Jay Bakker Says Congregation Deserted Him Over His Support For Gay Marriage

Jay Bakker, the son of televangelists Jim Bakker and Tammy Faye Bakker Messner, says his congregation deserted him over his support for gay marriage.

Bakker, who heads the gay-inclusive Revolution Church in New York City, began discussing the issue in 2011. In an appearance on CNN from that year, he said he does not believe being gay is a sin.

“I thought God hated me, until I was about 19-20 years old and started reading the Bible for myself and realizing that, 'Wow, the Bible really does have a lot of good news.' There's a lot of grace there, and a lot of the stuff I had seen before … didn't mesh. And so, I was really shocked that I was loved and accepted. And I wanted other people to experience that,” Bakker said.

During an appearance Monday on cabler Current's Say Anything, Bakker said that his flock deserted him almost overnight.

“Every speaking engagement for the following year was canceled,” he told host Joy Behar. “And a few weeks later, I had to let my whole staff go. We had a staff of five.” (The video is embedded on this page. Visit our video library for more videos.)