The Catholic Church is probably pretty happy that the newest religious sex scandal has nothing to do with them. Enter Baptist Bishop Eddie Long who has been recently hit with 4 lawsuits for sexual coercion by four of his male parishioners. Oh the quirky ironies of life, how those that rail the hardest against gays rail gay the hardest. Though this case escapes some of the more sordid details that the Catholic Church has to deal with, namely the boy touching and the elaborate plan to cover up said boy touching and the sheer lack of accountability for all those involved. With the accusations surrounding Long they at least paint a picture of what may seem to be real romantic relationships.
Take the most recent accusation filed against Long by Spencer LeGrande, which speaks of courtship and consent (to a degree). Long apparently showered Legrande with lavish gifts and even took him on a trip to Kenya (I take my girlfriend for breakfast at McDonald’s when I have 2 can dine coupons). LeGrande was also 17 years old at the time and was well on his way to making informed decisions on his own. But the case does get creepy; according to LeGrande, Long gave him sleeping pills during their first night in Nairobi. Long then kissed and licked Legrande’s lips after basically drugging him. What they did on following nights I’ll leave to your imagination. The way Long initially manipulated LeGrande is pretty icky as well. Long, knowing Legrande’s father was absent from his life, apparently told LeGrande “I got you. I’ll be your dad[dy]”.
And then there’s the pictures. How they were leaked I do not know. But they just further paint Long as, at the very least, a homosexual. In them we see Long in bodysuit tight athletic gear taking photos of himself in front of his bathroom mirror with his iphone. It is clear that Long is narcissistic and has been lifting weights, but given the atypical setting, pose, iPhone, and website guyswithiphones (incredibly nsfw), it’s hard to imagine what other purpose these photos served than being fodder for prospective male viewers. Long will address his parish and the world tomorrow.
dude is pretty cut