HARRISBURG — State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12th, refused to retreat Thursday from controversial remarks he made on the House floor.

Metcalfe, who represents the southern part of Butler County, offended some state legislators and members of the Muslim community when he spoke out Wednesday against a resolution honoring a Muslim organization's 60th annual convention in the city.

Metcalfe said the group, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, does not "recognize Jesus Christ as God and I will be voting negative" on the resolution.

He said Thursday that he opposed the resolution because it compared the Ahmadiyya Muslim group's views and beliefs to those of William Penn, the commonwealth's founder.

It contained language that suggested the Muslim group seeks to achieve William Penn's vision of a "godly community" in Pennsylvania.

That's unacceptable, Metcalfe said, because "we don't share the same definition of God or the same belief of who God is."

"As a Christian today, what is godly and what was godly to William Penn is not the same as what is considered godly to Muslims," Metcalfe said. "Their views and their beliefs are different than William Penn's beliefs and different than my beliefs. And based on those differences this resolution is not correct, so I voted against it."

He later called the resolution "controversial" and said his remarks were "not anti-Muslim as the headlines led people to believe."

The two-page resolution was sponsored by House Speaker Dennis O'Brien, a Republican from Philadelphia. It honored the convention as an event that will "increase faith and harmony."

Legislators will not reconvene until Monday, after the convention has passed through the city.

His incendiary statements didn't sit well with other legislators in the General Assembly. Rep. Babette Josephs, a Democrat also from Philadelphia, said resolutions like this usually pass through the House easily with unanimous support.

She said Metcalfe's remarks have far-reaching consequences.

"I thought that they hurt the dignity of his party, every member of the House, every member of the General Assembly," Josephs said. "And it also hurts the dignity of every citizen of Pennsylvania."

Josephs said she is trying to get Metcalfe's comments stricken from official records.

Metcalfe is regarded as one of the most conservative members of the Legislature. Regardless, Josephs said, there is no excuse for intolerance.

"There are many people who are conservative who would not offend people's religious beliefs," she said. "It certainly disrespects these people of peace. That's what the resolution was about. It was this group of folks, good American citizens I'm sure, who have a message of peace."

Metcalfe didn't oppose the measure solely on religious grounds, however. He took caution because the resolution was being pushed through the Legislature so quickly.

"The speaker of the house who introduced the resolution on June 18 called it up for a vote on June 18, and he didn't have any other co-sponsors besides himself," he said. "In Harrisburg things are slipped in last minute and no one understands who or what it's about. You wonder why things happen so quickly."

The Associated Press contributed to this story.