Ted Haggard confessed his sins before his congregation--sort of.

I am a deceiver and a liar," Haggard told 9,000 of his followers in a letter read from the pulpit of New Life Church by one of his spiritual mentors. "There's a part of my life that is so repulsive and dark that I have been warring against it for all of my adult life."

Men wiped at their eyes. Women clung to one another. A grandfather hugged his baby grandson close, rubbing the boy's small back. Haggard had founded this church in his basement. He had grown it to a congregation of 14,000. He had guided them to God and helped them triumph over sin, and he had done it always with a smile, ever exuberant, ever strong.

They wept to hear what he'd been hiding.

"For extended periods of time, I would enjoy victory and rejoice in freedom," Haggard wrote. "Then, from time to time, the dirt that I thought was gone would resurface, and I would find myself thinking thoughts and experiencing desires that were contrary to everything I believe and teach."

A male prostitute in Denver came forward last week claiming that Haggard had visited his apartment almost monthly over the last three years for sex and drugs. Haggard at first denied it. Then he said he bought meth from the man, but threw it away. On Sunday, he said this: "The accusations that have been leveled against me are not all true, but enough of them are true that I have been appropriately and lovingly removed from ministry."

Haggard is clearly being judged by a very high standard as compared to say--any Democrat politician. While basically absolved of having a homosexual affair, his behavior was nevertheless incompatible with the ideals he professed. I am frankly impressed at how well the Evangelicals have dealt with this--no cover up and no excuses. Its not just "right" its smart, because any compromise would have been the real hypocrisy in this whole affair.

The timely resolution of the matter also means its a dead issue at this point and the effect on the prospects of amendment 43 and Referendum I, is probably neutral.

Referendum I may well be headed for defeat according the most recent polls last week. What once looked like shoe-in, is now within the statistical margin of error. Evangelicals, Mormons and other conservative voters in Colorado are probably more motivated to defeat the gay-marriage-in-all-but-name measure, that those who favor it.

The other aspect of this that fascinates me is how many people in high-profile positions seem to think they can get away with risky behavior. Just remarkable.