An Epidemic of Moral Failure?
Christian leaders across the nation reacted in shock at the news over the weekend that Pastor Bob Coy, founder and leader of the 20,000-member Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale in Florida resigned because of what his church described as a moral failure. Some observers are calling the church's loss of its pastor part of an epidemic that needs to be guarded against.
"I was devastated – heart sick – this morning to open my Facebook and the top story shared by a couple ministry friends was the resignation of pastor Bob Coy due to moral failure," wrote Kentucky pastor Ron Edmondson. "I have personally dealt with near a dozen churches in the past couple years who lost a pastor due to a moral issue. One of the leaders in our denomination used the word 'epidemic' recently to describe the number of pastors who are leaving the ministry because of moral failures."