Is Bishop Eddie Long a Man or a Monster?

Bishop Eddie Long, of the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Georgia, is accused of sexually abusing at least four young men and of abusing his ex-wife, as reported at ABC.

Bishop Eddie Long says he feels like David against Goliath

Said one of his accusers, 23-year-old Jamal Parris, "I cannot get the sound of his voice out of my head, and I cannot forget the smell of his cologne, and I cannot forget the way he made me cry when I drove in his car on the way home, not able to take enough showers to get the smell of that man off my body." He goes on to say about Bishop Long, while looking into the camera of the reporter who is interviewing him, "You are not a man; you are a monster."

Jamal was a teen at the time, as the other alleged victims were, and says Long used him for sex and then moved on to younger prey. Photos of Long have surfaced where he is dressed in tight clothing allegedly meant to enhance his body and arouse his victims.

When Bishop Eddie Long addressed his congregation about the allegations of sexual abuse, he said, "I feel like David against Goliath, but I've got five rocks and I haven't thrown one yet"

If you read the story of David and Goliath in 1 Samuel 17 of the Holy Bible, you will find that Goliath was over 9 feet tall, a mighty giant. David was the youngest son of Jesse, a simple shepherd. From 1 Samuel 17, chapter 45, David said to Goliath, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." David throws rocks at Goliath with his simple sling shot. A rock goes into the giant's forehead and he dies. The moral of the story is that God will fight for you, even in what appears like the most impossible situation, if you have faith in him.

David was an innocent and simple shepherd. But Bishop Eddie Long is not. He is the minister of a church with a congregational population of about 8,000, and he may not be innocent.

Long says he won't try the case in the media, although some will say he already has. "I've been accused. I'm under attack. I am not a perfect man, but this thing I'm going to fight," says Long to a chorus of applause from his congregation. Many of these people support him, despite the allegations. If you have that much human support, for some the Lord will take a back seat until you really need him. A Christian's goal is to remain with the Lord at all times.

Bishop Eddie Long never came out and said he was guilty of sexually abusing the four men. But as former nun Kathleen Noble said in one of her comments to her article Latest News on Bishop Long, "Two scenarios here: if the Bishop is innocent, he should have specifically DENIED the accusations when he spoke to his church on Sunday. He did not. If he is guilty, then he should have apologized to his flock and to the victims, and immediately resigned from the ministry and gone into treatment as soon as possible."

Bishop Eddie Long has preached adamantly against homosexuality, but sexually abusing four young men is not revelations of gay affairs, such as Mike Jones' allegations against Ted Haggard. This is sexual abuse, and if Long is guilty, he would be just as wrong as if he were sexually abusing females.

But Bishop Eddie Long is also accused of abusing his ex-wife

Sexual allegations against young men are not the only accusations that Long is accused of. He is also accused, by his ex-wife, of a "vicious and violent temper" and for beating her when she was pregnant with his son. In 1985 divorce documents, Dabara Long, now Dabara Houston, claimed she was scared of Long and left the home with her son "in order to ensure their safety."

None of these accusations look good for Bishop Eddie Long. As far as the sexual abuse is concerned, he will indeed receive his day in court. If Bishop Long is not the man being portrayed on television and in the media, as Long claims, he will be able to look at himself in the mirror with a clean conscious.

Sources:

Steve Osunsami and Sarah Netter, Bishop Eddie Long's Ex-Wife Claimed 'Vicious' Abuse During Divorce, ABC

Bishop Eddie Long: "I Feel Like David Against Goliath", News One

Kathleen Noble, Latest News on Bishop Eddie Long, Associated Content

1 Samuel 17 of the Holy Bible