Allegations of sexual impropriety have been made against influential mega-church pastor Eddie Long of Georgia. Long, a vocal opponent of gay rights, has been accused of using his position to groom young men for sexual relations. If true, Long is a hypocrite at best. Worse yet he would have betrayed God and his parishioners by using his position of power to take advantage of younger church members seeking spiritual care and mentorship.
We will have to wait for the legal process to move forward before learning more concerning the truth of this matter. In the legal sense, Bishop Long is innocent until proven guilty (or libel in this case). However, he should be removed from his pulpit until this matter is resolved. He says, however, that he'll be back in the pulpit next week. That would show the world that Bishop Long considers this church to be his domain and not God's.
Truth be told, I've never been a fan of Bishop Long's ministry and thought it was a crime that Coretta Scott King's memorial was held in his church (thankfully The Rev. Joseph Lowery was there to preach what I believe to have been a more authentic gospel message). Long preaches something termed the "prosperity gospel" - a belief that God will reward you with financial blessings if you follow Biblical teaching. Long, as it has been reported, preaches that Jesus was not poor (despite Biblical tradition and all historical evidence available concerning the time in which Jesus lived).
The prosperity gospel is all about how to acquire wealth and power. Left out is justice, kindness and humbleness- the heart of the Christian faith.
As I have said before: Christianity shouldn't be viewed as part of a get rich quick scheme and any serious reader of Scripture will tell you that both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament condemn those who seek wealth over devotion to God and God's commitment to justice for the "least of these." Prosperity theology is simply the antithesis of the Christian faith.
If Bishop Long is found to be guilty it won't come as a surprise. He has always appeared to value wealth and power over the teachings of Jesus. People like that are prone to the exploitation of the young and powerless.
