LANSING, MI -- Michigan Republican National Committeeman Dave Agema, a former state representative from Grandville, is facing criticism for another round of controversial remarks about gay marriage.

Agema, who used a poorly-sourced website to denounce "filthy homosexuals" earlier this year, reiterated his opposition to same-sex relationships on Thursday at the Berrien County Republican Party Holiday Reception.

Per The Herald-Palladium newspaper of Southwest Michigan, Agema told the crowd he does not mind criticism he has received for his stance because he saw firsthand what happened when his former employer, American Airlines, extended domestic partnership benefits to same-sex couples.

Some American Airlines employees, he claimed, would tell the company that a person with AIDS was their lover in order to help them get medical benefits.

"Folks, they (gay people) want free medical because they're dying (when they're) between 30 and 44 years old," Agema said. "To me, it's a moral issue. It's a Biblical issue. Traditional marriage is where it should be and it's in our platform. Those in our party who oppose traditional marriage are wrong."

Agema's comments were part of a larger speech calling for unity between various Republican factions under the party's official platform.

As Agema pointed out, the Republican National Committee in April approved a resolution he sponsored reaffirming the party platform, which includes opposition to same-sex marriage.

Republicans picked Agema to represent Michigan on the national committee over incumbent Saul Anuzis at the party's 2012 convention in Detroit.

But Dennis Lennox, a party precinct delegate for Grand Traverse County and political columnist for The Morning Sun, wrote a letter to Michigan Republican Committee members asking them to publicly censure Agema for his latest comments. Current bylaws do not allow for Agema's removal.

"This isn't about core principles or deeply held religious beliefs," Lennox wrote. "This is about Mr. Agema's hateful and unabashed bigotry."

The state committee is scheduled to meet this Saturday in Lansing. Paul Welday, an Oakland County district chair for the Michigan Republican Party, told MLive that he considers a committee censure unlikely, but he suggested that the party cannot afford to ignore Agema's comments with important elections coming up in 2014 and 2016.

"This is a very sensitive issue," said Welday, noting that he considers Agema a friend. "It's not about traditional marriage at all; it's about what is the role of our national committeeman? Is he helping our cause? We're practicing the politics of subtraction here, and to do that is the fastest way I can think of to become extinct."

Equality Michigan, a gay-rights advocacy group working on a 2016 ballot campaign to overturn the state's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, also denounced Agema's comments and renewed calls for him to resign, which he previously has brushed off.

"Republicans have made tremendous strides over the past year in reaching out" to gay and lesbian constituents, said managing director Emily Dievendof, but leaders should move to "rid themselves of Dave Agema, a venomous committee member whose hate speech and fear tactics have become an embarrassment to not only their party, but to everyone in Michigan."

Update: Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder: Dave Agema gay marriage comments 'discriminatory'

Jonathan Oosting is a Capitol reporter for MLive Media Group. Email him, find him on Google+ or follow him on Twitter.