Bishop Eddie Long's Wife Decides to (Again) File for Divorce

Vanessa Long says she has reconsidered her decision to stay with her husband of 20 years.
By Naeesa Aziz
Posted: 12/02/2011 11:00 PM EST
Filed Under religion, sexual misconduct, Christianity, Divorce

Vanessa Long files For divorce

After much-back-and-forth over the issue, Bishop Eddie Long's wife announced that she will indeed go through with her petition to divorce the megachurch pastor.

 

In a statement issued late Friday, Vanessa Long's attorney says "she has determined that dismissal of her divorce petition is not appropriate at this time," reports Associated Press. Earlier Friday, she said in a statement released through Eddie Long's New Birth Missionary Baptist Church that she loves her husband and planned to withdraw her petition.

 

It was just yesterday that she filed for divorce from her husband of 20 years, saying, "After a great deal of deliberation and prayer, I have decided to terminate my marriage to Bishop Eddie L. Long. Accordingly, I authorized my attorneys to file for divorce on December 1, 2011."


Bishop Long has been involved in a series of highly publicized sexual abuse scandals over the past two years.

 

This summer, Eddie Long’s church, New Birth Missionary Baptist, dismissed widely circulated rumors that Vanessa had moved out of the couple’s home shortly after Eddie settled a sexual misconduct case with four men for $15 million.

 

The settlement stemmed from accusations made against the bishop by Anthony Flagg, Spencer LeGrande, Jamal Parris and Maurice Robinson, who all claimed that Long sexually abused them as young men, offering them gifts and money for their participation. Long denies any wrongdoing.

 

In October of this year, however, the bishop was involved in yet another scandal when 10 parishioners of his church brought a lawsuit against Long alleging that they lost more than a million dollars after being influenced by Long to invest in businessman Ephren Taylor’s company, City Capital.

 

Eddie Long’s marriage to Vanessa was his second marriage. The two married in 1990 and have three children together: Edward, Jared and Taylor.


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