Atlanta Mega-Church Protestant Pastor Accused of Sexual Abuse

Two Male Church members file suit against Bishop Eddie Long

An attorney for the pastor has vehemently denied allegations by two men regarding inappropriate sexual relations when they were teenagers. The plaintiffs, ages 20 and 21, filed the suit in DeKalb County against Long, the church and their academy.

WASHINGTON, DC (Catholic Online) - Two men have filed a lawsuit against Bishop Eddie Long, Protestant pastor of the 25,000-member New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in suburban Atlanta, alleging that he coerced them into having sex. The suit also names the church and the Longfellows Youth Academy and defendants.

The men, Anthony Flagg, 21, and Maurice Robinson, 20, filed separate lawsuits stating they began having inappropriate sexual relations with the pastor when they were 17 and 18 years old, the legal age of consent in Georgia.

CBS affiliate WGCL reported that the men claimed that Long seduced them with lavish gifts such as cars, money, clothes, international trips, jewelry and access to celebrities.

Long's attorney, Craig Gillen, refuted the claims in a written statement, saying that "Bishop Eddie Long adamantly denies the allegations. It's unfortunate the two young men have chosen to take this course of action."

Gillen's legal team is continuing to review the charges and plans to respond.

According to the New York Daily News, the lawsuit claims that "Defendant Long has a pattern and practice of singling out a select group of young male church members and using his authority as bishop over them to ultimately bring them to a point of engaging in a sexual relationship."

The attorney for the two men, B.J. Bernstein, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC), "It's not just these two. There are young men around him at all times. There are kids at risk now."

Gillen, however, pointed out that Maurice Robinson had been arrested in June of this year in connection with a burglary at the church. According to a police report obtained by the AJC, Robinson and Anthony Boyd, 19, were arrested June 23 and charged with stealing items such as an iPad and an iPhone.

Bernstein responded to questions about the arrest by confirming that Robinson had committed the burglary as an act of retaliation after he had learned of Long's involvement with other men.

"He lashed out," Bernstein told the AJC. "But if it weren't for that act, we wouldn't know about this. He talked to his friends and learned Long had other 'spiritual sons.'"

The Atlanta airwaves have been active with radio coverage of the suit. The ACJ noted that Bernstein was interviewed by Roland Martin on Kiss 104.1 FM, for the nationally syndicated "Tom Joyner Morning Show."

During the interview, Bernstein told Martin that when she had received a call from one the alleged victims, "the chills went down my spine because I immediately knew the seriousness.and I knew the stature of Bishop Long in this community and across this nation. I got the boys in and spoke with them and that's when I knew that I had no choice but to get involved. I was shaken by the seriousness of these allegations."

Close friends of Pastor Long and many members of the congregation are in shock and disbelief about the allegations.

New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, located in Lithonia, GA, had a different name and around 300 members when Long became their pastor in 1987. Since that time they have grown to a church of 25,000 members on a 240 acre campus plus satellite churches in other cities.

The church gained notoriety in 2006 as the site for the funeral of Coretta Scott King, the wife of the late Dr. Martin Luther King. Their daughter, the Rev. Bernice King, is one of the pastors on staff at the church.

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