Embattled prosperity preacher Jamal Bryant is heading to Atlanta. Bryant has accepted an offer to become senior pastor at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, outside of Atlanta.
Bryant, the controversial pastor at the Empowerment Temple AME Church in Baltimore, MD., will take over as spiritual leader at New Birth in Lithonia, Georgia. The megachurch, which boasts 10,000 members, was founded by Bishop Eddie Long who died from an aggressive form of cancer in 2017.
A former NAACP youth director, Bryant, 47, was a civil rights leader in Baltimore. He led protests after the shooting death of Trayvon Martin in Florida.
But Bryant’s personal life has been the source of rampant gossip and blog fodder for years.
Bryant was shamed publicly in 2016 after he allegedly fathered a baby with a member of his flock.
LaToya Odom claims Bryant is the father of her son. Odom says she was pressured to abort the beautiful baby boy, whom Bryant refused to see.
At the time, Bryant was still married to reality TV star Gizelle Bryant, one of the stars of Real Housewives of Potomac. The Bryants share 3 daughters.
Bryant was also accused of fathering a child with a 17-year-old woman while married to Gizelle.
In her divorce filing, Gizelle accused the randy pastor of adultery, cruelty, and “excessive vicious conduct” that caused “unreasonable apprehension of bodily suffering so as to render cohabitation unsafe,” according to an article in The Sun newspaper.
Bryant was also widely criticized for his flashy materialistic lifestyle, which included a Bentley and a multi-million-dollar Canton waterfront property.
Bryant later admitted his infidelity and begged his congregation for forgiveness.
He told congregants during his three sermons on Sunday that he is leaving for a new position in Atlanta.
He will preach his final sermon at the Empowerment Temple on Dec. 2.
