Ok! Let's move on, shall we?! I'm sure you've all at least heard bits and pieces of the Ted Haggard story (I actually think The Ted Haggard Story is an HBO movie). I just read a transcript of part of the Larry King interview with Haggard and his wife Mrs. Haggard and am left scratching my head. Now if you aren't totally up-to-date on this scandal, here is a brief breakdown from what I gather:
- Haggard was the head pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs (megachurch, made $150k a year, big shot among big shot church guys, lives in a 700k home)
- Married since 1978 with FIVE children
- Has condemned homosexuality, apparently visited gay bars to bring men to his congregation
- Dethroned in 2006 amidst sex scandal involving male prostitute and crystal meth
- Accused of paying the prostitute for sex once a month for three years, he even tipped (that's 36 booty calls)
- Admitted to most of the allegations and went straight to therapy.
- Asked for donations so him and his wife could go back to college
- Currently selling insurance
Ok, so. In this Larry King interview that was on last week, his wife sat by his side and professed her undying love and admiration for him. That's fine, he's a very lucky man. I guess what I'm confused about is his...you know...official status. His wife swears they have a very normal sex life and apparently 99% of his sexual experiences were with her. Do the ones where he was on crystal meth not count? That's really the only way I can understand how 3 years of prostitute visits only account for 1%. Not to mention how another man has come forward recently to say that Pastor Ted "knew himself" in the biblical sense in front of him. But I digress. Ted has labeled himself "heterosexual with complications." I've never seen this option for orientation on any one's facebook or myspace page, so it's definitely a first for me. While I agree that visiting a prostitute and taking crystal meth could lead to various complications, something tells me he's really skirting the issue here. I guess I just find it messed up and sad that he's still in denial after all of this. I always wonder why women stand by their cheating husbands, whether they cheat with men, women, or drug induced crystal meth sessions with prostitutes. Mrs. Haggard had the following to say when asked why she stayed with Ted:
"To restore honor to our children, the best thing I could do is help restore honor to their father."
Does that scream martyr to anyone else?! Is she giving up her happiness and self-worth to remain married to a man who disgraced their family and lied to her for 30 years? I'm sure her children are her #1 concern, but why is it her DUTY to restore his honor that he royally f'd up? I am just really perplexed by this whole situation from the religious implications to the lies and deceit and the nagging question of why was he making 150k a year in the first place? (That brings up a whole other issue I have about pastor's salaries...anyone else think that a salary cap sounds like a good idea for this profession? I mean I know it's not "fair" to limit any one's earning potential, but I've always been personally wary of Men of God that are making serious bank - or if they are really really tan and wear gold jewelry - won't mention names, but I've known one or two of these).
So, I guess I'm just curious what you all think. Is he gay? Is he a complex straight person? Does he just want to party? What would you do if you were married to him? Should people be allowed to start churches in their basement?
Feel free to rant!
5 comments:
"straight with complications"...give me a break. If you're not gay, not straight, then you're bi.
Mrs. H is an idiot to stay with him. Mr. H has no "honor" and if she thinks staying with him will "restore his honor", then I'm afraid she may be enjoying that crystal meth just as much as Mr. H...either that or she's a gold digger and doesn't want to miss out on the ridiculous amount of money he made as a pastor.
I'm with you Deb. While I'm guessing that he's probably bisexual, I do wonder if he's still partially batting for the straight team because of his beliefs, not his choice. But I really don't want to know anyways...this guy creeps me out just looking at his giant teeth.
All of the deceit and hypocrisy associated with these religious leaders has become so tiring I pretty much ignore it any more. This is typically where I would begin laying into organized religion, but it's a dead horse.
Listen, ladies. I LOVE your blog. and i know its difficult to write a lot. maybe its time to add a new writer or two to help with the content? there must be other diva's out there, right?
We do accept resumes from time to time. If you know if any divas, please pass them along. It would be helpful if they didn't work full-time because that's a bit of an issue. A lady who just lunches would be fantastic!
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