Ted Haggard Takes Another Man

I know we're all
tired of hearing about Ted Haggard. Most agree that he's
a sad, emotionally confused person and should just be left
to figure it out on his own. But new information has
surfaced that warrants further discussion.

The Associated
Press reports that after news broke of Haggard's
relationship with prostitute Mike Jones, a male church
volunteer in his 20s came forward to disclose a
consensual relationship Haggard as well. While this is
certainly interesting in the context of Haggard's continued
denial that he is anything but straight, it goes deeper than
that.

After coming
forward to New Life Church leadership, the volunteer was
paid an undisclosed amount of money for counseling and
college tuition on the condition that he not publicly
disclose his relationship with Haggard. Of course the
church denies it was hush money.

"It wasn't at all
a settlement to make him be quiet or not tell his
story," New Life's Reverend Brady Boyd told the AP. "Our
desire was to help him. Here was a young man who
wanted to get on with his life. We considered it more
compassionate assistance -- certainly not hush money."

Compassionate
assistance? I bet. Would the New Life Church have offered
to pay his college tuition if he wasn't sitting on
information that would undermine prior public
statements made by the church? I doubt it. After all,
church officials demanded in their agreement that he
not speak publicly about it. If it looks like a duck
and sounds like a duck ...

What is even more
offensive here is the utter hypocrisy of the church
hierarchy. On the one hand, they preach from the pulpit
condemning homosexuality as immoral and sinful. On the
other, they cover up instances in their own ranks.
Sound familiar anyone? Perhaps New Life Church took
its cues from the Catholic Church.