People like Sarah_Bellum, navajo joe, MME, PoppaGeorge, are not just an effective retort to the whitewashing and plea copping done by Christians on behalf of these practices. It's not just a real life illustration of the kind of people Jesus was talking about in Matthew 23, whose outward appearance seems holy but is rotten within. It's also a sobering reminder that those of us who disagree aren't doing enough to turn the tide on this sort of behaviour, and modelling the alternative.

I've seen people in this thread who I can't help but wonder whether their attitude towards the church would be so much different if it weren't for the Creflo figures in their lives. Even if they weren't to believe whole-heartedly maybe the church would still be seen as a more viable institution for partnership where there was an intersection of social agendas. The church is supposed to do for the least of us, as it would do for Jesus. I don't imagine it being appropriate to ask Jesus for $60 Million for a jet when he has food to put on the table for his family. It's ironic that so many non-Christians in this post view that principle similarly.

The opportunities for collective action are squandered because too many Christians are worried about who gets the credit, rather than the vulnerable who stand to benefit.

Like I said, it's been a sobering reminder.