Tebow cancels talk at controversial Dallas church

DALLAS (AP) - New York Jets quarterback Tim Tebow has backed out of an appearance at a Baptist mega-church in Dallas with a pastor who has created controversy with his remarks about other faiths.

Tebow said on Twitter Thursday that he had canceled a scheduled April 28 appearance at First Baptist Church in Dallas. Tebow pointed to "new information that has been brought to my attention."

First Baptist is led by the Rev. Robert Jeffress, who has preached that gay sex is sinful and has criticized Mormonism, Catholicism and Islam.

Jeffress told The Associated Press that Tebow called him Wednesday night and said he needed to avoid controversy right now "for personal and professional reasons."

Tebow last year spoke to about 15,000 people at an outdoor Easter service near Austin.

(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)