A three-year-old video posted on YouTube appears to show CenturyLink's onetime chief diversity officer delivering an impassioned sermon about Jesus' opposition to homosexuality, among other things, before church congregants.

The man told audience members that Jesus would give them the strength to speak out against evil in the 2014 video, titled "JT Men's Day Elder Odell Riley Part 2." The man appears to be Odell Riley, who has served as CenturyLink's chief diversity officer since 2010, according to a LinkedIn page bearing his name.

"You'll be able to walk into your house and be able to speak to some things," he says. "When the devil shows up, you'll be able to walk in that house and say, the blood of Jesus is against you, homosexuality."

The video surfaced on Reddit under the "Corporate Facepalm" subreddit on Wednesday after Los Angeles law firm Geragos & Geragos posted the clip online. The clip indicates the footage was taken in Mississippi. CenturyLink is headquartered in Monroe, Louisiana.

The firm has filed three class-action lawsuits against CenturyLink – including one in Portland – on accusations it overbills customers. Ben Meiselas, an attorney at Geragos & Geragos, says it intends to file a class-action suit against CenturyLink in every state.

Meiselas provided The Oregonian/OregonLive with a screenshot of the diversity page on CenturyLink's website. Meiselas said he took the screenshot Tuesday night.

According to the screenshot, the page listed Riley as its chief diversity officer and included a picture, along with this quote from Riley:

"We succeed with great business ideas influenced by our different backgrounds, cultures and beliefs. When we value and respect each other for our unique perspectives, we can create the best solutions for our customers, who also have different backgrounds, cultures and beliefs."

Since that screenshot was taken, the web page has been altered, and no longer includes any information about Riley or a chief diversity officer.

CenturyLink spokesman Mark Molzen would not confirm or deny that the man in the video was Riley. In an email to The Oregonian/OregonLive, he said that Riley has not been the company's diversity chief for at least a year.

Further, he said, the personal comments do not reflect the company's culture.

"We just saw the video yesterday, and we can certainly say that the statements that were made do not represent the viewpoint of our company and are inconsistent with our policies," he said.

Molzen said these policies include a diversity team and employee resource groups, one of which focuses on fostering a supportive environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees. CenturyLink also has offered benefits to same-sex couples for nearly a decade, he said.

-- Anna Marum

amarum@oregonian.com

503-294-5911

@annamarum