By Meghan Keneally
Daily Mail
December 5, 2011
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2069969/Sex-abuse-scandal-pastor-Eddie-Long-leaves-megachurch-wife-files-divorce.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
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| 'Stepping up': Bishop Eddie Long announced that he was taking a leave of absence from his church duties to deal with family issues after his wife filed for divorce |
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| Happier times: Vanessa and Eddie Long were married in 1990 but Vanessa filed for divorce on Thursday though she did not give any specific reason |
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| Scandal: Shortly after four young men accused Long of coercing them into sex, these cell photos of Long in workout gear were made public |
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| Scandal: Shortly after four young men accused Long of coercing them into sex, these cell photos of Long in workout gear were made public |
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| Heralded: Eddie Long is seen as an inspiration for his congregation |
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| Investigated: Mr Long has been the subject of both Senate investigations and local lawsuits |
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| Supporters: Bishop Long lead the funeral service of Martin Luther King Jr.'s widow Coretta Scott King, a ceremony attended by four presidents including George W. Bush |
Bishop Eddie Long, who was accused last year of coercing four young men into sexual relationships, is taking a leave of absence from his role as the leader of a Georgia megachurch after his second wife filed for divorce.
In an unusual chain of events, the bishop's wife Vanessa initially filed the divorce papers Thursday and made a public announcement saying so Friday morning; she then announced that she withdrew the request hours later, only to have her lawyer announce that she was in fact going through with the divorce Saturday.
As a result, Mr Long announced Sunday that he was going to temporarily step back from his duties at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church.
'I am still your pastor. You'll still receive my direction. You've given me some weeks to take care of some family business,' he said during Sunday morning's service.
'If you go out there, the news said I stepped down,' Mr Long continued.
'I haven't stepped down, I've actually stepped up.'
Mr Long rose to fame when he took over the megachurch New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Georgia.
When he joined the church in 1987, the congregation had only about 300 members. The megachurch now boasts 25,000 members.
Mr Long married Vanessa, his second wife, in 1990 and have three children together. Mr Long has another son from his first marriage which ended in divorce. In those court filings, Mr Long accused his first wife Dabara Houston of having a 'violent and vicious temper'.
In her divorce papers, Vanessa wrote that the marriage was 'irretrievably broken' with 'no hope of reconciliation of the parties'.
Mr Long's public statement differs, however, hinting that there was hope for a positive outcome.
'Vanessa and I are working together in seeking God's will in our current circumstances,' he said in a statement.
Vanessa asked for privacy- something that she has not had since Mr Long was accused of inappropriate sexual incidents.
'It is my sincere hope that this matter can be resolved expeditiously, harmoniously, and fairly,' she said.
In September of last year, four teenage boys filed lawsuits against Mr Long, saying that he coerced them into having sexual relations with him.
All of the boys were 17 and 18 years old, and because the age of consent in Georgia is 16, police did not pursue a criminal investigation into the issue.
The boys said that the Bishop would take them on long trips to New York, New Zealand, and South Africa, and would buy them cars as gifts.
The accusers said that he would convince them that the sexual activity was acceptable by using Biblical quotes.
That message stands in direct opposition to Mr Long's public persona, as he is known for his strong stance against gay rights. He has lead a number of sexual reorientation camps in the past in an effort to 'convert' homosexuals.
Though there were only four publicly named plaintiffs in the sexual impropriety lawsuits, the Bishop made an undisclosed out-of-court settlement with five individuals this May.
He has continued to deny the validity of the claims, though he did reveal some details of his relationships with the boys that seemed unusual and unnerving.
Mr Long said in the four separate documents that he often encouraged his New Birth Missionary Church members to call him 'daddy' and that some even called him 'grandaddy,' but that the term was a sign of respect.
In September lawyer Craig Gillen defended photos Long sent some of the men from his cell phone, showing the pastor in fitted workout clothing, calling him 'a health advocate, he's a weight lifter'.
He added: 'He's a fella, who's gonna go to work and he's gonna have on a muscle shirt.'
The sex scandal was not Mr Long's first run-in with the court of public opinion.
In 2007, Mr Long was investigated by the Senate to see if he had made financial gains as a result of his church's tax-exempt status. Local paper
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution claimed that he received more than $3million from his charity.
The investigation is ongoing.
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