I am still processing Creflo Dollar’s arrest for strangling his daughter, throwing her to the ground, and beating her with his shoe, the beaten, 15 year old daughter calling 911 for help, the 19 year old daughter fully corroborating what the 15 year old said. I’m not processing because I am surprised, but because my skin is crawling over what comes next. What comes next is that Dollar will have to address it in a sermon at some point, and how will the tale spin? Does he admit that it is always wrong to beat up your daughter? Or does he say it is okay to beat up your daughter if she is sassy and full of the devil?
I wonder this because when I started going to church out at EMIC, and started going to KC’s meetings, divorce was a huge no-no. Even Creflo preached that only in cases of adultery or abuse should Christian couples divorce. But then something strange happened. Some of GP’s and KC’s close friends started having marital problems, and the teachings changed. If your spouse was cheating, beating OR if your spouse was keeping you from fulfilling your mission with the lord–then you could get a divorce.
“Keeping me from fulfilling my mission with the lord,” was the catchphrase for at least three high profile divorces in a very short time period. In at least two of those cases, a brand new spouse (much younger–grossly younger in one case) was waiting in the wings.
What I am trying to say is that the message always changed to match the needs of the men preaching it. Henry VIII would have LOVED this ministry.
It wasn’t just with divorce, but every time The Prophet’s whim changed, the teaching changed. From using the term “Easter” to how much you had to give to be considered a “covenant partner”.
I fully expect that Creflo Dollar will find a way to spin his abuse into something his daughter deserved, and I have no doubt that among the people who follow him, there will be those who take it as license to beat the hell out of their own children. He will have set a dangerous precedent based on his temper, and children will be hurt. Then what? Then how does the doctrine warp?
The only thing that could surprise me about this story is Dollar presenting a full mea culpa.
Big Ministry is the new mafia.
The Outside Lane 