I’m sure this will not be the first time you have heard the name Bishop Eddie Long. Bishop Long is pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Georgia and is being accused of alleged sexual misconduct against 4 different men. Bishop Long made a speech last night to a congregation of more than 3,000. While Bishop Long never denied the allegations, he did state, “I have never in my life portrayed myself as a perfect man. But I am not the man that’s being portrayed on the television. That’s not me. That is not me.” He went on to state in one of his two twenty minute sermons that, “I feel like David against Goliath, but I’ve got five rocks and I haven’t thrown one of them yet.” Interestingly enough, unlike the lifestyles of most Pastors, between the years 1997 and 2000 Bishop Long is reported to have received over $3.07 million in salary and benefits, including his $1.4 million mansion and a $350,000 Bentley that he still drives. This will be a story that will be at the forefront of the news for quite some time, I am sure and it will be very interesting to see how it continues to develop as more information is uncovered and more facts are brought to light. My question to you is how do you feel about the financial aspect of the pastors life being related to this story? Is the media focusing on something that does not relate?
Good question. The amount of money that the pastor makes has no affect on whether or not the allegations are true, however, I think that it makes sense to report on them. Here's why: The men are alleging that the pastor bought them cars, paid tuition, bought electronics, etc. in efforts to seduce them/take advantage of them. Now we know that he has the means to do all of that and more. I also find it interesting that Bishop Long never came out and said that he did not do it...we'll see how this all plays out.
ReplyDeleteI couldn’t agree with you more with regard to him never denying the allegations against him. Is he trying to refocus the attention to other matters? I never thought about the reporting of his finances being related to his ability to do what he is being accused of, interesting perspective!
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