Oh, that wacky Atlanta pastor.

[Izulde]

Men allege sexual coercion by prominent Atlanta pastor - CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/09/21/georgia.pastor.abuse/index.html?iref=NS1)

I know we have a lot of Georgia-affiliated people on this board and I didn't see a thread for it, so I figured I'd post it and see what people thought.

If there already is a thread, I'll just delete this one.

[JonInMiddleGA]

He's not a stranger to controversy, nor the spotlight, as the church has grown from 300 members in the late 80's to over 30,000 members today (no, that's not a typo). It's also where the funeral for Coretta Scott King was held back in '06 (one of her daughters is a church elder).

As I understand it, he's a proponent of what's called "prosperity gospel" (which I'll crudely paraphrase as "God wants us all to get rich") but has been taken to task for some of his views by both clergy as well as the Atlanta media who alleged some financial wrongdoing a few years back although as far as I can recall nothing ever really came of that.

Is he guilty as charged here? Beats me. There's certainly some question about the honesty of the accusers (one of whom has been arrested previously for breaking into the church) and Long has never really struck me as being the "down-low" type. Then again, y'never know for sure. If proven, it's likely a career ending deal since he's an outspoken opponent of gay rights, etc.

[Groundhog]

Well, I, for one, am completely shocked that an outspoken homophobic pastor has turned out to have homosexual tendencies.

[larrymcg421]

Yeah, I'm not a fan of the prosperity gospel, which always struck me as an excuse for the pastors to live luxurious lifestyles without guilt.

That of course has no bearing on the accusations. Who knows. I'd need to read more about it, but it wouldn't surprise me.

[stevew]

I'll disagree with you Jon on the "career ender."

Pastor4Lyfe.

(And btw did anyone read the "black protectionism for lebron" article on ESPN. I had no idea this was an actual theory).

[JonInMiddleGA]

I'll disagree with you Jon on the "career ender."


Well, his career as we know it today. He'd maintain something but it wouldn't remain at the extremely successful level it's been to date.

[miked]

Well, I, for one, am completely shocked that an outspoken homophobic pastor has turned out to have homosexual tendencies.

If you drive through town, they used to (still do in some areas) have these giant billboards with a picture of some pastor on it promising to pray away the gay. Some said, homosexuality is a sin, or homosexuality is the wrong choice, etc. I always figured they were just trying to advertise their church so they could bone other dudes.

[Groundhog]

If you drive through town, they used to (still do in some areas) have these giant billboards with a picture of some pastor on it promising to pray away the gay. Some said, homosexuality is a sin, or homosexuality is the wrong choice, etc. I always figured they were just trying to advertise their church so they could bone other dudes.

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[Groundhog]

Uh, apologies for the double video post, the editor is not being friendly. :(

[Edward64]

Is he guilty as charged here? Beats me. There's certainly some question about the honesty of the accusers (one of whom has been arrested previously for breaking into the church) and Long has never really struck me as being the "down-low" type. Then again, y'never know for sure.

Yeah, I don't think the whole story is out yet. It'll be interesting to hear the details and how he responds.

[Edward64]

A third accuser. Not looking good. More to come?
Atlanta pastor cancels interview, news conference about sex scandal - CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/09/23/georgia.pastor.allegations/index.html?hpt=T1)
The three men claim Long took them on overnight trips to various locations within the United States and beyond, sharing a room and engaging in sexual contact with them, including massaging, masturbation and oral sex.

Bernstein, who represents Parris, Flagg and Robinson, said Wednesday that the youths' accounts are "really strong."

She said she has worked with sexual abuse victims and finds the two believable because of "the emotion. The intensity. The very strong description of what sexual acts occurred. ... This is not just someone giving a vague thing, 'Oh, yeah, one time he did this,' or a couple of times."

[Groundhog]

Ummmm......

Sexy Snapshots Of Bishop Eddie Long Sent To His Young Boyfriends | RENWL (http://renwl.org/news/sexy-snapshots-of-bishop-eddie-long-sent-to-his-young-boyfriends)

[GrantDawg]

Ummmm......

Sexy Snapshots Of Bishop Eddie Long Sent To His Young Boyfriends | RENWL (http://renwl.org/news/sexy-snapshots-of-bishop-eddie-long-sent-to-his-young-boyfriends)


Yeah. This might get really bad.