An anti-gay pastor fending off claims he had homosexual relationships vows he “ain’t going to stop living.”Bishop Eddie Long, head of the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Georgia, told his flock during services on Sunday his “faith” has made him stronger.“In times of challenge, there are several things that come out,” he said, according to The Associated Press. “Your faith will be strengthened or weakened. My faith is being strengthened.”Four men have accused Long of engaging them in homosexual relationships. They claim he used trips, cash and cars to lure them in, while one of the men alleges Long slipped him sleeping pills in order to sexually abuse him.

Some articles that provide a wider context to the Eddie Long case:

• It is, parishioners and observers say, a moment of undeniable crisis in the black church.

“The only person in the pantheon of black churches who is bigger than this is T.D. Jakes,” said Anthea Butler, a religion professor at the University of Pennsylvania who was among those flying down to Georgia. “And Atlanta is the epicenter of black church life. . . . It’s going to rock everything at the church, and people will really start to question these ministers.” - Sex allegations roil black church community, Washington Post

• Bishop Eddie Long case: Will it alter black church’s view of gays? (Christian Science Monitor)

• Why black church culture rejects homosexuality (CNN)

• The Black Church, Homophobia, and Pastor Eddie Long (Newsweek)

• “Long is one of the most virulently homophobic black leaders in the religiously based anti-gay movement.” (Southern Poverty Law Center)

Baptist televangelist Eddie Long said Sunday he will fight allegations that he coerced young male church members into having sex with him.

Speaking publicly about the accusations for the first time, Long did not address the specific allegations contained in four lawsuits filed against him earlier this week.

A fourth lawsuit has been filed against Atlanta-area pastor Eddie Long, alleging he coerced a 17-year-old into a sexual relationship during a 2005 trip the two took to Africa.

Friday’s action, which does not ask for a specific amount of damages, claims Long manipulated, coerced and deceived LeGrande by convincing him that a sexual relationship was “a healthy component of his spiritual life.” It says Long uses church money and other accounts to entice young men with cars, clothing, jewelry and electronics.

Atlanta-based megachurch pastor Eddie Long, accused of coercing young men into sexual relationships, canceled a news conference and a radio show interview Thursday after a third suit was filed against him, his spokesman said.

Art Franklin told CNN on Wednesday the suits, which allege Long coerced young male church members into sex, are “a case of retaliation and a shakedown for money by men with some serious credibility issues.”

Atlanta-based megachurch pastor Eddie Long, accused of coercing young men into sexual relationships, will go on radio and make a statement Thursday following civil lawsuits a spokesman has termed a “shakedown” for money.

Long’s appearances will follow Wednesday’s filing of another lawsuit, in DeKalb County State Court. It was brought on behalf of Jamal Parris, now 23, who was a teenager at the time he joined Long’s church.

The suit, which claims Long encouraged Parris to call him “Daddy,” also names the church and a youth academy as defendants.

Two Georgia men have filed suit claiming that prominent Atlanta pastor Eddie Long coerced them into sex.

The suits, filed Tuesday in DeKalb County, Georgia, allege that Long used his position as a spiritual authority and bishop to coerce young male members and employees of his New Birth Missionary Baptist Church into sex.

“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 suits allege.

Long is considered one of America’s top black preachers.

Media-based televangelists benefiting from tax code exemptions are warned — Sen. Chuck Grassley is a terrier-like congressional inquisitor with time and a big stick on his side.

“I am not threatening them, at this point,” the Iowa Republican said.

One of two recalcitrant metro Atlanta televangelists under investigation by a Senate committee has decided to cooperate.

Only two of six Christian ministries under scrutiny for allegations of opulent spending turned over documents to a Senate panel by a Thursday deadline, with others either fighting the request or asking for more time.

Four televangelists, under investigation for the way they raise and spend money, did not turn over financial information by Thursday, the deadline set by the Senate Finance Committee, including one preacher who challenged the committee to subpoena him.

Two money-hungry televangelists refuse to cooperate with a probe into their financial dealings.

Bishop Eddie Long broke his silence Sunday about receiving a letter from a powerful senator asking for financial and board records from New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia.

Bishop Eddie Long shouldn't count himself among the needy that his charity was created to help

New Birth's Eddie Long got $3 million