Well, it seems that we just can’t get away from scandalous church stories these days. If it’s not about the ridiculously lavish lifestyles of Mega-church pastors, it’s about sexual misconduct in the church. Pardon the Gorilla, but aren’t churches supposed to be teaching us how to be better people? Aren’t these pastors supposed to be doing “God’s work” and setting the “gold standard” for others as to how to live a moral and upright existence? This is a joke, right? Are we all being punked? That is how the Gorilla felt when he heard this story out of Georgia today.
At the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, Archbishop Earl Paulk admitted this week to having an affair with his brother’s wife, and fathering a child by her. This is after he already admitted in January to having an affair with a church employee for three years. The employee, whose name is Mona Brewer, is suing the Archbishop and several others in the church, because she claims that she was manipulated into an affair by Paulk, who claimed that it was her “only path to salvation.” During a deposition for this lawsuit, Paulk swore under oath that this was the only affair he had ever had, but when the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office called for a paternity test for Paulk to take, that lie was revealed in a big way. Paulk is now facing charges of perjury for lying under oath during that deposition.
The 80-year-old church leader’s son, D.E. Paulk, who was thought all along to be his nephew, was named head pastor one year ago and since then, it doesn’t appear to be going so well for the guy. D.E. Paulk had this to say to his church members and the media: ”I am so very sorry for the collateral damage it has caused our family and the families hurt by the removing of the veil that hid our humanity and our sinfulness.” He said he was shocked, disappointed, and embarrassed to learn that the Archbishop was his father and not his uncle! The mega-church once claimed 10,000 members, but now reportedly, membership is down to a scant 1,500. The Gorilla is not surprised, and although he is not overtly religious, he thinks it might be common sense to reconsider putting more faith in your beliefs, rather than in a church leader (especially these days).
November 22nd, 2007 at 7:42 am
The thing to realize when hearing stories like this is that humans will always fail you if you are putting your faith in them. God will never fail you. Do not place your faith in man no matter how right you think he might be. Stories like this give Christianity a black eye but that does not mean that all Christians go around trying to fool people into thinking they are moral sinless people. Christians are sinners just like people who have never had a relationship with Christ, but Christians know forgiveness comes from Christ.
This is the perfect time of year to stop and think where your blessings come from, and if you never have, think about your relationship with your creator. Just because there are people out there who abuse their positions of authority doesn’t mean that it is wrong to be a Christian. There are plenty of people out there who are trying to live a life that is pleasing to God. Mr. Gorilla don’t let a few bad apples spoil your opinion of the whole barrel.