Kansas City Chiefs’ kicker Harrison Butker doubled down on his May 11 Benedictine College commencement speech comments during a Catholic home-schooling association’s gala in Nashville, Tennessee, on Friday.

“If it wasn’t clear that the timeless Catholic values are hated by many, it is now,” Butker, a three-time Super Bowl champion and the 2019 NFL scoring leader, said during the May 24 Regina Caeli Academy’s Courage Under Fire Gala.

At the gala Friday evening, Butker acknowledged the backlash, saying that “many people expressed a shocking level of hate” after his speech. He said, however, that “as days went on, even those who disagreed with my viewpoints shared their support for my freedom of religion.”

“The more I’ve talked about what I value most, which is my Catholic faith, the more polarizing I have become,” he added. “It’s a decision I’ve consciously made and one I do not regret at all. If we have truth and charity, we should trust in the Lord’s providence and let the Holy Ghost do the rest of the work.”

Butker reflected on the persecution faced by many saints and prophets, such as Daniel, who was thrown into a lion’s den. Being “disliked” and “mischaracterized by some,” Butker said, are “not so bad.”

“If heaven is our goal, we should embrace our cross, however large or small it may be, and live our life with joy to be a bold witness for Christ,” Butker said.

Although the secular response to Butker’s speech was mostly negative, the response from Catholic figures has been predominantly positive, though reactions varied.

Butker’s bishop, Bishop James Johnston of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, Missouri, told CNA two weeks ago that he supported the athlete’s “right to share his faith and express his opinions — including those that are critical of bishops.”

Bill Donohue of the Catholic League said in a statement that the kicker “nailed it” and praised “his courage and his commitment to Catholicism.”

Reactions from within the NFL were mixed. Jonathan Beane, NFL senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer, distanced the league from Butker’s comments, saying that “his views are not those of the NFL as an organization.”

However, Butker received support from Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, quarterback Patrick Mahomes, and from the wife of the team’s owner, Tavia Hunt, and their daughter, Gracie Hunt, among others.