Past pastor scandals

Past pastor scandals - Bishop Eddie Long is the latest in a long list of scandals involving church leaders. 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 Rekes, a Baptist minister and anti-gay activist who opposes certain adoptions (what kind?) 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?

The cult leader of an eponymous ministry group in Arkansas received a stiff punishment (how long was his sentence?) in 2010 after being convicted of several crimes against minor girls, including violating this law.

The Roman Catholic priest, author and TV host made headlines when photos of him with a woman (see photos of her) 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.

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.

Known for her gospel singing (videos) 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 (his sentence?). Now divorced, the evangelist is an advocate for this group and is married to another woman

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 (what office did he hold?). 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.

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 (what did he admit?). A male church volunteer made an accusation against the preacher in 2009.

The former Lutheran minister of a church in Marshall, Texas, was sent to prison in 2003 (for how long?) after being convicted of charges of sexually assaulting boys. In 2004, abuse victims who filed lawsuits reached multi-million dollar settlements.

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

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?

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 (what did he say?) and stepped down from his pulpit in 1988. The preacher was caught in a compromising position three years later by California police.

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.

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. (What was the method?) Since filing for bankruptcy in the late 1980s, he has made several comebacks.

Though denying allegations of sexual molestation of boys during the 1970s, the pastor stepped down from his nondenominational church in 1998 after 29 years of leadership. (What did he say about the accusations?) 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 (what was it?) in Florida but was exonerated.

This early-20th-century itinerate evangelist (photos) 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. (What did she say had occurred?) Her story left police in doubt.

via: msn