Marco Rubio Fears 'Mainstream Christianity' Will Become 'Hate Speech'

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio would attend a friend's same-sex wedding, but it seems likely he wouldn't speak his mind while there, since he considers the backlash toward those opposed to marriage equality to be "a real and present danger" to mainstream Christianity

Rubio's latest comments are coming to light after The 700 Club, hosted by noted homophobe Pat Robertson, profiled the Florida senator Sunday. The televangelist praised Rubio, who is hoping to secure the Republican nomination for president in 2016, as "the Democrats' nightmare" because of his apparent appeal to "Hispanic voters."

The segment featured what Right Wing Watchaptly labeled a "fawning profile" of the senator, including a clip from an earlier interview the Christian Broadcasting Network's David Brody conducted with Rubio.

"We are at the water's edge of the argument that mainstream Christian teaching is hate speech because today we've reached the point in our society where if you do not support same-sex marriage, you are labeled a homophobe and a hater," Rubio said. "So what's the next step after that? After they're done going after individuals, the next step is to argue that the teachings of mainstream Christianity, the catechism of the Catholic Church, is hate speech. That's a real and present danger."