PimpPreacher.com 12/04/2011

Bishop Eddie Long has just announced that he will step down as Pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church amidst dark clouds of scandals. Bishop Eddie Long says he will step away to take care of his family and will not return until some point in 2012. Bishop Eddie Long also told members during this tearful announcement that he was leaving them in the care of one of his fellow pastors and that they should continue to give to the ministry.

As his member gathered around the pulpit crying and sobbing Eddie Long already had a guest preacher standing by to preach as he departed the sanctuary.

All of this news comes on the heels of the divorce announcement made by Vanessa Long who later recanted her petition for divorce, then enacted it again.

Eddie Long took the stage at 8:00 AM. Everyone surrounded the pulpit and he continuously wiped away tears. He told us over 5 times that him and Vanessa still love each other. He said, about New Birth: “We are a family. She is your mother, and I am your father.”

He talked about the impact the allegations have had on his family for years, including long before this last year. He said the greatest thing the church can do is continue to show up, and continue to give money. We don’t need to listen to the media.

He compares his situation with the Israeli battles where Moses had to keep his hands raised and Aaron would hold up his arms when Moses was tired. He said the battle has lasted longer than originally thought, and he needs us to hold up his arms.

Eddie Long said he needs to take time away to take care of his family and we shouldn’t worry. He always puts good people in front of us. He said to still believe in all the prophecies of 2011 and that he already had all of 2012′s lesson plans laid out.

The attacks from the media were taking a toll. There are things he’d like to say but can’t because he’s been advised not to, but he said the divorce has nothing to do with infidelity or the allegations. He said he is not Superman and he doesn’t want to be compared to him. He then said he would pray for our families, and he wanted us to pray for his.

After this he sat down and a guest preacher, ( Indian man first name Samuel. Couldn’t understand the last name) preached for an hour from 2 Kings 4-8. He spoke about the 4 keys to the church and how New Birth had everyone of them. He said we can go anywhere for church, but only Mew birth for fellowship. Afterwards, we had offering and Eddie Long left after the offering was collected.

As I was leaving, I saw a line of people in front waiting to shake Eddie Longs hand. I stood in line and asked him, “When are you coming back Bishop?” he said, “I’ll be back soon. As soon as I can”

Preacher Bureau of Investigations
Exposing The Greed In Our Pulpits
Post Your Comment

Custom Search Pastor Background Checker
Sure he can preach, but is he living a righteous life?

Email
Pimp Preacher.com 08/04/2011 Atlanta Bureau

Centino Kemp is the latest diva to appear on the scene. Glammed up and flossed out, Centino Kemp is determined to do whatever it takes to get noticed.

By now we have all heard the story. Centino Kemp the mysterious 5th accuser, who turned the tide of the Eddie Long sexual harassment settlement talks by just showing up. Centino Kemp, the young man who secured multi-million dollar paydays for all of the parties involved.

An observation of Centino Kemp before and after the settlement shows a picture of two very different young men. Centino Kemp of January 2011 was just a normal looking young man in the usually uniform of cheap jeans and t-shirts. But just look at him now and you can almost see the dollar signs surrounding him, giving off an aura of green light.

Being the girly girl that I am, I look at him and only wonder one thing – How much did he spend on that hair? I mean seriously, I know that there are some of you out there that have thought the same thing. He looks like he gets his hair done once a week. And now in his latest look, he is sporting weave down to his ankles. Its takes some extremely deep pockets to give Beyoncé a run for her money in the weave department and Centino appears to be winning.

Centino Kemp has taken his multi-million dollar settlement and thrown back into your faces Members of New Birth. With every photograph he is laughing at their stupidity in entrusting their spirituality to a man who by his own admission is so sick that he is now “in treatment.”

Even Got A New Weave With Your Tithe Money – Thanks Eddie Long!

To The Remaining Members Of New Birth – How Does It Feel To Watch Centino Flossing With Your Tithes & Offerings?
So How Does It Feel?

To the members of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church I can’t help but wonder how does it feel to witness this misuse of your tithes and offerings?

The launch of his music career is being funded with your hard earned money. Money that could have been used to pay your mortgage, car note, light bill or your child’s college tuition is being used to fuel Centino Kemp’s dreams of stardom. Every dime he spends on producers, photographers and promoters came out of your pockets.

Every time you see Centino’s face smiling down at you from a billboard you need to ask yourself:

How much of your money was spent in the recording studio?

How much of your money was spent on limos, and new clothes?

How much of your money was spent on maintaining those fierce hair styles?

Centino Kemp is just the latest in a series of insults Eddie Long has inflicted upon you, Members of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church. I’m beginning to wonder what it’s going take to open your eyes? Will it take a sex tape Eddie Long with your son, nephew or cousin? Maybe then you will wake up to the glaring reality right in front of your face, your money given to your Pastor, now available on I-Tunes. Bishop Eddie Long remains unapologetic for this grotesque waste of tithes and offerings as if the money was his alone to waste. Maybe it was!

By Boyce Watkins, PhD on Dec 20th 2010 11:56PM

Bishop Eddie Long is in the media again, and not for good reason. Long and another Atlanta megachurch pastor, Gary Hawkins, have been linked to a mortgage company that is being investigated by federal authorities for allegedly stealing money from church members.

The company, Matrix Capital, has been allowed to hold financial seminars in the churches of both men, offering to help lower their mortgages in exchange for $1,500 payments. According to police, thousands of people paid money to Matrix but ended up filing bankruptcy and/or losing their homes.

Fred Lee, the proclaimed front man for the company, was allegedly able to convince quite a few church members to give him their money primarily because he addressed them within the confines of their joint church environment. The Secret Service and the DeKalb County Police are now investigating Lee.

In defense of Eddie Long, the church says that all his church did was provide a room for Lee to hold his seminars. Gary Hawkins was much more involved in supporting and promoting Lee by appearing on one of his videos, vouching for his credibility and integrity:

“I believe that, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that this man walks in great integrity,” Hawkins said in a company video.

One of the church members told CBS Atlanta that it was the pastor’s endorsement, which led her to trust Lee with her money. The woman claims she paid the money and later found out that she was in trouble with her mortgage because Matrix had allegedly never even made a phone call to the bank. She also claimed that Hawkins wouldn’t answer her questions when she went to him about her problem.

When it comes to this particular financial scheme, a few thoughts come to mind.

First, there is no evidence that Eddie Long promoted Matrix Capital or Fred Lee, so he should not necessarily be accused of swindling anyone. At the very least, however, he is learning a valuable lesson about properly vetting anyone making financial arrangements with people who trust him.

It is clear that if Lee was involved in any kind of scam, he was able to take advantage of the trust induced by the deep relationship that members of the congregation had with their respective pastors.

Second, this incident serves as yet another lesson regarding how African Americans and our churches evolve as it pertains to complex financial relationships.

I am willing to bet that someone came in and offered money to gain access to the pastors’ congregations, similar to the way Wells Fargo offered money to Tavis Smiley and black church leaders to allegedly sell predatory loans to members of urban communities.

When we take money from anyone offering it, we find ourselves in the middle of some peculiar situations that can lead to very bad outcomes. Our hunger for resources in the black community becomes an incredibly unhealthy habit in a nation that is addicted to mass consumption. Black folks have to be more intelligent than that and realize that money should be a tool for your liberation, not a pathway to spiritual demise.

The final lesson to be learned from this debacle (which happens in churches all throughout America) is the importance of making careful decisions and not putting too much trust in anyone, even our spiritual leaders.

While it is tempting to presume that you should put your financial livelihood in to the hands of the man or woman who runs your church, the reality is that far too many pastors allow their lust for money to overwhelm their desire to protect you or your family. So, thinking for yourself is critical, for there will always be financial predators seeking to take advantage of people during desperate times like these.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Bishop Eddie Long – Bishop Eddie Long’s New Birth Church has been plagued with another lawsuit and more allegations of sexual misconduct. This time, a lawsuit was filed against his New Birth Missionary Church alleging sexual harassment against a top church supervisor.  Tama Colson has filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against New Birth, accusing church supervisor, Michael Ceaser of showing her “a picture of a penis” on his cell phone and then retaliating against her when she complained.Michael Ceaser oversees all technical support for the video recording of church services. Tama says she complained to a security official at the church who warned her that Ceaser and his boss were, “part of Bishop Eddie Long’s inner circle and were never disciplined for any wrong doing.”

The court documents also claim that Michael Ceaser had engaged in improper behavior with other women at New Birth and, “the church’s leadership did not discipline Ceaser, but ran the women out of the church.”

A Bishop Long’s spokesperson says New Birth has a strict policy to report sexual harassment within 48 hours. And Tama did not make her complaint known until nearly a year after it happened.  But the policy does not trump state law.

As previously reported, four young men have filed sexual misconduct lawsuits against Bishop Eddie Long.  Also a bank sued Bishop Eddie Long last week for failing to pay off a $1.9 million loan used to buy a gym in Clayton County.

We are still waiting for Bishop Eddie Long to just come forward and testify.

Bishop Eddie Long’s New Birth Church has been plagued with another lawsuit and more allegations of sexual misconduct. This time, a lawsuit was filed against his New Birth Missionary Church alleging sexual harassment against a top church supervisor.

Tama Colson has filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against New Birth, accusing church supervisor, Michael Ceaser of showing her “a picture of a penis” on his cell phone and then retaliating against her when she complained.

Michael Ceaser oversees all technical support for the video recording of church services. Tama says she complained to a security official at the church who warned her that Ceaser and his boss were, “part of Bishop Eddie Long’s inner circle and were never disciplined for any wrong doing.”

The court documents also claim that Michael Ceaser had engaged in improper behavior with other women at New Birth and, “the church’s leadership did not discipline Ceaser, but ran the women out of the church.”

Bishop Eddie Long doesn’t seem to be having a great month thus far.  He was hit with his 5th lawsuit: Embattled Bishop Eddie Long took a hit Monday as a new suit was filed, ordering him and two others to pay $1.9 million for defaulting on a property loan. The suit filed Monday asked the DeKalb County State Court to order Long and the others to pay off the debt in 10 days or incur additional fines and attorneys’ fees. This is the fifth lawsuit filed against the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church leader in less than a month. The other four suits, which were also filed against the DeKalb Countymegachurch, accuse Long of coercing four young men into sex in exchange for cars, lavish trips and jobs. The AJC is the only media outlet to obtain the latest suit. The financial suit filed Monday names only Long and does not include the church.