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    Haggard Follow-Up:  Patterns of Behavior and Severance

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    First, on the severity and depth of Ted’s problems, The Rev. Larry Stockstill, one of the church board’s overseers released this statement:

    “Concerning Ted and his family, we have done extensive fact-finding into his lifelong battle with a ‘dark side’ which he said in his confession letter has been a struggle for years.  We have verified the reality of that struggle through numerous individuals who reported to us firsthand knowledge of everything from sordid conversation to overt suggestions to improper activities to improper relationships. These findings established a pattern of behavior that culminated in the final relationship in which Ted was, as a matter of grace, caught.”

    Reading between the lines (I guess you really don’t need to read TOO much between the lines, it appears that the situation was very serious and on-going.  It looks like there was a long-term sordid slide for Ted that may have started with improper conversation; that lead to more suggestive language, then a more established pattern of bad behavior that lead to at least one relationship.  Sin is a nasty thing; and it appears that it had Ted by the throat.

    The second thing the press is picking up on is Ted’s severence pacakge, confirmed by a New Life Associate Pastor as being around $130,000; about equal to the amount of one full year’s salary for Haggard.  I find that to be more than gracious.  In fact, it may be seen as overly gracious by many, not just in the church world, but those who are looking on.

    Our prayer for Ted and his family is that they take the time they need to heal.  It sounds like this was a long secret life for him; and my guess is that it will take the rest of his life to recover.

    Todd

    SOURCE:  9News.com

    We'll continue to watch the progress and restoration process of Ted Haggard. Just as New Life Church convened a "Day of Hope" for their church, the Colorado press is reporting two major developments in the situation. One has to do with a statement from one of the members of the church's overseeing board; and the other has to do with the amount of Haggard's severence package...

    Comments

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    1. Brad Raby on Thu, February 22, 2007

      Oh to be fired from as a football coach, or a Pastor of a MEGA MEGA church it seems…Everyone felt so bad this year for Mike Shula being fired so unfairly from Alabama…most over looked the fact that he did get 4 million dollars as a ‘severence’...I wouldnt mind that…


      God forbid I ever commit such dark sins as Ted Haggard, but could I please get fired from one of these New Life Type of Mega churches for say, showing up late on a regular basis…I mean if sexual perversion gets him my youth pastor salary times 4, maybe just a little unprofessionalism could get me around $250,000???

    2. Andy McAdams on Thu, February 22, 2007

      I know at first thought that people will criticize the amount of severance that Ted received or even that he received one at all…especially under the circumstances and the severity of the sin involved.


      What the church leaders recognized is what all too many churches don’t when a pastor is found in sin and resigns in disgrace.  Ted had a problem.  I serious one and though it harmed the church, he still had a problem.  Yet, New Life took the high road and decided to help him through it.   The fact is Ted took that church from nothing to something and the leaders and I hope the congregation sees that and are grateful. 


      Howard Hendricks once said, “The Christian Army is the only army that shoots it wounded while they are down.”  That’s an interesting and common commentary on the church…yet not in this case.


      I tip my hat to the church leaders and pray for them and Ted that God will restore each fully.

    3. Larry on Thu, February 22, 2007

      while I strongly disagree with what Ted did and has done, what is wrong with the church providing him with a severance package equal to a one year salary?  Many porfessions offer the same one year of salary type of package if not more.  To be honest Brad, why should you get receive more than what you currently make if you left?  Ted did not receive more than his salary.


      I mean, the man sinned, but let’s be fair here.


      Larry

    4. Peter Hamm on Thu, February 22, 2007

      The severance does not appear out of line to me either.

    5. Camey on Thu, February 22, 2007

      Grace. Pure. Simple. Grace.

    6. Bart on Thu, February 22, 2007

      If $130,000 was the annual salary for Ted Haggard, he was underpaid for the responsibilities and pressure of that position.  While it is double of my salary, he had 10 times the problems and pressures.  Go and discover what your local school administrator is making and it is almost certainly higher, even in a small community.  As far as the severence pay, we have seen countless blogs here on MMI that discuss the horrors of churches that abandon a pastor that has fallen.  You can’t have it both ways.  If you are going to restore a brother you will need to help support him.  One year or six months does not make much difference, especially in a multi million dollar budget.

    7. Daniel on Thu, February 22, 2007

      That just seems like a crapload of money to me.  Severance is all well and good, but man! what a salary!  If he was workin’ 40 hours a week (which, for the sake of family, I pray is near the max of every pastor everywhere), why was he making that much?  I’m can’t judge, since I’m not a part of that body, but that sure seems like a hefty chunk o’ change.

    8. Bart on Thu, February 22, 2007

      Daniel,  Where is it written that 40 hours is God’s plan for pastors?  Somehow our society says that more than 40 hours ruins your family, yet almost everyone in my congregation works more than 40 hours and then volunteers several hours a week at church.  Although I am the farthest from what would be called health and wealth, and I am concerned about mega salaries, I stand by the comment that $130,000 is not excessive.  I live in rural Iowa and the school administrator, hospital administrator, and city administrator all make that kind of money.  In an area such as Colorado Springs where housing is much higher than here, I would not consider it excessive, considering the size of the church and the responsibilities associated with it.  Yes, in a small church, small town, or certain parts of hte country it may seem high.  We see blog after blog where staff people complain about how poorly they are paid, how they were abandonded by their church in time of need, and yet we don’t like to see anyone else make any money or be supported in a time of crisis.

    9. Jade on Thu, February 22, 2007

      Although Ted has sinned his family still has to live.  I think the church kept this in mind.


      Jade

    10. Brad Raby on Thu, February 22, 2007

      Come on now…Am I naive?...a severence isn’t ‘typically’ a years salary…it is usually 90-120 days, sometimes less.


      I’m not trying to say they should abandon him, I’m not saying he shouldn’t have been paid well while he was the pastor.


      But certain offences merrit different treatment…


      I’m suprized my the soft tone on this issue.  What if it was sexual sin with a child, vs another man…would we be harder on that sin?

    11. Bart on Thu, February 22, 2007

      Brad,


      You are right, a year isnot typical, but it New Life is not a typical church.  Size and budget do play into this situation.  And yes, different sins do bring different responses.  If this had been with a child, Ted Haggard would be in prison, there would be no severence pay, but I would bet that New Life would support his wife and family.  It would not be a severence pay but would still come out of the church.  I would agree that a years severence is a lot.  If the goal is just to help Ted financially it would be wrong, if the goal is to restore him, not as a pastor, but as a brother in Christ I am OK with it. Not totally in support, but recognise that it is not like paying him a million dollars a year.

    12. Jim from Nj on Fri, February 23, 2007

      A year’s severance seems excessive when Haggard was removed for cause. The church should have met with him to see what future plans he had and come up with a period of time to support he and his family during the transition. I understand forgiveness and restoration, but sin always has consequences. Yes he built that church, but he also has become a stumbling block possibly to millions who might have been receptive to the gospel. I would hope that he never again serves as a pastor, particularly in a public position. There are ways he can serve out of the limelight if he is sincere. I remember Jimmy Swaggart’s 5 minutes of penance before resuming his pulpit. No, we don’t want to shoot our wounded. Neither do we want to give the appearance that we are not sincere in our faith by enabling those who problems rather than correcting them before restoration. There is “cheap grace” when someone yells forgive me, forgive me so I can sin again. Yes Christ tells us to forgive again and again, but do we forget also?

    13. Not A Monk on Sun, February 25, 2007

      Having spent most of my life in secular work, and only 3 years in ministry, I continue to be amazed at the generous severance packages that churches often give to their ex pastors who have been uncerimoniously removed.   I think that it’s great that New Life Church offers any severance package at all.  I know of a recent situation where a senior pastor was let go of due to ongoing conflicts with the church board.  In a similar fashion, this senior pastor was given a 1 year severance package of 70k.  I realize that Haggards severance package was somewhat exorbitant, and that Haggard was removed due to being in sin.  However,  since we are to “love our enemies” and do acts of kindness that “heap burning coals upon our enemies heads,”  then how are we to treat, the spiritual leader that screws up?  New Life Church has been more than gracious to Ted Haggard and at this point they’ve gone above and beyond the call of duty.  Consequently, New Life’s board can stand before God in good conscience knowing that they’ve treated Haggard with extreme grace and kindness.  Somehow, that seems more important to me than treating Haggard as he “deserves.”

    14. Keith on Mon, February 26, 2007

      Let me see. He started New Life and worked the first year with little to NO salary. And was woefully underpaid all of the years of its growth, including the last year if he was only making 130,000.


      Those of you with little grace have NO idea what it means to a life time vocational pastor to lose his job.  It will take at LEAST a year to get back into something else that will provide for his family.


      If you ask me they should have provided some educational assitance too.


      Yes he sinned. But that does NOT wipe out the years of sacrifice.  In fact, I’d go so far as to say right now on this board to say to a lot of negative posters—if YOUR sins were made public today, you know the ones you’ve kept to yourself,  if they were made public today…  How would you stack up?


      Z

    15. Leonard on Mon, February 26, 2007

      As time unfolds the truth, you will find that this past year he got caught, but that there was more to the sin than a once meeting.  So to dismiss this as “He sinned so do we” is kind of offensive.  Ted lied to his congregation for years.  He lied to his family for years.  Not in general but specifically about his homosexual desires.   His sin was not limited to the act of meeting a male prostitute in a hotel.  His sin involved years of deception, covering up, misleading and then confession when it was inevitable he was going to be exposed.


      It is not graceless to say this is too much money nor is it graceless to feel disgusted by the deception and sexual deviance of a leader.  While the wages of our sin was paid in full, the consequence of our sin here on earth still manifest itself daily.  I am a pastor and I do have an understanding of vocational ministry.  I have started a couple churches and I do have an idea of what it means to sacrifice.  However Ted lied, was sexually unfaithful to his wife and family, he broke the standards of his call as laid out in scripture, he misled, lied and led astray people caught in a deviant lifestyle for his own sexual gratification, he then lied to all of us publicly and only when he got caught he admits to the stuff they knew already.  He then accelerates his counseling and says, sorry I did that stuff. 


      If we say NO, this should not be we are graceless?  If we say, help him out, not just to the tune of 130k we are graceless? 


      Finally, Keith you are right I have sin no one knows about.  But it does not involve me lying to my church, cheating on my wife with a male prostitute, purchasing drugs and keeping a dark secret for years.  It does not involve a pattern of behavior that we only know about because he got caught.  Your reasoning loses me.

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