A Michigan priest had his license rescinded by the Anglican Catholic Church after imitating a cross-body gesture that tech billionaire Elon Musk made at an event following President Trump’s inauguration, which same critics characterized as a fascist salute.
Musk during a speech placed his right arm on the left side of his chest. He then extended the arm straight across. He turned around and did the same again, saying “My heart goes out to you.”
The priest, Calvin Robinson, attended the National Pro-Life Summit in Washington, D.C. last month. Toward the end of his remarks at the Jan. 25 event, he mimicked Musk’s salute, which made the rounds online.
The Anglican Catholic Church in a Wednesday statement said Robinson’s “license in this Church has been revoked” and condemned “Nazi ideology and anti-Semitism in all its forms.”
“Mr. Robinson had been warned that online trolling and other such actions (whether in service of the left or right) are incompatible with a priestly vocation and was told to desist,” the church wrote. “Clearly, he has not, and as such, his license in this Church has been revoked.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.”
“And we believe that those who mimic the Nazi salute, even as a joke or an attempt to troll their opponents, trivialize the horror of the Holocaust and diminish the sacrifice of those who fought against its perpetrators,” the church continued. “Such actions are harmful, divisive, and contrary to the tenets of Christian charity.”
Robinson defended his gesture, saying that he is not a Nazi sympathizer and argued that he was merely mocking those who accused Musk of being one.
“I gave a talk at a pro-life event that seemed to go down well, I am pleased to have contributed to what I believe to be the most important of causes,” he wrote on Facebook. “The enemy hates that, of course, and the attacks have been plentiful. That is fine and to be expected.”
“The joke at the end was a mockery of the hysterical ‘liberals’ who called Elon Musk a Nazi for quite clearly showing the audience his heart was with them,” Robinson added. “Context is key, but sometimes people ignore context to confirm their own prejudices. People see what they want to see.”
Musk, who has emerged a fervent supporter of Trump, was widely criticized over the Jan. 20 gesture.
“I never imagined we would see the day when what appears to be a Heil Hitler salute would be made behind the Presidential seal,” Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) said in response. “This abhorrent gesture has no place in our society and belongs in the darkest chapters of human history.”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) echoed the sentiment, claiming that hating Nazis is a “foundational, defining” part of being American.
“If you’re cool and want to defend the ‘Sieg Heils’ and the Nazi salutes … whatever you want to do, that’s on you,” she said. “I’m on the opposite side of that. I’m not with the Nazis.”
Musk, however, mocked the accusations. Others defended his motion, including the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Netanyahu wrote on social platform X that Musk was “being falsely smeared” and praised the Tesla CEO as “a great friend of Israel.”
