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Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Focus on the Fundies: Skeleton springs out of Haggard's closet

The other shoe has dropped in the latest Ted Haggard scandal, as the young former congregation member of New Life Church publicly discusses how Haggard masturbated in front of him, offered him pills of some sort, and confided that "You can be a man of God and have a little bit of fun on the side."

Meanwhile, Haggard himself appeared on the Oprah show, his successor at New Life Church revealed that Haggard had several inappropriate relationships, and a Colorado Springs bail bondsman and amateur investigator is looking into the financial and legal aspects of l'affaire Haggard.

To top it all off, Haggard's wife Gayle told Oprah that he'd told her years ago that he struggled with same-sex attractions, or, as she put it, "some thoughts."

This story is truly a gift that keeps on giving.

technorati: Ted Haggard

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Friday, January 23, 2009

Focus on the Fundies: Ted Haggard may have another skeleton in closet

Now that disgraced former pastor Ted Haggard is promoting an upcoming HBO documentary about his 2006 outing and firing, the folks at his former church are none too happy about it. The current head of the congregation, seemingly resentful that Haggard is back in the public eye, has revealed that a former church volunteer alleged a consensual gay affair with the one-time evangelical superstar.

The documentary, by Alexandra Pelosi (daughter of the House Speaker), premieres on HBO this coming Thursday.

A Colorado Springs religion columnist separately interviewed Pelosi and Haggard, and also uncovers an odd note. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi denied she ever met Haggard after the disgraced preacher said in an interview in US News and World Report that she comforted him while her daughter was shooting the film. Here's the statement from her office.

technorati: Ted Haggard, New Life Church, Colorado Springs

Labels: Colorado Springs, evangelicals, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Focus on the Fundies: Ted Haggard is preaching again

For some reason, disgraced, defrocked religious leaders always seem to be able to attract new or old followers by allowing the suckers to "forgive" them and thus feel virtuous. And in America, there has never been a shortage of either. Disgraced Colorado Springs megachurch leader Ted Haggard, whose outing as a meth-snorting, gay prostitute-paying hypocrite played a role in 2006's Republican election debacle, and in the disillusionment of right-wing Christians with the Republican party, is preaching again, appearing at a rural Illinois church.

Then the 50-year-old president of the National Association of Evangelicals and a symbol of the relationship between the Christian Right and the Republican Party, Haggard was outed by the male prostitute whom he had patronized and bought drugs from over several years in Colorado. His very public fall, coming just days before the 2006 election, was preceded a month earlier by the fall of Mark Foley, and marked the beginning of the end of Republican domination of electoral politics in the U.S. for several years.

Be sure to read to the end of today's story where an elder of Haggard's former church compares him to a "mouse" in his present state.

Update: Courtesy Jeff Sharlett, here's an ABC News story -- with audio excerpts from Haggard's sermon if you play the video.

technorati: Ted Haggard, Christians, televangelists

Labels: Colorado Springs, evangelicals, Focus on the Fundies, Mike Jones, New Life Church, newlifechurch, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Sunday, November 02, 2008

Focus on the Fundies: Anti-abortion prop, vague fears stoke New Lifers

Salon visited New Life Church, Ted Haggard's old stomping grounds, now somewhat diminished by changing demographics and Bush fatigue. In addition to the kind of sentiments you'd expect -- one woman had "heard Obama wanted to change the flag and the symbols of the country somehow. 'He wants it to be this one big -- I don't know -- it's not America. It's going to be something else, and I don't know what it's going to be'" -- the writer found a former Bush supporter ready to vote for Obama. It's people like the last guy who are going to give Colorado to Obama this time.

Read previous posts about New Life Church.

technorati: New Life Church, Colorado Springs, election

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church

Friday, October 17, 2008

Reporter visits New Life Church, manages not to mention Ted Haggard

On Huffington Post, a reporter visits Colorado Springs, and writes 1600 words about New Life Church without mentioning its disgraced founder Ted Haggard. How impressively fair.

Strangest thing in the story is her description of "a half-used tray of communion wine, its thimbles of juice with frayed pull-tops." They have little bitty juice containers with pull-tops for communion? Now that's déclassé.

technorati: New Life Church, Colorado Springs, Ted Haggard

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Focus on the Fundies: Swinging pendulum hits foamers

This NYT magazine article on the changing political winds among evangelical (formerly hard-right-wing) Christian churches is fascinating. Finally disenchanted with the Karl Roves and Dick Cheneys and perhaps becoming more sensitive to what their religion actually says about caring for poor people and the earth, the denizens of meagachurches can no longer be counted on to vote straight Republican. The more politicized see no presidential candidate to vote for; the less politicized realize they've sold their silk purse for a sow's ear.

Important milestones in the disillusionment include the fall of Ted Haggard and David Kuo's book about Rove's manipulation of Christians for political gain.

technorati: Republicans, fundamentalists, politics, churches

Labels: evangelicals, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Republicans

Monday, August 27, 2007

Haggard's molester buddy: I had no idea

The Colorado Springs Gazette finally caught up to the story on Haggard's fundraising letter, interviewing Paul Huberty -- the registered sex offender whose organization Families with a Mission Haggard said would collect donations to him "if you want a tax deduction" for supporting the disgraced minister. According to Huberty, he had no agreement with Haggard to collect funds for him.

It gets better. The head of the "Dream Center" halfway house in downtown Phoenix said Haggard will not be working there, contrary to his letter. The Associated Press quotes a minister associated with the church that runs the halfway house: "That was premature. That is not part of his restoration plan. I think he visited the Dream Center saw it was a good place for people to rehab and got excited."

Now that's a disturbing image.

Makes you wonder what Haggard was on when he sent that fundraising appeal, which you can read in its entirety here. And Dan Savage, who has been covering the latest news with relish, posts updates.

technorati: Ted Haggard, fundamentalists, closet cases

Labels: Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Sunday, August 26, 2007

More on Haggard: His new buddy is a registered sex offender

Courtesy Colorado Confidential, a posting from Stranger columnist Dan Savage that follows up on the story I posted about yesterday. It seems the person heading the organization Haggard is asking followers to send money to is actually a registered sex offender. Read the details.

Some of my favorite blog entries on the story:

A 32-year-old MySpace user "Religious Heather," whose page is named "sinnersmustdie," says "Do not support this sinner!!! Why doesn't he try to get a REAL job like the rest of us and not be bitter about being a religious hypocrite? I mean, if you're going to be holy, then don't fudge-pack male prostitutes. Atleast go to a gay bar like a lot of closet married men and get it for free. Nevermind -- I've seen what he looks like. No wonder he has to pay for it!"

A blog named "Revolution" says "I have three words for this jerk-off who is responsible for giving pastors everywhere a bad name and setting us back, yet again, to the Swaggart-Baker era: GET A JOB!"

Labels: Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Haggard, after raking in six figures, begs followers for money

Showing that a televangelist's greatest asset is his email database, disgraced fundie pastor Ted Haggard has sent followers a letter begging for money despite having made more than $300,000 since the beginning of 2006. Haggard's religious "overseers" sound pissed that he did something like this without asking them, but the really great thing in the story is how he's moving his whole family, including his two boys who are aged something like 9 and 12, into a halfway house in downtown Phoenix with former convicts, drug dealers, prostitutes and "street kids."

I'm sure that's the kind of terrific judgment he's going to show once he gets his degree in "counseling" from the University of Phoenix. How'd you like to have him as your shrink?

technorati: Ted Haggard, fundamentalists, televangelists

Labels: Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Monday, March 05, 2007

Focus on the Fundies: Haggard's church in 12% staff layoff

New Life Church, the former fiefdom of Ted Haggard, has suffered such a drop in attendance and donations that it has been forced to lay off 44 staffers, about 12% of its 350-strong workforce.

Of course it's not just the drop in attendance and dough. They also paid at least $130,000 as go-away money to the formerly influental Republican fund-raiser and secret cock-sucking meth snorter. That could have paid for more than a few staffers, because I'll bet most of the minions at a place like that get paid pretty bad -- and are expected to tithe ten percent of it back to their employer, to boot.

In other news, a blogger asks, "Why is Ann Coulter the darling of the religious right?" That's a good question, as she ought to scare them nearly as much as she does blue-staters. But by calling John Edwards a faggot, she showed how much she has in common with foamers like Rod Parsley and Ken Blackwell.

In other news, there's a new book out called The Jesus Machine, about James Dobson and his ilk; its author was interviewed on Terry Gross today. Contrary to the book's subtitle ("How James Dobson, Focus on the Family, and Evangelical America Are Winning the Culture War"), the interview was mainly about how the generation of Dobson and Jerry Falwell is about to pass from the scene and the Christianists have no one obvious to replace him with, especially now that Haggard is out.

technorati: Ted Haggard, James Dobson, Jesus Machine, New Life Church, John Edwards, Ann Coulter

Labels: Ann Coulter, Focus on the Fundies, James Dobson, JohnEdwards, New Life Church, Rod Parsley, Ted Haggard

Sunday, March 04, 2007

Restructuing, layoffs at Haggard's former church

Staff layoffs are ahead for the former church of exposed Big Gay drugs user and hypocrite Ted Haggard, the Colo. Springs Gazette reported today; the layoffs amount to between 30 and 50 people, according to local TV station. Contributions are no doubt down at New Life CHurch, Haggard's former fief.

This gives me an irresistible opportuntiy to quote from Jeff Sharlett's 2005 profile of Haggard and New Life Church.

New Lifers, Pastor Ted writes with evident pride, "like the benefits, risks, and maybe above all, the excitement of a free-market society." They like the stimulation of a new brand. "Have you ever switched your toothpaste brand, just for the fun of it?" Pastor Ted asks. Admit it, he insists. All the way home, you felt a "secret little thrill," as excited questions ran through your mind: "Will it make my teeth whiter? My breath fresher?" This is the sensation Ted wants pastors to bring to the Christian experience.

Now that we know more about Pastor Ted's "secret little thrills," passages like that one are priceless.

technorati: Ted Haggard, New Life Church

Labels: Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, newlifechurch, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Sunday, February 18, 2007

End of the Haggard era: 'Overseers' give report

The committee of "overseers" of Ted Haggard's church -- a group of evangelical pastor-CEOs hired to hash out the hypocrite's exit from their ranks and "restore" him to blessed (though secular) heterosexuality -- today gave a report to Haggard's former congregation. Among the interesting revelations:

They found "numerous individuals who reported to us firsthand
knowledge of everything from sordid conversation to overt suggestions to improper activities to improper relationships."
The three-year relationship with gay prostitute Mike Jones was only the "culmination" of this "pattern of behavior."
They consider Jones' outing of Haggard not a betrayal but "a matter of grace" that allowed Haggard's perfidy to be exposed. It was "not only warranted, but also merciful to him and to the church.
Haggard's "enormous personality" is the main reason he had to leave not only his own church but, apparently, the whole state.
The church "will continue to support Haggard and his family through 2007." (It should be noted that the sale of the very large Haggard mansion, which was his property, should net over a million dollars, and it will be much cheaper to live where he said he would move to, Iowa or Missouri, so Haggard was hardly in need of this golden parachute.) They also paid for the three weeks of "counseling" that Haggard bragged had been equal to three years of therapy.
Their "investigation is not complete;" indeed, they say they are still tracking down "rumors."

What fun for them. There's something of the Puritanical zeal of Kenneth Starr in these overseers. I think their whole thing has developed into some kind of parable for the evangelicals. What happened to Haggard -- disgrace and magnanimous forgiveness -- is, no doubt, what they hoped to do to Bill Clinton.

Here's the main story from the local paper on the scene at Haggard's former church. Among the added details is that Haggard's former salary was $130,000 and that this amount is roughly equal to the cash La Familie Haggard will receive as "support," called by some commentators hush money or a payoff.

technorati: Ted Haggard, New Life Church, fundamentalists

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, focusonthefundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Monday, February 05, 2007

As Haggards flee Colorado, locals say good riddance

After being scooped by a local TV station, the Colorado Springs Gazette ran their story on Ted Haggard's decision to leave Colorado Springs. There's little new in the story, but just read the comments! The the usual spipes from haters and bigots are one thing, but the hostility from Colorado Springs people saying "Get lost" is overwhelming.

Ted Haggard, Colorado Springs

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Sunday, February 04, 2007

Keeping up with the Haggards

Hmm, and I was just wondering what Ted Haggard was up to, now that he has graduated from rehab and is back in Colorado Springs. The answer is, he is booking out of there to pursue "a degree in psychology." Let's wish him well, and hope his studies give him a little better understanding of the field than he obviously does now, since in his statement he mentioned that his rehab program was "a three-week psychological intensive that gave us three years worth of analysis and treatment."

Man, that's some program! If they all worked that well, I know plenty of psychologists who would be out of a job. Perhaps for that reason, Haggard anticipates some openings in the field. Or maybe he has some other career in mind for him and his wife:

We are both planning on getting our masters in Psychology so we can work together serving others the rest of our lives. Since we are taking our classes on-line, we can live anywhere that's affordable. Then we'll travel to location for short in-class requirements.

Ah... an on-line Master's in Psychology. Okay. Finally, he explains:

For the last three months, I've not been communicative because I've been paralyzed by shame.

And here I thought it was because he was on lock-down. That just shows how much I know.

More information, of a kind, about the process Haggard went through is here. And for a generic treatment of the psychological condition that has become almost synonymous with Haggard's name, consider this blogger's essay:

Hypocrisy is a traditional American value, which is why liberals are opposed to it. Although my father smoked and drank, he always made it clear that smoking and drinking were wrong and that he had higher standards for me. I can still feel the sting of his slap when I pointed out that he smoked after he caught me with a cigarette. I have passed on these very same values to my own children. When my kids catch me sneaking a cigarette or smell alcohol on my breath, I repeat the words my father said to me, which his father said to him, "Do what Daddy says, not what Daddy does." And someday my children will instill these same values in their children.

I think he's kidding.

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Sunday, January 28, 2007

Haggard sprung from rehab as 'accuser' visits church

As soon as I saw this headline, I said to myself: "Uh oh."

Haggard's accuser visits New Life Church

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) -- The former male prostitute whose accusations against New Life Church founder Ted Haggard led to Haggard's dismissal as pastor visited the megachurch Sunday.

Mike Jones, who has a forthcoming book, told The Denver Post that several people shook his hand and told him, "God bless you."

"I had read a lot about the church, but there's nothing like seeing it for yourself," Jones told the newspaper. "It wasn't to rub anyone's face in it by any means. I was wanting to get some perspective, to see where they are coming from, what the magnet is."

The story ends with the note: "Haggard and his wife, Gayle, completed a counseling program in Arizona and are back in Colorado Springs."

The reason I said "Uh oh" is that when way-out-there rabble rousers start friendly visits to the fundie churches they've been sparring with, it's usually a short distance to a tearful conversion. In fact, if I were New Life's marketing guy, I would say "Hey, we've got an opportunity here. Haggard -- Jones -- they're the same in everyone's eyes now. Let's team them up!"

Just wait.

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Sunday, January 07, 2007

Focus on the fundies: The Ted Haggard Story

The Colorado Springs Gazette today published a long account of Ted Haggard's rise and fall. It contains this hilarious quip from a former Haggard colleague:

The church is still grieving. Haggard was pastor, mentor, even spiritual father to many.

"I always assumed that the grief cycle was like a Trivial Pursuit game, where you get your orange piece, and then your blue one," said associate pastor Rob Brendle. "And when you get them all, you check it off and you get your grief-cycle merit badge and you go on with life. What I found is that I'm on the grief-cycle wheel of fortune."

And a few days ago in the same city, the conservative rector of the city's largest Episcopal church -- for all intents and purposes, a megachurch not dissimilar from Haggard's nondenominational Christianist mall -- was suspended while his congregation investigates him for misuse of funds. (Link courtesy Pam Spaulding.)The Rev. Donald Armstrong was a vocal critic of the national church's sympathy for women and gays; the Rocky Mountain News called him a national leader of the homophobic movement.

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Sunday, December 31, 2006

Focus on the Fundies: Colorado Springs on downswing?

The Colorado Springs Gazette today has a major feature on the prospect of Colorado Springs losing its national influence with the disgrace of Ted Haggard and the midterm lelection loss by Republicans.

Personally I don't care whether Colorado Springs becomes "less influential" in the Republican party or the religious right, but there are a few eyebrow-raising things in the story of how an economically depressed provincial city created "a cluster economy based on Jesus" For one thing, a mysterious foundation donated millions of dollars to build Focus on the Family a headquarters and lure them from Southern California. Then a city development executive used her "born again" status to bond with other Xtian NGOs and draw them in as well.

For all this, the article says only 4000 people work for right-wing Xtian non-profits in Colo. Springs and it is only a "$1 billion industry." So they have been remarkably influential given their actual size.

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Friday, December 15, 2006

Haggard rent boy inks book deal

That didn't take long: Mike Jones, the male hooker who outed right-wing Xtian Ted Haggard, has a book deal. The publish date is June and the publisher is Seven Stories Press.

Meanwhile I ran across this blog entry (courtesy some other evangelical's blog). In it the writer compares what he felt as a child when his family was shunned after his father was uncovered as a pedophile, and he is all concerned about protecting Ted Haggard's kids from the same public shame. Seems to miss the point, which is that Haggard himself helped to create the environment in which he is now shamed and mocked, by publicly condemning homosexuals and presenting himself as superior. His hard fall is a function of how high he rode that hobbyhorse before falling off.

But as for Haggard's children, they may be learning something entirely different from their father's situation than what the very concerned writer thinks they are learning. As we saw earlier this week, not only are many of Haggard's former followers so eager to demonstrate their pious forgiveness of his betrayal that they gave what I suppose are thousands of dollars for the family's support, but the congregation itself is calculating a severance package for the man. So what are the kids learning from that? That the consequences of extraordinarily bad behavior -- of lying to your family, your church, and Karl Rove; of tossing your reputation into the toilet; of doing drugs with a male prostitute -- are really not so bad?

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, Mike Jones, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Aw, he's no fun, he fell right over

Another Colorado megachurch pastor has quit after admitting same-sex relationships. The Rev. Paul Barnes, who helmed a Christian-themed arena in the Denver suburb of Englewood, quit in a videotaped address to his 2100-member congregation.

Unlike the huge church run by Ted Haggard in Colorado Springs, Barnes' church stayed out of the campaign over Colorado's anti-gay marriage amendment, according to the story. Here's an AP story.

I notice no one is saying this is politically movtivated, unlike the charges against Haggard.

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard

Monday, December 11, 2006

Haggard update: receives "generous outpouring" of cash; severance TK

Now let's catch up with Ted Haggard. Remember Ted Haggard, the Colorado Springs megachurch head who was outed by a Denver rent boy as a meth-snorting, cocksucking sinner?

Well, this week he is due to officially begin his "restoration" -- a sort of hyper-Xtian rehab. A trio of fundie pastors will give him a thorough going-over, doesn't that sound like fun for him? But here's the point: now that he's out of a job (and has been for six weeks), how's his family making out?

According to the news story, members of the congregation he founded and then betrayed have made a "generous outpouring" of donations to the family, and the church is yet to decide on his severance package.

Severance? For living a double life as a drug-snorting cocksucker? Those nutty Republicans!

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Are fundies losing faith in GOP, or vice versa?

Perhaps the last word on l'affaire Haggard -- or at least its political implications or lack of them -- is contained in a long, very interesting Colo. Springs Gazette analysis piece, in which the writer admits the scandal had little effect on local races but suggests fundies' political influence is waning:

The bad news for evangelicals who remain loyal Republicans is that their influence may wane in a party that is looking to swerve to America�s middle so that it can better compete with Democrats. The drubbing taken by Sen. Rick Santorum, the Republican evangelical Christian from Pennsylvania, underscored what looks like a big swing of the political pendulum. The looming question comes down to this: Did Republicans lose their religion or did they scare off moderates with religious zealotry?

"I think the big story of 2006 is the support for Democrats by religious moderates," said David Domke, a professor at the University of Washington who has written several books on the relationship between evangelicals and the Republican Party. "The GOP is not the only game in town for Christian voters," Domke said. "The Democrats have made tremendous inroads."

But did fundies ever really have that much influence in the GOP -- or did Karl Rove just make them think they did? Don't forget the analysis of David Kuo, whose disillusioned take on the relationship between Christians and the Bush White House, "Tempting Faith, accused Rove et al. of manipulating evangelicals for their votes.

Finally, this article from the center-right Christian Century outlines the "rehabilitation" Haggard is embarking upon.

Ted Haggard, David Kuo, Karl Rove, fundamentalists, Republicans

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Republicans, Ted Haggard

Friday, November 17, 2006

How she lost that story

Patricia Calhoun, editor of the Denver alt.weekly Westword, writes how her paper was approached by Mike Jones -- the male escort whose allegations led to the outing of Colorado Springs preacher Ted Haggard -- but was reluctant to run the story on the slim evidence Jones provided.

What ultimately happened is that another organization, a Colorado Springs television station that had already interviewed Jones and likewise sat on the story, heard Jones interviewed on a Denver radio station making allegations about an unnamed clergyman. Recognizing Jones from their contact with him, the station went straight to Haggard and interviewed him -- this was when he issed his first denials, claiming, for example, not to know any Mike Jones. (My favorite quote from that interview is still Haggard asking "What'd you say his name was?" I'll bet he can remember it now.)

If I were Calhoun I would have done the same thing -- sat on the story in the absence of incontrovertible evidence. The TV station showed cleverness in going to Haggard directly with the allegations they had from their own previous conversation with the escort. Why Haggard granted them the interview, before his name was even linked to Jones, will never be known.

By the way, some gay bloggers are collecting donations for Jones, which seems a little irrelevant to me. Why not just help him get a book deal?

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, Mike Jones, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Stream of Haggard news slows to a trickle

Now that everyone has fully reported, analyzed and digested the Ted Haggard affair, the amount of news about it is greatly diminished. There was something six days ago about how Focus on the ~~Fundies~~ Family chief James Dobson said he didn't have time to participate in Haggard's rehabilitation, evoking laughter from the peanut gallery. Now a FOTF lieutenant, H.B. London, has signed on. The only remotely thing interesting about this is:

London told The Associated Press last week that Haggard's restoration could take three to five years and would likely involve counseling, in groups and alone, and prayer. He said it could sometimes be confrontational, and that only about half the ministers who enter such programs succeed.

Emphasis mine. Wow, wouldn't you love to be a fly on the wall during the confrontations? "What the h - e - double - eck is this, Ted? An issue of GQ? Where's that Playboy we gave you?!"

Focus on the Family, Ted Haggard, James Dobson, H.B. London,fundies, restoration therapy

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, James Dobson, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard

Sunday, November 12, 2006

'Pastor Ted and his family love Jesus'

Just in time for Sunday morning, the Rocky Mountain News answers the question no one -- except the few hundred folks left at New Life Church -- is asking: what about the children?? That is, how to explain to the children the very messy and scadalous departure of pastor Ted Haggard?

1. Jesus loves Pastor Ted and his family very, very much. Pastor Ted and his family love Jesus very, very much.

2. All people sin and make mistakes. Pastor Ted said he made some mistakes. A group of pastors who love Pastor Ted are helping him to correct those mistakes.

Und so weiter. It doesn't say how to answer the question "But what's crystal meth?" and "What's a massage?"

Meanwhile, the Denver Post has a run-of-the-mill overview of the issues of how Christians view homosexuality, and whether homosexuals can talk themselves out of homosexuality. It does contain one interesting note, toward the bottom:

"I am concerned he will go through this restoration process and come out the other end a confirmed heterosexual and become a poster child for the illegitimate process of reparative therapy," said Michael Brewer, public policy director for the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Community Center of Colorado.

Good call. I can just see it now -- Haggard redeems his standing in the Christianist community by becoming an example of the "saved" homosexual. He lobbies constantly against civil rights for gay people, since if he can "change," then being gay isn't a permanent condition, and thus gay people don't deserve civil rights.

Not looking forward to that. I am looking forward, though, to his inevitable and eventual final crackup and fall.

Ted Haggard, New Life Church, hypocrites

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard

Saturday, November 11, 2006

'Jesus Camp' to shut down

The summer camp for little right-wing Chrstians seen in the documentary "Jesus Camp" will close, the management said.

Associated with disgraced preacher Ted Haggard -- who appears in the film leering directly into the camera: "I think I know what you did last night!... Give me $1000 and I won't tell your wife!"... If you use any of this, I'll sue you. [video clip] -- the camp will close because of negative reaction to the film and to Haggard's fall. Link courtesy PostAnApology and Technorati.

Ironically, the same documentary that had liberal Christians and non-religious people cringing was viewed positively by some irony-challenged evangelicals. You can read this fascinating interview with the filmmakers on the website of Christianity Today, a conservative (though reasonably responsible and not completely foaming at the mouth) Christian magazine.

I am so sorry to see this week end.

Update no. 1: Seattle's The Stranger has a feature, Ted Haggard's Crystal Cathedral -- A Visit to the Gayest Place on Earth. That echoes Salon's Lauren Sandler who wrote a few days ago that "suddenly so much about his ministry feels, well, gay." And The Stranger's Dan Savage has an op-ed making the rounds entitled The Code of the Callboy, referring to the decisions made by escorts about the very rare times they out their clients.

Ted Haggard, Jesus Camp, documentaries, Christianity Today, evangelicals

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, Mike Jones, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Friday, November 10, 2006

Sheldon: Christian rightist leaders knew of Haggard's sexuality

Uber-toxic old crypto-fascist Lou Sheldon, one of the biggest foamers of the anti-gay religious right, is said to have admitted that he and "a lot" of other evangelical leaders knew of Ted Haggard's homosexual predilictions:

Sheldon disclosed that he and "a lot" of others knew about Haggard's homosexuality "for awhile ... but we weren't sure just how to deal with it."

Months before a male prostitute publicly revealed Haggard's secret relationship with him, and the reverend�s drug use as well, "Ted and I had a discussion," explained Sheldon, who said Haggard gave him a telltale signal then: "He said homosexuality is genetic. I said, no it isn't. But I just knew he was covering up. They need to say that."

God, just in those quotes there is so much evil and forked-tongued speech. They "weren't sure just how to deal with it"?? Oh, I'm sure any Christianist demagogue would be able to tell a garden-variety fag just how to deal with his homosexuality -- but this wasn't just any gay man, this was one of their own. So rather than treat him the way they would treat someone without power and influence, they froze and shilly-shallied. I'm sure they would have liked this situation to go on forever -- just as the Catholic Church wished all those pedophile priests would eventually just die and the problem would go away -- all because of their totally unrealistic and wishful view of what sex is.

Then there's the smug, superior note: "They need to say that."

A man whose mind stopped functioning long ago, for the most part, except the parts that animate the knee-jerk response.

Also classic is this statement: Speaking of the election results, in which Rick Santorum and several other darlings of the Christian Right were drubbed:

"We know that in America the people are with us," insisted the founder and chairman of the Traditional Values Coalition, one of the largest groups in the Christian right. "They're just confused."

Right, Lou. It's just a PR problem. The American people are confused about what you represent. Sure.

Link to the story courtesy Andrew Sullivan, The Zero Boss.

Lou Sheldon, Ted Haggard, religious right, Traditional Values Coalition, homosexuality, homophobia

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, Lou Sheldon, Mike Jones, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Thursday, November 09, 2006

Mopping up Colorado

The preliminary story published in the Colo. Springs Gazette about Ted Haggard accuser Mike Jones appearing on a local call-in radio show was extensively revised and expanded by the paper today, fully describing the "circus" atmosphere as the former male escort fielded calls from friends and foes:

"It's about time somebody put him in his place," said one caller, referring to Haggard, during the morning show, hosted by Coba Hoban and Darren McKee.

"Our entire church loves him (Haggard) very much," another caller said.

Several New Life congregants invited Jones to church. Someone wondered why Jones took the story to the media without confronting Haggard privately first.

Readers may wonder at that last bit. The caller was probably referring to the Christian mandate -- as held by both Jesus and St. Paul -- to talk directly with the person who is causing you a problem.

Among the other tidbits:

Haggard wasn't nervous the first time Jones saw him, and in Jones' opinion "it wasn't the ~~fist~~ first time he had been with a man."
Haggard was a decent tipper, giving Jones $50 to $100 extra on a $200 call.
When Jones decided to get out of the business, Haggard begged him to continue seeing him, pleading "Please, please, Mike, can I still call you?"

Ted Haggard, Mike Jones, escorts, sex workers, tips

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, Ted Haggard

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

Evangelical spin begins

Writing on Beliefnet, a New Life Church clergyman posits what looks like the religious right's first angle on the Haggard debacle: the investigation into his behavior is "over," and what needs to happen now is forgiveness and healing.

That is a lie. As Larry Stockstill, the head of the "overseers" panel appointed by the church to look into the allegations against the senior pastor, said in a Sunday press conference, the investigation continues:

...Leaders at the former pastor's church believe he is still being deceptive about the extent of his sexual activity, the Rev. Larry Stockstill said Sunday.

Stockstill, Haggard's mentor and head of the church's investigation into allegations by former male escort Mike Jones about Haggard's sexual and drug activity, said officials will require Haggard to take polygraphs and undergo psychological evaluations before considering his return to church life.

Haggard's computer hard drive also will be examined for evidence of longer-term illicit sexual activity, Stockstill said during a news conference at New Life Church.
The church's board of overseers is also undertaking a thorough review of Haggard's financial situation, although no allegations of improprieties have been made and no evidence has surfaced of any financial wrongdoing.

Maybe lying is contagious.

Update no. 1: Satire: "Evangelicals regret being such dicks about Clinton"

Update no. 2: They may have taken the Daily Show clips off YouTube, but you can still read the transcript of Jon Stewart's bit on Haggard on a blog called The Third Path.

Update no. 3: Analysis pieces:

Salon's Lauren Sandler
A long piece by an evangelical on Christianity Today

Ted Haggard, Larry Stockstill, Patton Dodd, New Life Church, religious right, Jon Stewart,

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Monday, November 06, 2006

All Haggard, all the time

The Rocky Mountain News has a couple of interesting pieces on l'affaire Haggard today:

In a press conference following Sunday's sermon, the "overseers" charged with investigating Ted Haggard's errors said they would be inspecting his computer hard drive and his finances and will require the disgraced preacher "to take polygraphs and undergo psychological evaluations." They also said they believe "he is still being deceptive about the extent of his sexual activity."
The RMN also asked local gay pastors to comment on the events.

In the Denver Post, Mike Jones called Haggard's apology "hollow":

Jones said he had sex monthly with Haggard for three years, ending in August. From those sexual encounters, Jones said he believes Haggard is a homosexual, despite having a wife and five children.

"Ted, you need to be honest with yourself," Jones said over the air. "If you're a gay man, you're a gay man."

Somehow I don't think that's the direction the Team Haggard is going.

Update no. 1: On Huffington Post, Harry Shearer: "Of all the people who sprang October surprises, I trust Mike Jones. The former gay hooker, unlike the Iraqi "court" and other late newsmakers, had the balls to say upfront that he was timing his allegations about Ted Haggard's sex life in the hope of affecting the election. Even before Haggard acknowledged the truth of the matter, Jones--who had lie-detector problems--passed the ultimate lie detector: he was telling an obvious truth: he wanted to sway the vote."

And Arianna herself: "Mark Foley and Ted Haggard are textbook examples of how the relentless denial of reality perverts judgment and rots the soul."

Update no. 2: Michelangelo Signorile interviews Mike Jones:

MS: Was he a top or bottom? What was he interested in?

MJ: When I was on the radio show in Denver, the question was asked: Did you practice safe sex? I said, 'We used a condom once." The talk show host goes, "You mean he wore the condom once?" I said, "Uh, no, I did."

MS: What about with oral sex. Was he the passive partner or the active partner?

MJ: You know, it kind of went back and forth --- and I can't say he was very good at it.

Oh, snap! Does this ever stop getting better and better!!?!

Update no. 3 Newsweek also has an interview with Jones, somewhat less colorful.

Ted Haggard, Mike Jones, Larry Stockstill, gay clergy

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, Mike Jones, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Dobson inadvertantly confirms some Haggard details

The pope (as it were) of right-wing Christians in Colorado Springs, Focus On The Family head James Dobson, tackled brother Ted Haggard's mess today on his organization's daily broadcast, and along the way confirmed something about Mike Jones' story for the first time.

Up to now, Jones -- the Denver male prostitute whom Haggard called "my accuser" has said that he had a three-year sex-for-pay relationship with Haggard. Haggard denied that early on, and when he subsequently dribbed out various confessions and admissions, it became unclear just what he was confessing to. As Haggard said in his letter to his former church, "The accusations that have been leveled against me are not all true, but enough of them are true that I have been appropriately and lovingly removed from ministry."

Until this morning, no one had said anything about which of the allegations the "board of overseers," appointed by Haggard's church to look into the matter, had confirmed. But this morning Dobson blurted out that Haggard's "sins" had stretched out over "several years." I take that to be a confirmation that either Haggard's visits to Jones had indeed taken place over the three years claimed by Jones, and/or that Haggard had had other same-sex encounters over "several years." We're clear on that now.

Another interesting note was struck by one of Dobson's radio guests, a preacher named Ravi Zacharias, who said twice that problems of "sexual sin" like Haggard's often "begin in the home" and are the result of marital problems and "often a loss of sexual intimacy." (Racy talk for the Christianists!) So all this foofah about how great Haggard's wife is, and how none of this could possibly be her fault -- the implication is that things weren't all that great between them.

Of course, none of this matters, who cares about these people's problems -- EXCEPT for two things. One, these people put themselves on a pedestal as wonderful examples of everything that's good and Christian, and they influence many thousands of people, so it matters when they say one thing and do another; it speaks directly to their credibility. Not only that, but Haggard took part in the weekly teleconference between evangelical leaders and Karl Rove's staff -- he can hardly claim not to have been in a position of power and influence. And two, these were the very people who jumped all over Clinton for his little sexual indiscretion, and you can bet they made hay over that FOR YEARS. So excuse me for talking about this twerp Haggard for a few days.

Finally, there is clearly one aspect of this whole thing the Christian conservatives have decided not to talk about at all: the drug problem. Not a single word on Dobson's broadcast, and not a single word yesterday at Haggard's former church. Isn't that interesting?

Ted Haggard, James Dobson, Ravi Zacharias, rightwingchristians

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, James Dobson, Mike Jones, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Sunday, November 05, 2006

The devil and Mike Jones

Here's Ted Haggard's letter to his former congregation as printed in the Colorado Springs Gazette. He calls his same-sex desires (if that is what is is referring to) "dark... repulsive... dirt" and offers a curious report on the efficacy of the homophobic, right-wing Christian approach to homosexuality:

Through the years, I've sought assistance in a variety of ways, with none of them proving to be effective in me. Then, because of pride, I began deceiving those I love the most because I didn't want to hurt or disappoint them.

The public person I was wasn't a lie; it was just incomplete. When I stopped communicating about my problems, the darkness increased and finally dominated me. As a result, I did things that were contrary to everything I believe.

So you're saying... that whole approach didn't work out too well, did it? Every consider just facing up to the fact that you're queer and you like taking drugs?

I would love to hear what 12-step people have to say about this.

He does manage to be a man when it comes to Mike Jones, whom he calls "my accuser":

He is revealing the deception and sensuality that was in my life. Those sins, and others, need to be dealt with harshly. So, forgive him and, actually, thank God for him. I am trusting that his action will make me, my wife and family, and ultimately all of you, stronger. He didn't violate you; I did.

The only problem with this is that the word "devil" itself is from the Greek word for "accuser," diabolos. So it could be said that Haggard's statement, while sounding magnanimous, is the epitome of damning with faint praise.

In this accompanying story about the scene at Haggard's church this morning is a more postive note: According to one of the investigating "overseers," a Rev. Larry Stockstill (!), "God chose to reveal pastor Ted's sin."

Okay -- God... the devil... Which is it?

It's a political ploy by Satan himself and his minions to try and take the focus off the real issues of the election.

So... sounds like the jury's still out on that.

Update 1: A Salon.com article on the scene at New Life Church this morning says that suddenly everything about the place "seems so gay."

Update 2: The New York Times also reports on this morning's service: "It was not until a letter was read from Mr. Haggard's wife, Gayle, that the tissue boxes were really needed." Doesn't that sound special.

Update 3: If you have the patience, here is a very long streaming video -- about 30 minutes -- of the entire address to the New Life church by "overseer" Stockstill. Link courtesy JoshMShep (evidently a New Life member).

Earlier:

Colorado Springs Gazette:

They were working late Saturday night at New Life Church. They squeezed extra chairs into every corner of the megachurch's massive auditorium. They placed extra boxes of tissue in every aisle.

Wonder what else they were up to? Writing press releases, probably, and trying to figure how new ways to explain concepts like "hypocrisy" and "pharisee."

Statements of apology (from the disgraced clergyman) and "encouragement" (from his wife [!!]) will be read during the service, which will probably be spoken of as a time of healing. I think it would probably be more effective if they didn't skip the moourning, bargaining and enraged anger steps.

All that remains now is the announcement that Haggard has decided to go into rehab for his drug problem. He might meet Mark Foley -- he's supposed to be in there for another couple days. They would have a lot to talk about.

New Life Church, Ted Haggard, hypocrites

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, Mike Jones, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Saturday, November 04, 2006

Haggard fired

BREAKING:

Citing his admissions of "sexually immoral conduct," New Life Church founder and former head of the Nat'l Assoc. of Evangelicals has been fired by the board of New Life Church -- press release, courtesy Non-Prophet. Here's the local paper on the firing.

This photo shows Haggard's impromptu press conference yesterday as he left his house. He admitted buying methamphetamine in front of his wife and kids -- see 'em? The CNN site has the video.

The weird smile never left his face.

Should be an interesting time at New Life's services tomorrow, when notes from Haggard as well as "a note of encouragement" from his wife will be read. Don't miss this article in the Denver Post -- a reporter was present as remaining New Life ministers and staff planned tomorrow's services.

Update: Also in the Denver Post: Bush campaigned in Colorado today, speaking from "Mile High Coffee" -- who needs meth when you have some of that shit? -- but left it to Cheney to campaign in Colorado Springs, home of Haggard and New Life Church. Can't find anything that says Cheney was asked about Haggard or commented on the scandal, but really -- could people in that two-industry town (God and the Air Force Academy) be talking about anything else?

Ted Haggard, New Life Church, Non-Prophet

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

There's got to be a morning after

Lacking any new bombshells today in l'affaire Haggard, I am wiping the come off my keyboard after my orgy of posting over the last two days. Only thing I have new is this post by Slactivist, the widely-read moderate Christian blogger whose main claim to fame is taking apart the ridiculous Left Behind page by page. Slactivist has both a .gif of Mike Jones' newspaper "massage" advertisement and a good point to make about Haggard's future: the "repentence" that Haggard will be called on to show simply means "he will go back to living a lie" as a closeted gay man.

I think there is an alternative explanation to the very fine mess Haggard finds himself in: and that is, that he is a bisexual who mostly has relationships with women, but when he does meth, he likes to get really down and dirty, and he can't do meth and get down and dirty with his wife (link to an article by her about being "a pastor's wife" courtesy Wonkette).

So seeing Mike Jones does two things for him -- he gets the drugs, and he gets to have nasty sex. This is known on Craigslist as "Party and Play" -- take drugs and get down. The drugs lower your inhibitions and let you do what you really want to do. My theory is not that Haggard is a closeted Kinsey 6 but a guy who likes to do drugs and have sex, and the most convenient person to do both with is a nice male prostitute. But in any case, he certainly has some 'splainin to do.

Oh, there is one more thing: a website called PageOneQ found Mike Jones' web page, complete with pix (sfw) and rates.

Ted Haggard, meth, bisexuals, party and play, Craigslist

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Friday, November 03, 2006

Long ago, Haggard 'staked out gay bars'

A friend tipped me off to this little-noticed line in the April 2005 Harpers magazine story on New Life Church and Ted Haggard -- the first half of which the author, Jeff Sharlett, reprinted in his blog today:

At the time, Colorado Springs was a small city split between the Air Force and the New Age, and the latter, Pastor Ted believed, worked for the devil. Pastor Ted soon began upsetting the devil�s plans. He staked out gay bars, inviting men to come to his church; his whole congregation pitched itself into invisible battles with demonic forces, sometimes in front of public buildings.

Emphasis mine. How clear things seem in the light of day.

Updates:

MSNBC profile of Haggard as a "maverick"
CNN quotes Haggard: "I called him to buy some meth, but I threw it away. I was buying it for me, but I never used it. I was tempted, I bought it, but I never used it. He told me about it. I went there for a massage."(Thanks, Guru of Nothingness)
Colorado Confidential published a nice summary of Thursday's statements and events
Interesting Salon article on Colorado Republican politics, especially with respect to gay issues.
This screenshot from Google News is interesting: three big foreign papers are playing the scandal for its connection to politics:

Ted Haggard, gay bars, Jeff Sharlett, New Life Church, Colorado Springs

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Smoking gun in Haggard scandal: always save the stained blue dress

BREAKING:

Courtesy BoingBoing, news that the voice messages saved by the male prostitute are from Pastor Ted Haggard.

Perhaps better now to say: former Pastor Ted Haggard. Here's a valedictory profile on the Rocky Mountain News website.

Update 1: Haggard now admits buying meth from Jones.

I guess that would explain the text of the phone messages:

"Hi Mike, this is Art. Hey, I was just calling to see if we could get any more. Either $100 or $200 supply. And I could pick it up really anytime. I could get it tomorrow...

The story from the Colorado Spring Gazette quotes Haggard as saying:
"I bought it for myself but never used it," he said. "I was tempted but I never used it."
Now that's just sad.

Update 2: Haggard admits receiving "massage" from male prostitute.

Ted Haggard, voice mails, voice messages, New Life Church

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Haggard 'admits some indiscretions' as accuser fails polygraph

BREAKING:

An assistant to former leading evangelical leader Ted Haggard "stated in an e-mail to parishoners late Thursday night that Haggard confessed to some indiscretions alleged by a homosexual prostitute."

Non-Prophet has the email sent by Pr. Ross Parsley to the members of Haggard's New Life Church. Non-Prophet has been a burr in the side of Haggard and New Life for a long time, so of course they're the ones to have the email.

Meanwhile, the male prostitute who outed Haggard as a methamphetamine-gulping big gay failed a lie detector test administered today.

Updates will follow throughout the day. So best!!!!111!

Evangelical-friendly Christians comment in their blogs on the Haggard scandal:

"I do so hope that the "evangelical community" does not react in the way the so mercilessly tend to do in similar scenarios. Hopefully Mr. Haggard will not be laughed at, discredited, slandered, or kicked to the curb as if he were a filthy leper..."

Christianity today: In his sermon last Sunday, Haggard prayed: "Father, we pray that lies would be exposed. We pray that deception would be exposed."

Bill Kinnon: Haggard's fall has something to do with the lack of accountability typical of "the infallible-senior-pastor-model" associated with megachurches.

The Revealer: Jeff Sharlett, author of the 2005 Harper's Magazine article about New Life Church, says Haggard "is a victim of the very closet over which he publicly stands guard, as are all the New Life church members he's led into it."

News updates:

Time magazine: 'Mega-Scandal for a megachurch'

Ted Haggard, New Life Church, male prostitute

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Blogs on Haggard allegations

Best posting title evar:

omg rev. ted haggard eets teh meatpole LOL!!!!!11one

That posting contains a link to a well-produced documentary video (8 min 45 sec.) posted on YouTube of New Life and Haggard.

More video: Watch the local TV news interview with Haggard (on that page, click on "Watch the exclusive interview with Ted Haggard") in which he sounds way too cheerful about the whole thing, as if he were talking about an exciting upcoming Sunday School picnic. Best line: On the man who made the allegations: "What'd you say his name was?"

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Leading fundie resigns after being outed

BREAKING:

The head of Colorado Springs' New Life Church and the president of the National Association of Evangelicals resigned today following allegations he had a sexual relationship with a Denver man -- a male escort, naturally, who said Haggard had been a client for three years.

Haggard and New Life Church were the subject of this October 2005 Harpers article; here's an April 2005 account of a Haggard visit to Hawaii (from which the photo at left was taken).

Hey Republicans! Energize your base, okay? HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!

Other accounts:
Rocky Mountain News
Denver Post

Ted Haggard, New Life Church

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Fundies, New Life Church, religious right, Ted Haggard, tedhaggard

Thursday, August 04, 2005

Colo. Springs evangelical image out of focus, officials believe

Focus on the Fundies ¤

This just in: Colo. Springs evangelical image out of focus, officials believe. Link courtesy Non-Prophet.

Oh, so it's only:
- The home of Focus on the Family, whose founder and head James Dobson on Wednesday compared those who support stem cell research to Nazis
- The home of New Life Church, one of the largest megachurches in the West
- The site of the Air Force Academy, where an investigation recently revealed that Christian proselytizing by staff, teachers and senior cadets had gotten out of hand

Aside from that, I guess those evangelicals are just a drop in the bucket.

New Life Church, Air Force Academy, Focus on the Family, Colorado Springs

Labels: Colorado Springs, Focus on the Family, New Life Church