Share this @internewscast.com
Some football fans expressed surprise while others commended AFL legend Gary Ablett Jr for his heartfelt tribute to Charlie Kirk following the American influencer’s tragic shooting.
The former Geelong and Gold Coast player shared several tributes to Kirk on his Instagram story on Monday night, expressing gratitude to Jesus for the conservative activist and praising his efforts in promoting Christianity.
Ablett re-posted videos made by US pastor Cliffe Knechtle, who thanked Kirk for upholding the ‘Judeo Christian ethic’.
Ablett also shared videos displaying Kirk with his family, alongside a clip of Kirk stating ‘Jesus saved my life’ during a debate with a man who questioned his commitment to Christianity.
Despite the fact Ablett has been very open about his Christian beliefs, many footy fans were taken aback by his posts.
Gary Ablett Jr (pictured with wife Jordan) has put up gushing posts about Charlie Kirk after he was shot dead last week
Ablett shared a video by an American pastor who praised Kirk for his dedication to Christ
Ablett, like Kirk, is outspoken about his devout Christianity
‘Really disappointed, but like, not surprised,’ one wrote on X.
“Someone should study whether football players have these views because of the sport or if they inherently had them. Like, are they naturally right-leaning?” another commenter questioned.
‘Don’t remember anywhere in the Bible where Jesus spoke about hating on minority groups but yeah, “faith”,’ added a third.
One response simply stated ‘CTE’, suggesting that Ablett’s posts could be attributed to the brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which has been linked to AFL stars Shane Tuck and Adam Hunter after their untimely deaths.
Others simply commented ‘ew’ and ‘so gross’, with another writing, ‘Gary Ablett jr’s Instagram story proves why you should never meet your heroes.’
However, other footy fans rushed to defend the 41-year-old and his views.
‘Breaking news, a Christian man shares another Christian man’s clips talking about religion,’ one wrote on X.
“Gary Ablett Jr is a role model for kids, a true gentleman. You might disagree, but the criticism of differing perspectives is why more people are shifting right, and this seems to be a pitfall for the left,” another person commented.
Many commenters were taken aback by the praise Ablett had for the conservative activist
Pictured: One of the comments voicing shock at Ablett’s Instagram story
Some commenters were taken aback at the former Geelong star’s stance on Kirk
However, others backed the AFL legend to the hilt
‘Rather this than people celebrating,’ said another commenter.
Many others wrote that Ablett’s stance on Kirk and Christianity is ‘not at all surprising’ given the former star’s outspoken religious beliefs.
Ablett – whose father Gary senior is also a devout Christian – revealed he reached a turning point in his deeply religious beliefs when he was just starting out in the AFL.
He was 21 when he prayed to God for guidance when he was ‘really struggling’, woke up and saw three religious TV shows in a moment he regarded as divine intervention.
‘That night, as my simple prayer was answered, the series of events led me to truly believe that God was speaking directly to me,’ he revealed.
‘It was transformational and became a real turning point in my life.’
In 2019, Ablett Junior was spoken to by his Geelong club after he liked former Wallabies star Israel Folau’s controversial post saying that hell awaited ‘drunks, homosexuals, adulterers, liars, fornicators, thieves, atheists and idolators’.
‘I want to make it clear that I love ALL people regardless of race, religion, gender or sexuality,’ Ablett explained.
‘I have always admired how strong Izzy is in his faith, it is not easy to share faith in the public sphere, and this is why I initially ‘liked’ his post.
‘I understand that liking this post appeared offensive and this is why I chose to remove my ‘like’ from the post.’
