people don't like to be called on their stuff, especially when the person speaking (yourself) has them by the cajones!
I'm experiencing the same thing at my job right now. a co-worker who has not been well-liked, nor well-treated by the rest of the staff, was just given 2 weeks to live. this happened suddenly and has caught us all by surprise. Those who have made her life miserable for the past 2 years are now the ones who are literally beating a path to her door to visit her as she dies.
I posted some lyrics on my FB page:
Everybody loves you when you're dead
And everyone is suddenly your dearest friend
Nobody talks no dirt about you
But life it just goes on above your head
When you're dead
just an oblique reference to what I've been observing, but it caught the attention of one of those women who is guilty. Tongues are wagging! they don't want that to be pointed out. It's all for show, and these women want everyone to see that they are sooooo goood for going to visit this dying woman.
of course, I never made reference to the guilty parties, they simply found some meaning in the lyrics that I posted
I'd say the same is happening for your professors. the Christians often do what they accuse you of, inserting "homosexual" for "gay" and "lifestyle" for "orientation." The reduce orientation to an action or behavior, and try to come off as opposing sin instead of appearing to be a bigot.