Bishop Eddie Long and the Black Communitys Silence on Sexual Abuse, Atlanta Post, September 23, 2010

Bishop Eddie Long and the Black Community’s Silence on Sexual Abuse

Atlanta Post
September 23, 2010

http://atlantapost.com/2010/09/23/bishop-eddie-long-and-the-black-communitys-silence-on-sexual-abuse/

When it comes to the Bishop Eddie Long and his flock, denial is more than a river in Egypt.

By now you should have heard that Bishop Eddie L. Long, spiritual leader of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Georgia, has been accused of sexually abusing two -no wait- three young men and possibly more members of his church.

Yes, the same Bishop Long, who once equated homosexuality to spiritual abortions, now finds himself facing allegations that, among other things, he engaged in private ceremonies and sexual misdeeds with his young “Spiritual Sons” and showered them with jewelry, clothes trips and money.

Through a spokesperson, Bishop Long claimed that the allegations waged against him in the lawsuit were simply “a case of retaliation and a shakedown for money by men with some serious credibility issues.” However, Bishop Long, who is probably one of the most powerful men in the Black Mega-church movement, will now have to answer to a whole other power, much more worldly than the church, and that’s the courts.

As expected the Bishop Long scandal has garnered a lot of national and international attention. Not only was he a trending topic on Twitter but also the details of the lawsuit became one of the most searched items on Google so far this week. And coming off the heels of the sex abuse scandals within the Catholic Church and the long line of hypocritical, anti-gay Evangelistic pastors, who got caught with their hands in the forbidden cookie jar, it should come as no surprise that Bishop Long’s plight would spark just as much public outrage.

However, what is perplexing is that instead of there being concern over what these allegations might mean for dealing with sexual misconduct, and other misdoings in the black church, many in the African-American church community, especially the 30,000 members of New Birth, are quick to defend Bishop Long. They are not only refusing to believe the possibility that these allegations might be true but offering condemnation to the accusers.

And in my opinion, there within lies the problem with this entire mess.

Since news of the lawsuits broke, request for prayers for the good Bishop, his family and the New Birth members in “their time of need” on social networking site, on the radio and in the comment section below the stories, have outweighed requests from those wanting the truth. Even the popular Gospel Duo Mary Mary are leading a vigil on Twitter for the Bishop and his family – never once issuing the same prayer request for the accusers.

Do I believe that a person is innocent until proven otherwise, I sure do. However, I also think that regardless of the evidence or not, some folks within the black religious community are more than willing to sweep what they feel is bad press under the rug. Many of these same folks, who are urging others not to judge the Bishop to prematurely, often issue the same judgment, generalizations, ridicule and shame on those whom they deem wayward folks.

Personally, I do not take delight in his misfortunes, much like some in the religious community take delight in gay bashing or scorning of those, who either follow another religious doctrine or choose not to follow at all. But, Christians, particularly Black Churches and other religious institutions, must be prepared to answer questions about the abuses of power, which has befallen its leadership.

Whether or not Bishop Long is guilty of these allegations, it would seem that the Bishop made himself into an easy target. The Flashy garb and cars, the diamonds, the bodyguards – sometimes I find it hard to distinguish these days between a preacher and 50 cent.