Sex and the City (of God)

The song remains the same: Holy Leader Commits The Unholy.

The article below could be an episode on a soap opera. You can't write this stuff. This kind of drama plays out in the news regarding leaders of one Christian denomination or another on an almost daily basis.

The key issue that ties all these unfortunate headlines together is sex. Say the word in front of a church congregation and many will still blush, cross themselves or pass out. Why is it such a forbidden topic? Catholics see sex as a blessing and a curse - it is a blessing because it produces more Catholics (want 'em or not, here they come) and it is evil and reeks of sin because of the unspeakable mechanics of it...it is obviously sinful because people get the basest pleasure out of it. Pleasure - in the eyes of the Church, that word is as dirty as the word sex. They're all about suffering, baby. They seem to deny that God would want them to enjoy it.

Sex is a gift from God, not to be abused... or misused... or neglected. If you gave someone a beautiful gift and they left it in their closet, never to be used, how would you feel? If that person mistreated your gift or dropped it on the floor, how would you feel? Like many gifts from God, sex is a something that needs attention and not repression / suppression. I don't understand how celibate priests can speak of sex (or counsel on marriage) in any way. They are human, too. Those pent-up feelings always seem to end up coming out and eventually hurting someone - scratch that - they hurt many people. A levee holding back too much water will eventually burst. This is the law of nature; and therefore, God's law. People need to be open and honest about sex and that goes for reverends, pastors, deacons and priests, too.

I feel that if sex wasn't so taboo in Christian churches, we would see a decrease in moral offenses by church leaders. Healthy open dialogue about sex and sexual issues needs to take place in Christian churches, for both leaders and followers.

Bonus Article: An older piece about the "Reverend" Jesse Jackson and his hypocrisy. Every time he runs to cheerlead someone's cause or issue, I just have to shake my head. It's not the fact that he had a child out of wedlock, but for God's sake, the man still preaches with unbound arrogance and, I feel, selective racism. You would think that his little fall from grace might be God's way of saying "Calm down, son. Be humble. That's the lesson, here." Mr. Jackson missed the point, I think.

SEX SCANDAL: Archbishop Admits Sleeping With Brother's Wife

WSBTV.com - POSTED: 4:29 pm EST November 19, 2007

DECATUR, Ga. -- The 80-year-old leader of a suburban Atlanta megachurch is at the center of a sex scandal of biblical dimensions: He slept with his brother's wife and fathered a child by her. Members of Archbishop Earl Paulk's family stood at the pulpit of the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit at Chapel Hill Harvester Church a few Sundays ago and revealed the secret exposed by a recent court-ordered paternity test. In truth, this is not the first -- or even the second -- sex scandal to engulf Paulk and the independent, charismatic church. But this time, he could be in trouble with the law for lying under oath about the affair. The living proof of that lie is 34-year-old D.E. Paulk, who for years was known publicly as Earl Paulk's nephew. "I am so very sorry for the collateral damage it's caused our family and the families hurt by the removing of the veil that hid our humanity and our sinfulness," said D.E. Paulk, who received the mantle of head pastor a year and a half ago. D.E. Paulk said he did not learn the secret of his parentage until the paternity test. "I was disappointed, and I was surprised," he said. Earl Paulk, his brother, Don, and his sister-in-law, Clariece, did not return calls for comment. A judge ordered the test at the request of the Cobb County district attorney's office and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which are investigating Earl Paulk for possible perjury and false-swearing charges stemming from a lawsuit. The archbishop, his brother and the church are being sued by former church employee Mona Brewer, who says Earl Paulk manipulated her into an affair from 1989 to 2003 by telling her it was her only path to salvation. Earl Paulk admitted to the affair in front of the church last January. In a 2006 deposition stemming from the lawsuit, the archbishop said under oath that the only woman he had ever had sex with outside of his marriage was Brewer. But the paternity test said otherwise. So far no charges have been filed against Earl Paulk. District Attorney Pat Head and GBI spokesman John Bankhead would not comment. The shocking results of the paternity test are speeding up a transformation already under way in the church after more than a decade of sex scandals and lawsuits involving the Paulks, D.E. Paulk said. "It was a necessary evil to bring us back to a God-consciousness," said the younger Paulk, explaining that the church had become too personality-driven and prone to pastor worship. The flashy megachurch began in 1960 with just a few dozen members in the Little Five Points neighborhood of Atlanta. Now, it is in the suburbs on a 100-acre expanse, a collection of buildings surrounding a neo-Gothic cathedral. For years the church was at the forefront of many social movements -- admitting black members in the 1960s, ordaining women and opening its doors to gays. At its peak in the early 1990s, it claimed about 10,000 members and 24 pastors and was a media powerhouse. By soliciting tithes of 10 percent from each member's income, the church was able to build a Bible college, two schools, a worldwide TV ministry and a $12 million sanctuary the size of a fortress. Today, though, membership is down to about 1,500, the church has 18 pastors, most of them volunteers, and the Bible college and TV ministry have shuttered -- a downturn blamed largely on complaints about the alleged sexual transgressions of the elder Paulks. In 1992, a church member claimed she was pressured into a sexual relationship with Don Paulk. Other women also claimed they had been coerced into sex with Earl Paulk and other members of the church's administration. The church countered with a $24 million libel suit against seven former church members. The lawsuit was later dropped. Jan Royston, who left the church in 1992, started an online support group for former members to discuss their crushed faith and hurt feelings. "This is a cult. And you escape from a cult," she said. "We all escaped." These days, Earl Paulk has a much-reduced role at the cathedral, giving 10-minute lectures as part of Sunday morning worship each week. "My uncle is 100 percent guilty, but his accusers are guilty as well," D.E. Paulk said, declining to talk further about the lawsuits.

Jesse Jackson fathers child out of wedlock, asks forgiveness

January 18, 2001 - Web posted at: 2:23 p.m. EST (1923 GMT)

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Civil rights activist and CNN talk show host Jesse Jackson is asking for forgiveness after acknowledging Thursday that he had an extramarital affair that resulted in the birth of a daughter now 20 months old. "I fully accept responsibility and I am truly sorry for my actions," Jackson said in a written statement. Jackson, a Baptist minister and one-time aide to Martin Luther King Jr., admitted that he fathered the child and has provided "emotional and financial support" since her birth. "As her mother does, I love this child very much," he said. "I was born of these circumstances," said Jackson, himself born out of wedlock, "and I know the importance of growing up in a nurturing, supportive and protected environment so I am determined to give my daughter and her mother the privacy they both deserve." His New York-based spokesman, John Scanlon, told CNN that Jackson issued the statement in advance of tabloid newspaper reports about the child. "We decided to issue this statement so that our point of view could be reflected in this story," Scanlon said. The statement does not reveal the name of the mother or the child, calling it "a private and family matter." Jackson says that "to protect all those I love I will not discuss it any further beyond this statement." The two-time former presidential candidate plans an indefinite hiatus from his activist activities, which included opposing the confirmation of President-elect George W. Bush's attorney general nominee, John Ashcroft. "I will be taking some time off to revive my spirit and reconnect with my family before I return to my public ministry," the statement said.