On the cover of the New York Times, Juanita Bynum shares her lessons with regards to her latest issues. So much for the 8 weeks of silence. See an excerpt below:
ATLANTA — The attack in a hotel parking lot last month was remarkable not only because the victim, Juanita Bynum, is the most prominent black female television evangelist in the country who pals with Oprah, is admired by Aretha, and who recently signed on to campaign for Obama, it was shocking to legions of women who had latched onto her message of chastity and self-respect. That message was one, according in Bynum, that would bring true love as opposed to a spouse who would choke, stomp and kick you to the curb. Literally! The episode between this woman of faith and her estranged husband Bishop Thomas Weeks III has led to debate about domestic violence and how churches, particularly black churches, respond to it.
Juanita Bynum on Star Jones' Court TV show
But it has also raised questions about the trajectory of Ms. Bynum’s career as a woman who called herself a prophetess, and while condemning promiscuity spoke openly about her lust and longing, in what has been called one of the most significant contemporary American sermons.Her struggle struck a chord in many Black communities, where marriage rates are notoriously low, and it seemed to culminate in the form of an earthly reward: a televised, million-dollar 2003 wedding to a fellow Pentecostal preacher, followed by what seemed to be a model marriage.
Since the attack, Bynum, 48, has tried to reinvent herself once more, announcing that she is “the new face of domestic violence.” But Tom Joyner, the syndicated radio talk show host, did not let her off the hook so easily: “If you’re a prophet,” Mr. Joyner asked, “didn’t you see this coming?”
In a telephone interview, Ms. Bynum said the public had overly romanticized the union. “What happened to me was reality,” she said. “I made a right decision that went bad. If you choose a Cadillac, if two years later someone runs into you and tears it up, it wasn’t a bad decision to buy the car.”
Since the attack, Bynum, 48, has tried to reinvent herself once more, announcing that she is “the new face of domestic violence.” But Tom Joyner, the syndicated radio talk show host, did not let her off the hook so easily: “If you’re a prophet,” Mr. Joyner asked, “didn’t you see this coming?”
In a telephone interview, Ms. Bynum said the public had overly romanticized the union. “What happened to me was reality,” she said. “I made a right decision that went bad. If you choose a Cadillac, if two years later someone runs into you and tears it up, it wasn’t a bad decision to buy the car.”