus – on “their hatred of Israel.”
The rabbi, who is the former leader of the homophobic Yachad party, also said Israel would be protected from the coronavirus. He clearly hasn’t been keeping track of the spread of the virus – almost 40 people have already contracted Covid19 in Israel.
It is regrettable that in times like these when the whole world comes together to eradicate coronavirus, Rabbi Mazuz finds it appropriate to blame the virus’s outbreak on the LGBTQ community.
The rabbi has been sharply criticised by LGBT+ groups and human rights organisations, including the Anti-Defamation League.
“It is regrettable that in times like these when the whole world comes together to eradicate coronavirus, Rabbi Mazuz finds it appropriate to blame the virus’s outbreak on the LGBTQ community,” a representative from the Israeli branch of the Anti-Defamation League said.
An American pastor has also pinned the spread of Covid19 on LGBT+ people.
Amazingly, Mazuz is not even the first religious person to pin the spread of coronavirus on the LGBT+ community. Right-wing pastor Steven Andrew of the California-based USA Christian Church has declared March to be “Repent of LGBT Sin Month” – a move he genuinely believes will “save lives and the nation, and protect from coronavirus”.
More than 3,600 people have died globally from the Wuhan coronavirus, but Andrew insisted that people would be saved if they obey God.
“God’s love shows it is urgent to repent, because the Bible teaches homosexuals lose their souls and God destroys LGBT societies,” Andrew said in a press release this week.
“Obeying God protects the USA from diseases, such as the coronavirus,” he insisted.