Posted on 02/19/2007 11:53:37 AM PST by Alex Murphy
Colorado Springs - The Rev. Ted Haggard's former congregation was told Sunday that while an investigation uncovered new evidence the influential evangelical leader engaged in "sordid conversation" and "improper relationships," the church can heal its wounds.
More than 100 days after Haggard's firing amid a gay-sex scandal, 14,000-member New Life Church received a progress report from its board of overseers, an outside panel of pastors.
The Rev. Larry Stockstill of Baton Rouge, La., an overseer, read a letter describing results of "extensive fact-finding" into Haggard's claim that he had long struggled with a "dark side."
"We have verified the reality of that struggle through numerous individuals who reported to us firsthand knowledge of everything from sordid conversation to overt suggestions to improper activities to improper relationships," Stockstill said. "These findings established a pattern of behavior that culminated in the final relationship in which Ted was, as a matter of grace, caught."
Church officials would not elaborate, citing confidentiality, and it's unclear whether any of those incidents were reported at the time they occurred.
"Doubtless, people who knew Ted and worked with him can look back now and see areas of incongruity that might have seemed like eccentricities (at the time)," Rob Brendle, an associate pastor at New Life, said when asked why someone might not have raised a red flag.
Haggard, 50, resigned as president of the National Association of Evangelicals and was fired from New Life after former male prostitute Mike Jones of Denver alleged a three-year relationship. Haggard admitted to undisclosed "sexual immorality."
This month, another overseer, the Rev. Tim Ralph, told The Denver Post that Haggard concluded he was "completely heterosexual" after three weeks of counseling at a secular treatment center in Arizona. Haggard previously had told the overseers he wasn't gay.
Ralph also said there was no evidence that Haggard had sexual relations with anyone but Jones.
On Sunday, Stockstill emphasized Haggard's counseling in Arizona was a "launching pad."
"There should be no confusion that deliverance from habitual, life-controlling problems is a journey and not an event," Stockstill said. "Ted will need years of accountability to demonstrate his victory over both actions and tendencies."
Ralph said Sunday that Haggard "received a lot of good tools and wisdom to embrace completely the heterosexual man he is. We all know he has some problems. He's on the road to recovery."
Haggard's severance package will pay him between $130,000 and $140,000 through this year, the equivalent of his annual salary, Brendle said. Under the deal, Haggard must leave Colorado Springs and cannot talk publicly about the scandal. Haggard has told supporters that he and his wife, Gayle, will move out of state and pursue psychology degrees.
Stockstill said overseers also identified "a few staff members struggling with unrelated sin issues." One senior staff member, Christopher Beard, resigned in December after church officials said he admitted to "poor judgment," including one incident of sexual misconduct years ago.
Brendle said the other employees have been disciplined but not fired. He would not discuss their transgressions but said they were not of the "same magnitude or nature" of Haggard's.
A pastoral selection committee is working to replace Haggard.
Stockstill urged church members to "walk in unity" and likened their challenge to that of the Old Testament figure Noah.
"Stay in the ark," he said. "The winds may howl, the storms may rage, and the ark may drift, but you are still safe within," he said.
Although church leaders have stayed positive, attendance has declined between 8 percent and 10 percent since the scandal, said another overseer, the Rev. Mike Ware. He said recent snowstorms might have played a role.
In the lobby after services, Donna Mansard of Monument could be counted among those optimistic about the future.
"Where Ted is at is the right place for him," Mansard said. "Our church is headed in the right direction. It's made me realize to look to God, not to man."
IMO a defrocked/fired pastor should forfeit any and all claims to a severance package.
Amen. There needs to be a "morals clause" in these church contracts, where if you are discovered to have engaged in certain activities (and we all know which ones they are), your contract is void and your severance package is revoked.
If the fear of God cannot keep these high profile preachers in line, perhaps the fear of a loss of a pension might.
Ain't that the truth.
I heard an interview with Haggard on the White Horse Inn last year where he insisted that he was able not to sin. I cringed when I heard him say that.
The man was lying to himself.
Obviously he was just plain lying.
He made me cringe just looking at him.
That's amazing. "Earth to Planet Zongo ..."
The holiest people (which I'm not) are the most conscious of how far they still fall short of the holiness of God.
Is the package from the church for the NAE? Not that it makes much difference. Just curious.
I have a friend who is a member of this church. It's been very difficult for the congregation.
That's the sort of thing that pretty much says itself, under the circumstances.
Mr. Haggard was boasting about how evangelicals had better sex, pulled aside a congregant before Ms. Pelosi, and queried him about his sex life - how many nights a week, does she orgasm every time, etc. (Sorry about the graphic language.)
From this documentary, it became clear to me that Mr. Haggard was a sex-obsessed huckster - a modern day Elmer Gantry.
So his contention is that Christ died so I can have better orgasms?
I have often said to Lady Gamecock, only half-jokingly, that you can tell what sin a Pastor struggles with the most by which sin he most often refers to from the pulpit.
There's a lot of wisdom in that...for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh....
Why Corin, thats the nicest thing you have ever said to me!
I know. I thought a long time before I posted it. ;-)
A sign of your Sanctification?
<;-)
It's interesting, though, as I've got a local point of comparison.
My church in Colorado Springs has also had some pastor problems -- much different problems than Haggard's, but it's still hard on our congregation.
What's interesting is the difference in how New Life has handled this, as opposed to my church. New Life has been open to letting God use this to strengthen them. They're gonna do just fine, and I think they'll probably end up better off after all of this mess.
My church, OTOH, has battened down the hatches -- they're in combat mode. The pastor is a big part of the problem, but they're fully defensive about him, and the pastor is one of those who never admits a mistake. We're gonna do some nasty bleeding before it's all over. (There are some messy details I'm leaving out which help to explain the context....)
At any rate, it's both beneficial and frustrating to see the differences in how these problems are being handled.
Interesting and true observation -- anecdotally confirmed by what's happening in my own church.
I was reading an interesting article in The Atlantic's newest issue yesterday (center right magazine). The article discussed the targeting of gay 'activist' dollars into state and local races. The guy behind it all is from CO, the home of James Dobson and his 'rival' Haggard. Evidently, they had gotten Haggard to sign on to not supporting the "anti-gay" amendments, etc. Kinda makes you go 'hmmhhh....'
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