|
Staff and Wire Report
ATLANTA – The youngest daughter of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. is leaving the Atlanta megachurch where pastor Eddie Long has been embroiled in sexual misconduct scandal, Long acknowledged Tuesday.
Rev. Bernice King announced her departure from her mentor and spiritual father, Bishop Long and New Birth Missionary Baptist Church – the church home where she has served as an elder for nearly a decade. It comes days after Long reached a settlement in the sexual misconduct lawsuits he has fought since September.
King was expected to address her future ministry plans this week on a local gospel radio station.
Long said in a statement that he and King have been "in discussion and prayer" for some time about her decision to leave the church to continue the legacy of her parents, Dr. King and Coretta Scott King.
"I am in full support of her decision to leave New Birth in pursuit of this worthy endeavor," the statement reads. "Reverend Bernice King has made tremendous and profound contributions to New Birth as an elder and faithful servant.
 "We ask that you join us in extending unequivocal support and love for Reverend King as she embarks on this new calling."
Long said a farewell tribute for King is planned, but no date has been set. The church did not announce
King's departure Sunday, instead focusing on a Memorial Day tribute to fallen soldiers and their families.
Long's settlement in the sexual misconduct lawsuit, meanwhile, was still the talk of much of Atlanta this week.
"When it first came out, he claimed he was innocent," said Elliott Chancy, owner of the Finishing Touch barbershop, "Now that he's settled, to me that means he's guilty."
Chancy's customers recalled, somewhat in dismay, that Long had compared himself to the biblical hero, David, facing the giant Goliath, with nothing more than a slingshot to defend himself.
"If (Long) was that adamant about having nothing to be ashamed of, he should have proved those boys wrong in court so that, in the future, other kids can't come forward and say he did the same things to them," said customer James Rutledge.
Another customer, Vincent Alexander, said: "I'm going to pray for the man," referring to Long. "He seemed to have a good heart, but he went in the wrong direction. He's trying to pay for his wrongdoing. But that won't justify what he's done. He needs to re-new himself."
Now that a settlement has been reached – the details of which were not disclosed – the specifics of what occurred between the four accusers and the disgraced pastor of the suburban Atlanta church likely will never surface.
Nor will it likely be disclosed how much Long or New Birth – which was also named in the civil suit – had to pay to avoid a court case about an alleged pattern of seduction that involved lavish gifts and trips to high-profile destinations.
Atlanta attorney B.J. Bernstein – who represented Anthony Flagg, Spencer LeGrande, Maurice Robinson and Jamal Parris in their lawsuit – said all lips are now sealed in relation to the case.
Lips may be sealed, but that hasn't stopped tongues from wagging.
As soon as the settlement was announced, the Washington, D. C. -based National Black Church Initiative – which represents 15.7 million members – issued a statement saying it was "outraged" by the settlement.
"Bishop Long, himself, even asserted that he would fight the case to prove his innocence," the NBCI said. "The truth was not illuminated. Justice was not achieved."
Long didn't mention the lawsuit Sunday in his first sermon since the settlement was announced.
Attendance at New Birth's services for the Memorial Day weekend, meanwhile, was in the hundreds, whereas the 10,000-seat sanctuary was packed to capacity eight months ago when the allegations surfaced and Long stridently vowed to "fight" them.
In an official statement released to the press, New Birth stated: "This decision was made to bring closure to this matter and to allow us to move forward with the plans God has for this ministry."
Contributing Writer A. Scott Walton and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
|
