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Israel Folau has become a pariah to some, yet more than 20,000 people threw a combined $2 million in support behind his crowdfunding campaign in just two days.
The Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) hosted the crowdfunding campaign and dubbed these donors the "quiet Australians".
So who are these people and what do they hope their donation will achieve?
'Our freedom is slowly being taken'
"The support for Folau is broad," said Michael Kellahan, executive director of Christian legal thinktank Freedom for Faith.
"People are saying 'we are concerned, we think there's been an injustice here, and we want that to be remedied'.
"This is someone who deserves their day in court. This is not just about him but about freedom for all of us, and therefore they just want to chip in."
Scott Morrison has weighed in
When asked about the Folau case on 7.30, Prime Minister Scott Morrison was reluctant to address particulars but promised a religious discrimination act by the end of the year, and called religious freedom a "core pillar" of Australian society.
"I think there are many millions of Australians who would like to see that protected, and I intend to follow through on that commitment," Mr Morrison said.
Mr Kellahan claims some Muslims, atheists, and even gay people have contacted him to say they donated to the fund, not because they agree with Folau "but because they're more concerned about the silencing". The ABC has not sighted these messages.
But the majority of donations were made by Christians, many of them frustrated by accusations of homophobia and bigotry.
"Whenever we talk about religious freedom it's in scare quotes, or it's seen as a byword for bigotry — that that's your real agenda," Mr Kellahan said.
The shutting down of Folau's GoFundMe campaign by site administrators caused many of his supporters to double down in their fight for religious freedom.
Meet Folau's supporters
John Doyle, 72, a retired pastor, redirected his refunded donation from Folau's GoFundMe page to the ACL's campaign.
"As a Christian, the reality is that I am tolerant, non-discriminatory and inclusive, because I allow all people the freedom to hold whatever beliefs they wish to follow — provided I also have the same freedom to hold my beliefs," Mr Doyle said.
"Freedom of religion should mean freedom to disagree with another person's worldview, but still allow the other person to hold their view."
Janelle Jackson, a 55-year-old retiree, wrote in a Facebook comment that her heart broke when the GoFundMe page was shut down.
"As a Christian, I believe our freedom to speak and believe in God's Word is being slowly taken from us," she said.
"In this world, many people can post offensive and defamatory things about our political leaders and anyone else they please, but the moment a Christian paraphrases a quote from the Bible he's getting fired from his job."
Photo:
David Stennett doubled his donation after the GoFundMe was taken down. (ABC News: Karen Tong)
David Stennett, 41, a media and sales manager, doubled his donation to the ACL's fund, and started following the organisation on Facebook, "which I had no intention of before", he says.
In a video he posted on YouTube, he says: "Let that sink in. Tomorrow you can't go back to your job and you've got no earning capacity for the skill you've developed over your lifetime, it's now wiped, it's gone, that's pulled out from under you."
The criticism of Maria Folau supporting her husband on social media by posting a link to his fundraising pages was another flashpoint.
"People just said 'no, that absolutely crossed the line'," Mr Kellahan said.
His phone was buzzing non-stop with texts and notifications from people expressing their concern over Liz Ellis's tweet.
"For me personally, that was the most significant moment in the debate."
Test case
Folau's supporters believe this will be the first major test case that addresses the tension between two rights — LGBTQI rights and religious freedom — that has been of particular concern to some Christians since same-sex marriage was legalised.
"What do you do now when the law on marriage changes, but people's beliefs don't?" Mr Kellahan said.
The Folau decision will likely impact the political debate around the religious freedom bill, which the Attorney-General says will be put to Parliament in July.
"There is an agenda for reform in this area," Mr Kellahan said.
"I think post-election, you do have a chastened Labor party that's wanting to connect with its base.
"The worst thing they could do would be just to follow the commentators who have been wanting to do nothing but condemn Folau from the start, because they're out of step with where many of the electorates are at."
'It seems OK to bully Christians these days'
Speaking with Christians, it's clear they feel this issue is not limited to the workplace.
"There is always an attack on Christians in the media and society, and it seems to be OK to bully someone for being a Christian these days," said Melissa McLeay, a 30-year-old aged care worker who donated to Folau's fund.
She's been on the receiving end of this on social media, "being told I believe in a fairytale story and that I don't take science seriously".
Gold Coast electrician Paul Richmond, 47, is another donor who believes there's been a shift in how Christian views, particularly on gender and marriage, have been received by the public since the same-sex-marriage vote.
"The isolation and personal attack on any individual who has the temerity to state the biblical viewpoint has been licensed by the acceptance of same-sex marriage," he said.
Mr Richmond recalls that during the same-sex marriage campaign, "labels like homophobic were readily used to marginalise and silence any alternate view".
"This has continued."
Some want attention to be focused elsewhere
Some believers have addressed criticism that Christians donating to Folau's fund should instead be giving to causes such as the feeding the hungry, helping the poor, or caring for sick children.
Gabrielle Moore, a 28-year-old dairy farmer, said in a Facebook post:
"Please remember the billions of dollars Christians give and countless hours spent volunteering, not just here in Australia but all around the world," she wrote.
"At the end of the day, even after they've donated to fund Israel's legal fees, Christians will continue donating and helping the needy."
She said she wrote this comment to "remind people Christian charity did not begin nor will it end with Folau's case".
This is not a marginal view
Mr Kellahan rejected the idea this was a reactionary, right-wing movement, pointing to the 20,000 people who had donated to Folau's fund already.
"The thing that's been surprising to me has been the breadth of support, the way it's picked up people who have been more traditionally left, and other faith groups," he said.
There are many more in the wings waiting to join them, including Ms Moore, who says she will donate if the ACL reopens the Folau fund.
"Having the freedom to believe but not to express is not freedom at all," Ms Moore said.
"Since this case directly affects me, I feel it is my duty to support him."
Topics: christianity, religion-and-beliefs, community-and-society, rugby-union, sport, law-crime-and-justice, australia
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