Ted Haggard, who fell from grace amid a sex scandal, said the ordeal has prepared him and his wife, Gayle, to help others.
(Ed Andrieski/ Associated Press)
Disgraced pastor to launch new church
Ted Haggard, who fell from grace amid a sex scandal, said the ordeal has prepared him and his wife, Gayle, to help others.
(Ed Andrieski/ Associated Press)
COLORADO SPRINGS — Former megachurch pastor Ted Haggard said yesterday that he will launch a new church from his Colorado Springs home, 3 1/2 years after he resigned from his ministry amid an embarrassing and devastating sex scandal.
“This is my resurrection day,’’ he declared.
Haggard said his new venture would not be a megachurch like New Life Church, the congregation he founded in 1985, then left in 2006 after a male prostitute said Haggard paid him for sex.
Haggard said he does not know how many people will attend his new church, but he said the ordeal he and his wife, Gayle, went through has prepared them to help others.
“I have an incredible heart for broken people,’’ he said.
Haggard made his announcement outside his home, a two-story, brick-fronted structure with a large barn, a swimming pool, and white-fenced corrals not far from New Life Church. Wearing an open-neck shirt and jeans, Haggard sounded both optimistic and chastened, calling himself a repentant sinner and a broken man who believes he can still help others.
“When the crash came in my personal life, it was so incredibly embarrassing and heartbreaking,’’ he said. “It broke me. And I’m still broken, some.’’
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