Watch: Priest Loses License Over Controversial Musk ‘Nazi’ Salute At National Pro-Life Summit

Father Calvin Robinson, a priest affiliated with the Anglican Catholic Church (ACC), has had his clerical license revoked after he made a provocative gesture at the National Pro-Life Summit in Washington, D.C. The controversy has been rife over the gesture, which saw Robinson raise his arm in a manner that was similar to the salute made by tech billionaire Elon Musk at President Donald Trump’s inaugural rally. The gesture was largely condemned and drawn to be equivalent to the Nazi “Sieg Heil” salute, bringing accusations of far-right political signaling.

During his address at the summit, Robinson delivered impassioned speeches on the decline of traditional Christian values in Europe and the importance of defending life in America. Declaring that “this is the last stand for Christendom,” he warned that the Western world was “embracing death.”

As he was finishing, Robinson thrust his arm up in a gesture that many compared to Musk’s notorious salute, which itself had been highly condemned for its profanity towards the Nazi imagery. The progressive watchdog Right Wing Watch shared a video of Robinson’s gesture on X, formerly known as Twitter, which within hours gained an audience of more than 1.3 million and earned fierce debates.

The Anglican Catholic Church put out a statement where it distanced itself from Robinson and revoked his ministerial license. In the statement, the Church conceded that it could not know Robinson’s intent, but it condemned the action as “an attempt to curry favor with certain elements of the American political right by provoking its opposition.

The statement by the Church revealed that Robinson had been warned previously on engaging in online provocations that were “incompatible with a priestly vocation.” His failure to heed this warning led to his dismissal. “Clearly, he has not, and as such, his license in this Church has been revoked. He is no longer serving as a priest in the ACC,” the statement read.

Robinson’s Defense

Robinson has been categorical in dismissing the claims of any Nazi connections or motivations behind the gesture. Taking to X to respond to the furore, he described his anger over the reaction and said critics had made “ignorant and bad faith assumptions.”

“My attempt at dry wit, in that typical British way, was not a joke at the expense of WWII nor an admission of my membership in the National Socialist Party,” he wrote. “That would be an incredibly ignorant and bad-faith assumption to make.”

He justified his move as a sarcastic gesture in the direction of “hysterical liberals,” who had falsely branded Musk with Nazi sympathies over a similar motion. Later, he made another post in which he asserted to have got “hundreds of nasty calls, texts, voicemails, and emails” from “very bitter, angry, vile leftists.

“They are often the very thing they accuse you of,” Robinson wrote. “I am not a Nazi. But I forgive you of your ignorance.”

He ended the message with a salute emoji, which further adds fuel to controversy.

The controversy of Robinson’s firing shows how, increasingly, politics and religion are pitted against one another in online discourse. To one, the gesture was a well-meaning but accidentally satirical gesture; to the other, it was an omen of creeping far-right sentiment within religious structures.

The Anglican Catholic Church’s stripping of Robinson of his license only reflects a heightened concern among churches over the politically radicalizing process of clergy within their ranks. The Church statement to avoid “online trolling” and “provocative actions” reflects a global effort to prevent its credibility as well as move away from being associated with some extremist ideologies.

Elon Musk’s Role

Musk, whose own salute at Trump’s inaugural rally sparked controversy, has not commented on Robinson’s gesture or the backlash it generated. The tech billionaire has previously dismissed accusations that his gesture was intended as a Nazi salute, insisting that he was merely placing his hand over his heart in solidarity with his audience.

Whether intended or not, the imitation of Musk’s salute by Robinson has escalated debates regarding the intersection of conservative politics, religious leadership, and controversial symbolism in the digital age.

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