5 controversial things Pat Robertson said while hosting ‘The 700 Club’

Ariel Sharon and divine punishment

Pat Robertson garnered much outrage in January 2006 when he suggested that then Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s massive stroke was divine punishment for his withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.  

“God considers this land to be His. You read the Bible and he says ‘This is my land.' And for any prime minister of Israel who decides he is going to carve it up and give it away, God says, ‘No, this is mine,’” said Robertson.

Following backlash from many, including the George W. Bush White House and Israeli officials, Robertson sent a letter to Sharon’s family apologizing for his remarks.

“My concern for the future safety of your nation led me to make remarks which I can now view in retrospect as inappropriate and insensitive in light of a national grief experienced because of your father’s illness,” wrote Robertson. “I ask your forgiveness and the forgiveness of the people of Israel.”