Famous Preacher Scandals

Famous Preacher Scandals 

Famous Preacher Scandals. America's most famous Preacher Scandals evangelist across a career that lasted some six decades, the prospect of old age and death was for a long time something he tried not to think about, despite his convictions about the eternity that awaits human beings.

Bishop Eddie Long

When accusations surfaced: September 2010

The latest: The wife of Eddie Long, the pastor of an Atlanta megachurch, on Friday announced and later retracted her plans to divorce her husband, who in May settled with four men who accused him of sexual misconduct. We take a look back at a televangelist, a priest and others whose improprieties or crimes prove that members of the clergy are human, too.

George Alan Rekers

When accusations surfaced: July 2010

The scandal: George Alan Rekes, a Baptist minister and anti-gay activist who opposes certain adoptions in Florida, was caught in the summer of 2010 returning from a trip to Europe with a male escort he allegedly "rented" from a website. How did the married preacher explain his vacation on Facebook?

Tony Alamo

When accusations surfaced: 2008

The scandal: The cult leader of an eponymous ministry group in Arkansas received a stiff punishment in 2010 after being convicted of several crimes against minor girls, including violating this law.

Father Alberto R. Cutié

When the scandal surfaced: 2009

The scandal: The Roman Catholic priest, author and TV host made headlines when photos of him with a woman were published in 2009 by a tabloid. The beach snapshots cost the Miami Beach cleric his parish, but he gained the real love he wrote about.

Jamal Bryant

When the scandal surfaced: 2007

The scandal: This megachurch pastor was an empowering force in Baltimore, but his marital status and allegations of having a sexual relationship with an underage church member in 2007 has tarnished his image. The high school dropout, who says he ascended to academic heights, garnered praise from a magazine and made TV appearances.

Juanita Bynum & Thomas Weeks III

When the scandal surfaced: 2007

The scandal: Known for her gospel singing and her sermons and books about renouncing premarital sex, the prophetess had a fairy-tale wedding to an acclaimed preacher that turned into a nightmare when she accused him of this violent act in 2007. He pleaded guilty and was convicted. Now divorced, the evangelist is an advocate for this group and is married to another woman

Coy Privette

When the scandal surfaced: 2007

The scandal: Charges of soliciting the services of a "lady of the evening" led to the downfall of the retired Baptist minister and former North Carolina lawmaker. A vocal opponent of these issues, he quit his leadership post at a Christian group and later faced his day in court and after entering a guilty plea. What has his sentence?

Ted Haggard

When the scandal surfaced: 2006

The scandal: The former senior pastor lost his 14,000-member megachurch in 2006 after rumors of a relationship with a male prostitute. He later partially admitted guilt with a quasi-confession. A male church volunteer made an accusation against the preacher in 2009.

Gerald Patrick Thomas Jr.

When the scandal surfaced: 2003

The scandal: The former Lutheran minister of a church in Marshall, Texas, was sent to prison in 2003 after being convicted of charges of sexually assaulting boys. In 2004, abuse victims who filed lawsuits reached multi-million dollar settlements. How much total?

Father John J. Geoghan

When the scandal surfaced: 2003

The scandal: During his 30-year career in six parishes, the Massachusetts priest was accused of sexual abuse involving more than 100 children. With each accusation, he was moved to a new parish. While serving a prison sentence for molesting a boy, he was killed in 2003.

Paul Crouch

When the scandal surfaced: 1998

The scandal: The founder of this network was embroiled in scandal after reports that he paid a former male employee to end a certain type of lawsuit in 1998. Did Crouch admit to the alleged sexual encounter?

Jimmy Swaggart

When the scandal surfaced: 1988

The scandal: After this Assemblies of God televangelist exposed the sexual misdeeds of two fellow televangelists, the finger of accusation turned back onto him. When light was shed on his adulterous liaison with a prostitute, Swaggart made a public confession and stepped down from his pulpit in 1988. The preacher was caught in a compromising position three years later by California police.

Jim Bakker

When the scandal surfaced: 1987

The scandal: With his then-wife Tammy Faye Bakker, the former Assemblies of God minister hosted "The PTL Club" Christian TV program. A sex scandal with a church employee led to his resignation from the ministry in 1987 and the demise of his empire. But various financial crimes led to a long-term prison sentence, which was later voided and reduced.

Peter Popoff

When the scandal surfaced: 1986

The scandal: The self-proclaimed faith healer laid hands on believers at his worldwide revivals, saying that he had divine knowledge about the illnesses of his audience members. But two skeptics exposed how his wife fed him information about the attendees. Since filing for bankruptcy in the late 1980s, he has made several comebacks.

Bob Moorehead

When the scandal surfaced: 1970s

The scandal: Though denying allegations of sexual molestation of boys during the 1970s, the pastor stepped down from his non-denominational church in 1998 after 29 years of leadership.  The pastor, who vocally opposed homosexuality, was initially exonerated in the church probe, but the church later found evidence of guilt. Moorehead later was charged with a public sexual act in Florida but was exonerated.

Aimee Semple McPherson

When the scandal surfaced: 1926

The scandal: This early-20th-century itinerate evangelist began as a Pentecostal preacher's wife before going into the ministry herself after her husband died. She founded an evangelical Christian denomination and settled in Los Angeles, where she built a temple in 1923. Three years later, the dynamic preacher disappeared while swimming but reappeared in another state. Her story left police in doubt.

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