FILE — Boxer Orlando Cruz poses on the scale during the official weigh-in for his bout against Orlando Salido at the Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas on October 11, 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ethan Miller/Getty Images/AFP
Openly gay boxer Orlando Cruz has reacted to Manny Pacquiao’s words against the lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender (LGBT) community.
He invited the eight-division world champion for some peaceful one-on-one and a sparring session to sway Pacquiao to “think differently” after the Filipino boxer’s comparison of gays to animals.
READ: Puerto Rico gay boxer Orlando Cruz to marry
“I invite you to meet me to get to know me as a human being first and I guarantee you that you will think differently,” Cruz told BoxingScene.com. “Maybe afterwards we can do a sparring session.”
“Take care and I will be praying for you and your family.”
Pacquiao said that gays are “worse than animals” in an interview which has caused a major backlash around the world.
READ: Gay sportsmen Cruz, Rogers make mark but Collins waits
Cruz, who came out in the open in 2012, said Pacquiao’s comments were “irresponsible” and he should not judge people on their lifestyles.
“For [Pacquiao] to say that homosexuals are like animals is very irresponsible,” Cruz said. “I’m a homosexual and you don’t judge me for my lifestyle.”
READ: Magic Johnson commends Nike for axing Pacquiao over gay slur
Pacquiao, a devout Christian, always uses the Bible in his views and he applies it to almost everything and Cruz too used the collection of books to give his insight.
“Jesus said about adulterous women, ‘He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first,’” Cruz referenced John 8:7. “God asks us to love one another unconditionally.”