Ex-Worker Accusing TBN Pastor Says He Had Sex to Keep His Job

[NoPasaran]

A former Trinity Broadcasting Network employee who was paid $425,000 to keep quiet about his claims of a homosexual tryst with televangelist Paul Crouch has disclosed details of his complaint, saying that he had felt forced to engage in the alleged sexual acts to keep his job.

Enoch Lonnie Ford, 41, said he was going public with his story because he believes TBN officials breached a confidentiality agreement that was part of a 1998 settlement that provided the payment to him. Network officials broke the agreement, he contends, by issuing a statement last week responding to a news account of the ministry's legal effort to silence him. TBN's statement described the circumstances of the settlement and highlighted Ford's criminal background.

Crouch, 70, is president and popular on-air personality of Orange County-based TBN, the world's largest religious broadcaster.

Ministry officials have flatly denied Ford's allegations, which are detailed in an unpublished memoir that is now sealed in court files by a judge's order.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-tbn22sep22.story

[LiberalVoice]

1. Who would have thought?

A televangelist hypocrite? Surely you jest!

But I heard gay people are going to hell! Will god be able to forgive that terrible man for lying about the great, god fearing, Paul Crouch?

Oh, oh lord! I'm on my knees! PPPPLLLLLEEEEEAAAAASSSSSEEEEE :eyes:

[opihimoimoi]

2. I for one would not doubt this story

But the money is small potatos compared to Jim Bakker who lost over a billion buck$ for one lousy nighter with Jessica Hann. Jim/Tammy Faye was making $650,000 per year until his tryst became publick. Its been almost 20 years so add them coins up and its a pretty penny over the Bill mark.

Paul Couch, the Silver haired old man with his wannabe young wife JAN? OMG, he is gay??? I would never guess.

[Surf Cowboy]

14. If they were making $650,000 per year, it would take them

between 1000 and 1500 years to earn a billion.

[opihimoimoi]

18. sorry, itmore like 65 million per year..I forgot some zeros

[Surf Cowboy]

19. OK. I'm not very good at math (former English major), so I'm pleased to

know I actually did calculate correctly. Those zeroes do make a big difference. I thought Bakker was pulling down at least a few mil per.

[the Kelly Gang]

11. and so was Crouch..on his knees

[rooboy]

3. I'm sure this is all just a misunderstanding...

when one man tells another to get down on his knees, things can occasionally get out of control.

[xchrom]

7. i know what you mean

i've misunderstood a few of guys.

[richmwill]

4. Hmm, wonder where that $425,000 came from?

It's sad that the little old Grandmas who donate to TBN's pledge-drives have to send their money in to Paul and Jan for this purpose. But what's that old saying? "A fool and his money are soon parted"?

[w4rma]

6. It came from donations to his "church".

There is no wondering where the cash came from.

[richmwill]

8. Of course it did

I was being a bit sarcastic :)

[The Zanti Regent]

9. Zombies--like my family

My aunt and grandmother were so brainwashed by Crouch and his band of liars that they left their estates to TBN and cheated my dad out of thousands of dollars he needed to pay medical bills.

[yellowcanine]

17. Shades of Jim Bakker - used to go on TV and beg for money for his

"ministries" and then it turned out a good portion of the money was financing a fancy lifestyle for Jim and Tammy. Then when the Charlotte Observer started publishing stories about what was going on he had the nerve to get on TV and ask for more money to fight the charges in a campaign called "Enough is Enough!" Ironically he was correct, but not in the way he thought, as eventually he was convicted of fraud and did time for it.

[The Backlash Cometh]

5. Time to take the gloves off.

Honey, when someone tells you they're a Christian, it's a flag to tred carefully. The worst kind of people will hide behind Granny clothing. And it's amazing how easy it is to dupe people just by saying the right code words. It's like we're programmed for obedience.

[0007]

10. Who would have thought?

[gratuitous]

12. Ministry officials deny the allegations

Well, isn't that nice? So, if the allegations are a bunch of hooey (and we know all you Christian, God-fearing gentlemen would never lie or bear false witness against a neighbor), please explain for our studio audience how $425,000 of your ministry's money made its way into Mr. Ford's bank account?

Should I hold my breath waiting for an answer to that one?

[Morning Dew]

13. Ooohhh La La, More dish on this:

http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&safe=off&threadm=4144b2dd.3018423%40news.east.earthlink.net&rnum=8&prev=/groups%3Fhl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DISO-8859-1%26safe%3Doff%26q%3DEnoch%2B%2BFord%26btnG%3DSearch

------

The former TBN employee (Ford) is
male and -- this is what'll shock all the TBN donors in Mississippi
and Alabama -- BLACK.

Crouch's accuser, Enoch Lonnie Ford, is a convicted sex offender and
has a history of drug problems. TBN dismissed the allegations, calling
Ford a liar and an extortionist.

----------
Excerpts from the article by L.A. Times reporter William Lobdell:
... In a subsequent letter, in May, Brewer
mentioned the anguish that Ford's accusations had caused
Crouch's youngest son, Matt, when he learned of them in 1998.

Brewer wrote that the younger Crouch had told his then-law partner,
David Middlebrook: "I am devastated; I am confronted with having to
face the fact that my father is a homosexual."

----------
Despite TBN's efforts to keep Ford's charges secret, they surfaced in
an unrelated 1998 lawsuit. A former bodyguard for TBN personality
Benny Hinn testified in a deposition that during a European bus tour
that year, Hinn had told a group of associates about "a sexual
relationship that Paul Crouch had with his chauffeur."

The witness, Mario C. Licciardello, quoted Hinn as saying: "Paul's
defense was that he was drunk."

Hinn and six others mentioned by Licciardello, who died in 2000, told
The Times that Hinn had never made such remarks. However, Rick Jones,
a retired police officer and ordained minister who worked for Hinn,
said he heard Hinn talk about Crouch's alleged homosexual relationship
on that bus. ...

[gratuitous]

15. I said "Hey Paul . . .

Take a walk on the wild side."

[yellowcanine]

16. We are getting to the point where every TV evangelist should be presumed a

scumbag until evidence to the contrary surfaces.

[donco6]

20. "Getting to"?

I passed that marker years ago! :)

[progressivebydesign]

21. Please let there be solid evidence of this...

.. I hope the guy kept a tape or two, or some smarmy letters, or something. I'm so utterly sick of these charlatains duping the ignorant believers... it's time for the truth to be told about these filthy hypocrites.