Pedestals Thousands    cheer,    chant,    and clap    as one of their own    is proudly carried toward    the lofty pedestal. The audience    urges him    up the stairway,    step by step,    higher and higher,    far above the masses    on the prominent platform. The media is there    with lights,    cameras    and prime-time coverage. Publishers huddle    around the base,    for they know    pedestal-people    sell well. The crowds    on satellite hook-ups    hang on    every last word,    for he seems    so close to eternity. Yet he feels    unsure,    unworthy,    afraid    and very alone . . . But at that height    no one notices,    no one questions,    no one confronts. And so,    in a split second,    the trap door swings,    the noose tightens,    the crowd gasps. Undeterred, the mob moves on    to build more pedestals;    to encourage another    of their own    up the starlit steps. But mostly    to wonder    why those    at the pinnacle    keep falling    from the heights. Copyright © 1988 James N. Watkins

Comment:

I've been overwhelmed at the positive response to this free verse I wrote following the Jim Bakker scandal nearly twenty years ago. Several have asked for reprint rights now that Ted Haggard has fallen of the pedestal. Visit press room for details. Here's the only email questioning the premise:

If I drop a hammer on my toe, it hardly makes sense to blame the hammer for my pain. The same goes for pedestals. If I allow those around me to build a pedestal for me to stand upon and then choose to do so. Who's fault is it when the world discovers I don't have what it takes to stand on it? Not the whistleblowers for revealing my deception. Not the media for reporting on it. Sadly, the fault is mine alone. sreid2@sympatico.ca (November 6, 2006)


Good point, Sean.

Yes, Ted Haggard is responsible for his self-described deceipt, lies and sexual immorality. No question!

But the Bible teaches that we are also responsible for our brothers and sisters in Christ. The pedestal builders need be careful "so that [they] will not cause [anyone] to fall" (1 Corinthians 8:13). Paul writes it is wrong to do "anything that causes someone else to stumble" (Romans 14:20 and 1 Corinthians 10:32).

Having worked in Christian publishing for thirty years and as a denominational exectutive for a few, I know first hand the pressure they put on their "rising stars" and the little concern they exhibit in accountability, discipleship, protection or even prayer support for that person. There are few, if any, safety harnesses for those at the heights. That's our responsibility (Galatians 6:1-2).

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