Why I Believe Creflo Dollar's Daughter

Violence against children is the same as volence against women.

When Creflo Dollar took to the pulpit on Sunday, the congregation at World Changers International was waiting to hear if he would address the allegations that he was involved in a violent altercation with his daughter only a few days prior.

He would.

Standing in the pulpit, Dollar assured his congregation, "I would never put any fault on my children. As Jesus would never put any fault on me. I love her with all of my heart. Amen. There are two things that are certain in the life of a Christian parent. Number one is that we win. And number two is that tests will come to try and shake your faith." He added, "As a church family, I want you to hear personally from me that all is well in the Dollar household."

But is it?

The police report says that Dollar's 15-year-old daughter called 911 after her father assaulted her, an argument had escalated after he told her she couldn't go to a party.

“The truth is she was not choked, she was not punched. There were not any scratches on her neck,” Dollar said to his members. “But the only thing on her neck was a prior skin abrasion from eczema. Anything else is exaggeration and sensationalism.”

So what did happen then?

"She was not choked."

"She was not punched."

Where is the responsibility or the denial of responsibility? What about, "I did not choke her"? "I did not punch her." It's almost as if he was distancing himself from the charges with his words, but of course he has a reputation to protect. As the founding pastor of a booming megachurch, he wouldn't want any allegations to cause harm to his brand, er, calling.

[ALSO READ: Creflo Dollar 911 Call Audio Released]

News reports say his congregation wholeheartedly supported their pastor, which I suppose is their right. But what does it say about our society that we are more concerned with protecting Dollar than protecting his teenage daughter? Dollar's supporters are quick to say, "We don't know the whole story." Or the ever-popular "Teenagers can really take you there," insinuating that whatever happened was a result of what the daughter did or didn't do, versus a grown man having full control over his emotions.

If you think I'm trying to paint Creflo Dollar in a negative light, believe me I'm not. What I am trying to do is examine why people are so quick to rush to his defense. There is a difference between the two. He may very well be innocent, but his daughter -— and her 19-year-old sister -— claimed something wicked went down in his house, so I'm going to believe them until I have a reason not to. I know teens can be difficult. My children are still young but as a 20-something mother, I was an unruly teen not too long ago. I remember how I would push boundaries and stay out later than I was allowed, and my parents were there to check me and my foolish decisions.

But never did they ever raise a hand to me.

We say physical discipline is about keeping our children on the straight and narrow, about giving them a chance to learn those hard lessons at home so they don't leave our homes and fall into a life of crime. We say we want our children to fear us and to know that what we say is law, that there is no negotiating with children who do not pay the bills or buy the groceries. We cling to that oft-misused phrase "spare the rod, spoil the child" to justify leaving our children with bruises and welts. We say, "I was spanked/beaten/whooped and I turned out fine."