Do you believe Mike Jones allegations against Rev. Ted Haggard?

Question

Rev. Ted Haggard, leader of the 30 million member National Association of Evangelicals, has resigned after being accused of paying for gay sex from a Male Escort named Mike Jones. Do you believe the allegations are true? Do you believe this will have any effect on the coming election? And what do you think about this case and others like it?

Answer 1

You know, Haggard always struck me as possibly being gay. That being said, he was one of the more rational Evangelicals, one of the few who, you know, actually seemed COMPASSIONATE. I suspect it is true, but will withhold judgement.

Answer 2

I'd say the evidence against Haggard doesn't look good, but as far as how it will affect the elections, George W. Bush and the GOP had a lot of trouble even before Haggard's problems hit the news. I'm betting that the Dems will take the House and that it'll be close to even in the Senate. I don't think the president is going to have a very fun last two years in office.

What do I think about cases like Haggard? I just wrote a blog entry pondering how many Christians are really praying for their pastors. Check out the link below.

Answer 3

Rev. Haggard has stepped down while the allegations are investigated. He's not been convicted of anything, just accused, and I'm not at all convinced that the allegations are true. I await the results of the investigation, hoping that it will be a fair and thorough one and not simply a whitewash to save face.

I do not celebrate the failings of even those who stand on the opposite side of issues I feel strongly about, such as equity in marriage, but it won't surprise me at all if it's found that Rev. Haggard is a hypocrite.

Answer 4

So far, he's made partial admissions and resigned his position - so obviously there's something to hide.

But does he really expect the public to believe he bought methamphetamine from a male hooker and then discarded the stash?? Not likely.

Drug use (including crystal) is significantly higher amongst the gay community and at this stage I'm more inclined to believe Mr Jones' story as it fits that profile.

Expect us to believe you Mr Haggard? Take an independently supervised drug-test for starters.

Answer 5

Haggard has admitted to some of the allegations as of this morning so now the question is was it the sex or the drugs

Answer 6

the audio tapes have been turned over for voice print analysis,
i would say that Mike has nothing to hide and Ted has everything to hide. and just in the news, Ted admitted that some of the allegations are true,

The charges are not only sex but drugs too!

Answer 7

who cares ?????? It is just another ploy to take our minds off the issues and those issues are what we should be focusing on right now don't you think? Is this Reverend running for any office? Once again no so put that out of your mind and get back to the issues at hand and please don't let the reps think we are all children with adhd and that they can easily manipulate so we forget that they dropped the ball here and we need some new blood in the offices to put a stop to bushes efforts to take this country down roads we do not wish to go down. So come on I am not a Dem or rep I am an American and proud to be one. And I would love to be able to stop worrying about what bush is going to do to those poor folks over there and wondering what the hell he has in mind for us here at home .It is so scary.

Answer 8

Maybe it is true--his stepping down certainly does seem suspicous. However, I remember a few months ago when Jon Benet's "murderer" "confessed" in Thailand and the media had a feeding frenzy with that for several days... only to find out this guy didn't do it.

Answer 9

I believe that it is possible that there is some truth to the allegations. I do feel shocked that they could be true. I hope that they are not completely true. That being said, Ted is a human man and he has emotions and hormones just like the rest of the men on this planet. While he is a Rev. and should be held to a higher standard it doesn't mean that it isn't possible and this in no way shakes the faith that I have in God.

I used to attend New Life Church regularly (where Ted spoke) before I moved from there. I pray for the people that know and care for Ted and that are more closely impacted by this news coming to light. I think that many people will have this and other potentially distracting stuff on their minds when they vote in the upcoming election. I still believe that homosexuallity is a sin. I know I've sinned in different ways. I had had sex with a woman before I was married to my wife. That is called the sin of fornication and it is more widely accepted in todays society...but it is still a sin - one that I am forgiven of. If Ted has sinned in this way, I believe that God will forgive him too. (Being that we have all sinned, so has Ted at someother time - IF not this time too) I wonder if this will have any effect on anyone realizing that we have all sinned (even famous people) and fallen short of the Glory of God and that we all need to be forgiven. I will not be casting any stones at Ted or any other sinners, because I have sinned as well and have received God's grace. I greatly enjoyed being at Ted's church, I felt that the worship was great, the knowledge of the Bible was strong and people cared for each other and felt close to each other EVEN though it was a huge mega church of over 10,000 regular attenders. I pray that it doesn't keep anyone from going there - because honestly if there was ever a church without any hypocrites, you and I shouldn't go because we'd mess it up. There is no such church. Be real and look at your own sin because we will all be judged for what we do. I can not change Ted or you or my wife or anyone but me. I can only change me, myself and I.

The official church statement:

November 2, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
From New Life Church
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Rev. Ted Haggard, Senior Pastor of New Life Church, stated today that he could "not continue to minister under the cloud created by the accusations made on Denver talk radio this
morning." He, therefore, placed himself on administrative leave, pending investigation, spiritual counsel, and a decision by the church's board of overseers. Pastor Haggard said, "I am voluntarily stepping aside from leadership so that the overseer process can be allowed to proceed with integrity. I hope to be able to discuss this matter in more detail at a later date. In the
interim, I will seek both spiritual advice and guidance."
Under the governing structure of New Life Church, there is a board of overseers consisting of four senior pastors of other congregations. Those overseers have authority to conduct an inquiry, to discipline the senior pastor, to remove him from his position, or to restore him to ministry. The overseers of New Life Church are: Rev. Larry Stockstill, Senior Pastor of Bethany World Prayer Center, in Baker, Louisiana; Rev. Mark Cowart, Senior Pastor of Church For All Nations in Colorado Springs; Rev. Tim Ralph, Senior Pastor of New Covenant Fellowship in Larkspur, Colorado; and Rev. Michael Ware, Senior Pastor of Victory Church in Westminister, Colorado. In the interim, New Life Church Associate Senior Pastor, Rev. Ross Parsley, will serve as Acting Senior Pastor of the church. Rev. Parsley has served in senior ministry positions at New Life Church for fifteen years. Rev. Parsley requested the community's compassion and prayers for the person who came forward with accusations, for the Haggard family, and for the New Life Church community. He also said, "New Life Church long ago adopted an overseer model of governance for situations just like this. People need to be patient and allow this process to unfold as it was designed to do."
Pastor Haggard also resigned today as President of the National Association of Evangelicals.

Answer 10

Yes, and according to his senior staff person, he has admitted to some of the accusations. POWER CORRUPTS, as always. That's why term limits are a good idea. And always vote against the incumbent, so they can't get entrenched and be corrupted, save them by sending them home!