Cranky Bastard

Haggard bares his soul in note to congregation - Los Angeles Times: "A male prostitute in Denver came forward last week claiming that Haggard had visited his apartment almost monthly over the last three years for sex and drugs. Haggard at first denied it. Then he said he bought meth from the man, but threw it away. On Sunday, he said this: 'The accusations that have been leveled against me are not all true, but enough of them are true that I have been appropriately and lovingly removed from ministry.'...They would hold fast to all Haggard had taught them over the years, including his preaching that homosexual behavior is an affront to God. "He believes that what he taught us is true," said Carol Groesbeck, 61."I don't think there's anything that needs to be reevaluated," said her husband, Jim, 61, an elder at New Life Church. "We know what we believe, but it's difficult to live that out. That's not just Ted's struggle. It's our struggle."...In the church bookstore, a father leaned against a display of Haggard's books and read aloud to his children from "Letters from Home." Published in 2002, the book is framed as a letter to the two oldest of the Haggards' five children, who were preparing for college at that time.In a section called "Live as if there are no secrets," Haggard listed powerful men brought down by lust or lies, including presidents Nixon and Clinton and the Rev. Jimmy Swaggart. "Major leaders have lost their positions of influence because of what they did alone in a room," he wrote."Please don't ever fall into the trap of believing that you can do something in secret, even when you are far away from home," Haggard urged his children. "This is a lie, and it will always come back to haunt you.""

Oh, so many goodies in this story that I haven't a clue where to begin. First of all, he calls homosexuality an affront to God. No longer a sin, but rather an affront suggests an exaggeration beyond the norm that would be expected for someone who was trying to hide his homosexuality. The accusations are "not all true". What a beautiful response. In an earlier report, Haggard said that he bought meth but didn't use it. Then I see that he had been visiting the male prostitute for years for sex and drugs. How many times do you buy meth and throw it away? Sounds like an ungodly waste. Every bit of that pun intended. Here's something else that is incredibly bothersome. The guy that preached against homosexuality ends up being gay, and the congregation doesn't feel the need to re-evaluate their homophobia. Really? This isn't a good time to see if maybe God intended for us to love our neighbors, and not "judge". Hmm. I thought those values were in that thick book. The other really bothersome thing in this article is that Haggard was invited to conference calls with the President/White House to spew this horrid rhetoric. Uh, I hope they re-evaluate. What this should show us all is that many of the variables that define us and distinguish us from others are embedded, not acquired tastes. Looking at our genetics through the prism of Godly and ungodly seems rather unfair, doesn't it?