Cloth With A Stain On It

     For hundreds of years church and religion has been the backbone of black families.  During slavery you could hear hymns being sung by slaves as they worked tirelessly in the sweltering fields.  They also worshiped together in their quarters whenever possible.  Fast forward to today.  Many people cannot wait for the work week to end so that they can carry the troubles and stress that life brings us to the Lord.  The House of the Lord is that place of peace where you sometimes walk into with your faith and spirit on E.  After hearing the word and some inspirational singing, souls come out with their full armor on ready for battle.  The saints emerge with a new walk, talk, and ready for whatever the enemy has next.

     Just like many of you, I myself has grown up in the church since I can remember. From church service on Sunday, to Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, serving on the usher board, to going with my mom to choir rehearsal.  If it had anything to do with church, best believe Wendy Wilson had me there.  Even as an adult, attending church services and functions has been a big part of my life.  I enjoy the church atmosphere of worshiping God in unison with fellow church members.  I love the preaching and teaching from powerful pastors or ministers.  Their intelligent interpretation of the Bible personally helps me to better understand the word.  

     The pastor is the man (or woman in some cases now) that God calls upon to lead a particular church.  He is not only the person standing before you on Sunday preaching the word.  He leads you in Bible study, counsels you when needed, takes phone calls in the middle of the night from members who are either in trouble, or sick among other things.  Some folk just don't realize what actually goes into overseeing a congregation.  Some just think the pastor shows up on Sunday, opens his Bible, speaks a few words, quote a few scriptures, hoops and hollers, then leaves only to return next Sunday to repeat the process all over again.  Being a pastor is truly a 24/7 job.  I know this because my ex father-in-law was my pastor at one point.  I witnessed the work ethic, sacrifice, and the passion it takes to do God's work in a manner that's commendable.

     For the saints of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, a megachurch in Lithonia, GA.  The leader and pastor is Bishop Eddie Long.  I'm sure that all, or most of you know that late last year, four young men filed lawsuits alleging that Eddie Long used his "pastoral power to coerce them into a sexual relationship with him." Say what you want, but, these are tremendous accusations against a man whose influence not only reaches the 25,000 plus members at his church (last count by Wikipedia), but, the countless people who follow him via television, radio, and internet.  When I first caught wind of the allegations, my first thought was that if he is not guilty, then he must fight this in order to clear his name.  I also thought that if he was guilty, then shame on him.  Needless to say, I was expecting an all out defense on the part of Long.

     The Sunday after the allegations were made against Long, I'm sure many eyes were on him to see what his response might be.  I feel, and many other people I've talked with feel that what we got was a show.  As I watched Long address his congregation, I waited for him to defiantly deny the accusations levied upon him.  He instead kept referring to the media who were in attendance.  There were several moments when the congregation seemed more like fans rather than members taking a listening ear to see what their leader had to say concerning the serious matter at hand.  Not saying that they shouldn't support their pastor because they should indeed support and pray for their pastor.  Eddie Long went on to say that he has "never portrayed himself as a perfect man," and that "he wasn't the man that's being portrayed on television." He then ended by saying that he has been "accused and was under attack," and that "this thing I'm going to fight." But the coup de gras came when he said:  "I feel like David against Goliath, but, I got five rocks.  And I haven't thrown one yet!" He then picked up his Ipad, grabbed his wife's hand, and whisked away to the roar of the crowd.  At that moment I felt that he didn't necessarily deny the accusations, but he made it known that he would fight it.

     To my surprise, Long threw some bones, or duckies (money) to the accusers (as reported by different news media outlets in Atlanta) by settling the lawsuits just last week.  This is hardly fighting or throwing any of them five rocks he claimed to have ready to throw such as David did against Goliath.  In my view, if Long was indeed innocent of these allegations (which he semi-denied), then he needed to use all of them five rocks and more!  If you're being "accused and under attack"as Long claimed he was, then you go on the defense to protect your innocence, as well as your good name and reputation.  As I stated before, my ex father-in-law was a pastor.  Because of that, I have formed friendships and have gotten to know other pastors in the Northern California area.  One pastor in particular (who will remain anonymous), came under the same accusations that Long did.  Actually, these particular accusations were a little more harsh.  He denied the allegations and maintained his innocence.  It didn't stop people from judging him prematurely, or, the removal of him as pastor at his church.  He fought the accusations for almost two years.  It did eventually come to light that the allegations were indeed false.  He is now repairing what was damaged of his reputation and has even started a new church in which he is pastor.  This pastor whom I'm referring to has nowhere near the influence an Eddie Long has, but, his plight was tragic all the same.

     Many people are quick to say, "leave him alone," and , "why are so many people worried about him?" Here's what I want people to understand.  Sometimes in life, you have to be held responsible and must answer to some things that you may not want to answer to.  When I was in the Army, I had an NCO (Non Commissioned Officer or Sgt.) who was grooming me to become an NCO.  He would always point to the stripes on his collar and remind me that great responsibility comes with those stripes.  Sometimes he was held accountable for things that he didn't do.  It could've been that one of his soldiers was late to formation, and to get their point across, the 1st Sgt. would impose punishment on that soldier's first line Sgt. to ensure it doesn't happen again.  At New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, Eddie Long is the man with those stripes on his collar.  So in some sense, he bears responsibility to answer to these charges.

     I'm sure that since these lawsuits have been settled, no one involved is permitted to talk about the lawsuit or the details of the settlement.  This is almost an admission of guilt.  Some would argue that it is in fact an admission of guilt.  I tend to agree with the latter.  In no way am I trying to sway opinions of others.  But a lot of this is just not right to me concerning this issue.

     The sanctity of the church in many places is becoming more like a corporate business, rather than running on the true foundation of what God intended it to be.  Sad, but hard truth.  Many people throw around what church they attend like it's a status symbol or a bullet on their resume.  Don't get me wrong, I'm all for forward moving and thriving churches.  But only in a way that's pleasing in the sight of God.  Anyway, let me not digress any further, because that's another topic for another day.  My final words will be this.  Don't let the aura of a man allow a veil to cover your face so that the truth is not visible.  Remember that man is still man, and all man will fall short of the glory of God at one point or another.  I just pray that Bishop Eddie Long realizes this and deals, or, has dealt with this accordingly.