Baptist Press and reporting child sex abuse in SBC churches

Most observers would agree that there is and has been sexual abuse of children in Southern Baptist churches and that this is a problem that needs to be addressed.

Unfortunately, our denominational press and public relations arm of the SBC Executive Committee, Baptist Press, has had a practice of ignoring and not reporting cases of such abuse in SBC churches.

Perhaps this practice is changing. Twice recently BP has reported such bad news:

Former Baptist youth minister arrested

Children's pastor pleads guilty to sexual abuse

The most recent case is the first link above, the arrest of a former youth minister in an SBC church in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.

Contrast Baptist Press' coverage of such bad news with that of Associated Baptist Press, the main daily news outlet for moderate Baptists. Bob Allen of ABP has hundreds of stories on the subject. His story on the most recent Muscle Shoals case: Former youth pastor charged with abuse.

Does it matter whether or not Baptist Press reports such things? Should our people focus on positive news and let others handle the bad news?

Yes and no. It does indeed matter and I commend BP for beginning to cover specific cases in SBC churches. It matters for several reasons:

1. Children should be safe and protected when their parents bring or send them to church. In many cases they are not and every Southern Baptist denominational employee and entity, every Southern Baptist pastor/staff and church, and every Southern Baptist volunteer and church member should do all they can to assure this.

No one likes bad news but who is helped when we ignore allegations and convictions of sex abuse in our churches? Those whose depravity preys upon young, weak, and powerless children.

2. Our churches and church staff should be educated on child protection policies. We understand and value our belief that a church is autonomous and that no SBC leader or organization has any power over even the smallest SBC church. I appreciate that state conventions, LifeWay, and the Executive Committee all dispense advice to churches and ministers on child protection; however, a single news story of abuse in one of our churches does more to motivate ministers and churches to put in place policies than all the sterile denominational advice available. When Baptist Press (and more importantly the state papers) ignores reporting in this area it is irresponsible and harmful. Ministers may blithely assume that child sex abuse is a problem for the Roman Catholics but not in our churches. It is a problem among us.

3. It helps to dispel the criticism that Southern Baptists are unconcerned about the problem. Try an experiment. Do a search on the website for Baptist Press or your state Baptist newspaper for sex abuse and see what you get. Chances are you will get many results that deal with sex trafficking, abuse in Roman Catholic churches and other matters more distant to Southern Baptists than cases of abuse in SBC churches involving SBC ministers.

Take the most recent SBC case of abuse linked above. Bob Terry, editor of the Alabama Baptist, has a 1000 word story yesterday, Allegations don't always equal facts, that deals with a minister accused who was found innocent decades ago. False accusations are a problem but the far greater problem is that most allegations that are true. I suspect that the Alabama Baptist will report on the latest case involving an Alabama Baptist church very soon. The editor will do a far greater service to Alabama Baptists by doing so. We need not choose between the two but absolutely should not ignore cases of abuse.

4. Churches and church staff have a chance to see both proper and improper responses when sex abuse allegations are made.  Most pastors don't have a chapter in their standard guidebook for ministers about how to handle an allegation of sex abuse in their church. We hope such is rare overall and that we never have to deal with the matter. But many SBC church staff and lay leadership will have to deal with an allegation of abuse in their own church. They should learn what to do and what not to do, what to say and what not to say.

For example, in the most recent case the current pastor who has been at the church less than a year and was not present when the former minister allegedly committed the abuse, is quoted as saying "We've been doing some really great things...and now some feel like the wind has been sucked out of our sails." Undoubtedly, this is an accurate statement and reflects an attitude that the pastor must handle in his membership but to present one's church as a victim is inappropriate. The child or children allegedly abused are the victims here and the focus must be on them not on how the church has been harmed. The church can recover and prosper. The victim or victims will deal with it until they die.

5. God is honored and obeyed and we serve the people of our communities best when we hate sin and abuse and uphold righteousness. Those who commit such deplorable and depraved acts and who prey upon our children should be exposed and punished. We sin against God and our community when we cover up or ignore sex abuse in our churches.

6. As a denomination we have lost credibility on this issue and being open and transparent about it helps restore credibility. If we seem to believe that we are addressing sex abuse in our churches by merely formulating sample policies for child protection that are available for churches and staff if they wish to try them or by the occasional informational article that touches on the matter while ignoring concrete cases of such in our churches, we err. The public should see that we are acting as if we take this problem seriously.

I commend Baptist Press for beginning to pay more attention to these cases in our churches. We will all be better served by such.

This lady could save your ministry

This lady is Christa Brown, whose blog , Stop Baptist Predators, I have been following for years. The reason she may save your ministry is simple – clergy sex abuse is something that is present in SBC churches, among SBC clergy, and how pastors and churches protect against it, confront it when it is present, and handle accusations of such is critical. Church staff and laypeople can learn some things from her they didn’t know and haven’t thought about. Handling an accusation of abuse in the church the wrong way could cost a pastor his job or even land him in jail.

Christa is the most visible, forceful, and relentless critic of these things in Southern Baptist Churches. While she sometimes despairs that Southern Baptists have any interest in stopping clergy sexual abuse (anyone who has ever read her story, knows that she is a survivor of appalling sexual abuse by a church staff member when she was a youth), but I would credit her with raising the profile of the issue in SBC life to a much higher level. One can be assured that because of her forceful advocacy no example of, or untoward statement about, clergy sexual abuse in a Southern Baptist church gets ignored. Good for her.

While I do not share her goal that the Executive Committee establish an independent review board (the local church autonomy question, more on that later) to hear and archive reports of clergy sexual abuse, I believe she should be heard, respectfully and considerately, on the subject. Well, she has been heard all around the SBC, although not always respectfully and considerately.

She has a book about her experience, This Little Light. She kindly sent me a copy which I read, reviewed, and discussed .

I recommend that all of my brethren read every link in her Stop Baptist Predators website. She has Frank Page's picture up there at the moment. Sure, it's irreverent and sometimes maddening, but I do read it.

There are lots of questions and issues to be considered here. Perhaps later. But, I commend her book, blog, and website.

A resolution that has value: ON SEXUAL ABUSE OF CHILDREN

My friend and fellow Georgian, Peter Lumpkins, submitted this resolution and I confess that my prediction was that it would fail to be reported out of the Resolutions Committee and any attempt to bring it to the floor would likewise fail. Peter would then go home and drown his disappointment, rather expensively, in Starbucks coffee which he never seems to be without (ABP photo).

I was wrong and the SBC did pass an amended resolution but one that Peter favored.

The original resolution had this paragraph:

RESOLVED that we strongly urge denominational servants, entity leaders and our trustee boards to sever all ties, whether official or unofficial, with any evangelical organization, fellowship of ministers, and/or celebrity leader who, presently or in the past, is facing criminal and/or civil litigation for neglecting moral or legal obligations to protect the little children whom Jesus said suffer to follow Him, ties including but not limited to speaking engagements at conferences, entities, and/or agencies supported, whether full or in part, by Cooperative Program monies; and 

The target for this paragraph was C. J. Mahaney who has been loudly praised and touted by some of our SBC leaders, not the least of which is Albert Mohler.

The case of Mahaney, Sovereign Grace Ministries, and sexual abuse of children is long and somewhat complicated. There are horrible allegations of abuse, some while Mahaney was pastor and in his church, though he is not accused of any such behavior. A high profile civil suit has been filed against a number of SGM leaders. The lawsuit alleges that when abuse was reported to the church, church leaders did an in-house investigation and tried to handle it privately.

Background can be found in numerous articles by Bob Allen of Associated Baptist Press (you will not find much from Baptist Press which avoids such unpleasant subjects). The article here is from this week. Also, two blog queens (their own self-description) and their blog The Wartburg Watch 2013 are tireless victim advocates and keenly focused on the SGM scandal. Their research is stellar.

The Resolution Committee quickly deep-sixed that paragraph before they reported the resolution to the floor. An amendment was added from the floor that said:

RESOLVED: that we encourage all denominational leaders and employees of the Southern Baptist Convention to utilize the highest sense of discernment in affiliating with groups and/or individuals that possess questionable policies and practices in protecting our children from criminal abuse; 

You can still read "C. J. Mahaney" between the lines of the above paragraph.

Here's the deal: Even though Southern Baptists have said a lot about clergy sex abuse and have numerous programs to educate churches and pastors of the issue and how to handle such things at the local church level, we have not been very effective in handling cases that touch on our churches or our leaders.

This resolution helps somewhat, but let's be candid here, no one who should have been paying attention to this matter, Executive Committee, Resolutions Committee, high profile leaders like Mohler, thought it important to address it with a resolution at the annual meeting. The matter was left for a small church pastor and blogger. I give Mohler et al credit for realizing that they needed to get on board here.

One of my boasts is that I have never spend a dime on Starbucks coffee. It is one of my life principles not to pay $5 or so for a cup of drugged and flavored water.

But the next time I meet Peter at the Starbucks halfway between us, I'll buy. Good work.
______________________________________

If you are a pastor or church staff and haven't given this a lot of thought, I recommend your state convention who most certainly has a staff member with responsibility for child safety. But start with a couple of my articles:
Pick up the phone, call the cops.

They did not call the cops...and have been arrested.

Also, get Christa Brown's book (available on her website) and read what she has to say. It is ugly but may save your ministry down the road. She started talking about sexual abuse in the SBC before anyone else.

Pick up the phone. Call the cops.

Some time ago in a deacons' meeting, I was speaking on the subject of sexual abuse of children in churches and our church's policies on the same. The sordid subject was in the news as a result of the Roman Catholic scandals and not a few cases of SBC churches and clergy involved in such things.

While we have adopted policies in our church, nothing made the matter more clear to the deacons than when I said, "Here's what we do if someone comes to me with an accusation of sexual abuse: I pick up the phone and call the cops."

Sometimes the beloved brother pastor likes to be dramatic. Sometimes he should.

Take a look at what is happening at Penn State University. The religion of college football has its own cathedrals, altars, and revered priests which is why the alleged child sexual abuse case involving Penn State is so prominently featured in the news.

While the matter will continue to unfold, it looks like someone messed up. Hmmm, they didn't pick up the phone and call the cops.

What's the problem? It's not that the issue is obscure or hidden. It is certainly no longer a matter for closed deacons' meetings and hallway whispers around the SBC.

Every level in SBC life appears to be attuned to the issue of sexual abuse in churches and denominational life. State Conventions, the Executive Committee, LifeWay all have extensive materials for churches on their websites.

Cases involving clergy in SBC churches are regularly reported (usually by Associated Baptist Press, seldom by Baptist Press) and a number of Baptist bloggers focus on them.

In my state you cannot be involved with any camps or conferences involving kids without undergoing background checks. I feel certain that LifeWay has the same policies for Ridgecrest and Glorieta (though as this case illustrates, the checks do not eliminate all problems).

Sometimes an essential action of a pastor doesn't involve preaching, teaching, evangelism, or discipleship.

Sometimes it is simply to pick up the phone. Call the cops.

Put down the Bible, pick up the phone, call the cops

Looks like I erred last week when I wrote conerning child sex abuse, Pick up the Phone, Call the Cops.

This Associated Baptist Press story is an opinion piece by Baptist General Convention of Texas, "Theologian-In-Residence" Jim Denison. It conflates the Penn State sex abuse scandal and the Herman Cain sexual harrassment stories and offers what he says God feels and what scripture says about the scandals.

Read it and wonder if Dr. Theolog-in-Residence was out to lunch when he wrote the piece.

Not surprisingly, Christa Brown has noted some difficulties, some inconsistencies in attempting to handle clergy child sex abuse though any theology of Matthew 18.

She writes, angrily I would surmise:

Denison’s statement reveals a dangerous ignorance about the dynamics of child sex abuse.

It is the sort of ignorance that Baptist clergy abuse survivors have encountered in case after case, as church and denominational leaders have blinded themselves to abuse reports, seeing only the facts that suit them, minimizing the reality of clergy child molestations, and citing Matthew 18 as support for their own keep-it-quiet do-nothingness.

Take any of the sad scenarios that are recent and apply the Denison test.
Should the ten year old boy have gone back to his adult rapist and attempted some reconciliation? Such is absurd.

Should Brown herself, as a child, gone back to her abuser, waved her Bible and attempted to reconcile? Absurd.

Denison, and others, take this passage in Matthew 18 and seem to make it an absolute prerequisite. Yet, we live in a society of civil laws. When a law is broken, particularly one that involves children and abuse, the moral and legal obligation is, first, to report the crime.

Suppose the child went to his rapist who apologized, asked for personal forgiveness, and offered assurances of no further such behavior. Is that sufficient to satisfy God? The parties can now go merrily on their way and the way of the pedophile is almost invariably to merrily molest other children. After Matthew 18 is there no criminal penalty need be applied here? Absurd.

Some Southern Baptists have turned Matthew 18 into a formulaic protocol to absolve criminals of heinous crimes and deprive their victims of justice. Matthew 18 has been made into the magic wand that spiritual leaders must simply wave to make ugly situations go away and things to go back to the status quo ante, victims usually be damned (in a real but non-theological sense and pardon my language).

Among Christians, some offenses may indeed be resolved by adults having adult, Christian conversations. But we aren't in a theocracy. We live as Christians in a country of laws. While there are times we may have options in conflict resolution, sexual abuse of children by adults is not one of those.

It's tough to argue with Christa Brown when she describes this sort of response to sex abuse of children as "ignorance."

Surely in a reflective moment Denison would rethink this and do better.

Nepotism, church, church schools, and sex abuse

Teacher Fired For Reporting Sexual Allegations At Hilltop Baptist

Sexual abuse of children in churches and by church staff is old news. Lately, only a prominent name (Joe Paterno, Penn State, Jerry Sandusky) connected to child sex abuse puts an incident on the front page but I would ask folks to read this case above which is about a teacher in a church school in Colorado.

Actually, the story is about two teachers – one who was having sex with her 15-year old student and another who reported the crime. The first teacher was indicted for sexual assault on a child, while the latter was fired a month after she reported the matter.

No one has said it but is the thinking, “If she (the fired teacher) had just kept her mouth shut we could have handled this in house and not had to go through all this turmoil”?

The fired teacher did the right thing and did what was required by law (teachers are mandatory reporters in Colorado). God bless her. She is suing the independent fundamental Baptist church. The school closed down.

So, what about nepotism, church, church schools, and sex abuse. My views here are anecdotal and involve some degree of conjecture, but I think these things are worth some reflection.

A good many church sponsored schools I have been around are heavily nepotistic. The uncle of the teacher indicted for sexual assault was, and still is, the pastor of the church that ran the school. You can do your own analysis here by looking at a church school near you. I'd bet you will get some hits.

Nothing wrong with that in a sense. It’s their church and school. If staff is loaded up with family and the congregation and/or school trustees approve, so be it. But this makes it more likely in my view, that sex abuse will be covered up. In the case above not only was the teacher arrested and charged but her father, her uncle the pastor, and the school principal were as well.

Pick up the phone. Call the cops, even if the offender is related to the big boss.

Is the $12.5 million judgment against the Florida Baptist Conv. a game changer?

The assessment of a $12.5 million judgment against the Florida Baptist Convention last Saturday, damages awarded to a victim of sexual abuse by a Florida Baptist church planter/pastor, is being called a "game changer" by the victim's lawyers and by advocates for clergy abuse victims.

The story is reported by ABP in this article: Florida Baptists to appeal abuse award

A subsequent ABP article with comments from the plantiff's lawyer: Lawyer: Abuse verdict possible game-changer

Christa Brown of Stop Baptist Predators and the most well known advocate of Southern Baptist clergy abuse victims has a commentary: Change is coming to Baptistland

The matter of clergy sexually abusing children in SBC churches is no small matter and certainly not a game. I would offer that the landscape has already changed in the way abuse is viewed at every level in SBC life; however, the judgment against the FBC does escalate things. If the judgment stands (the FBC expresses confidence that their appeal will be successful, no surprise there) it will be the first time a denominational entity has been successfully sued in such cases (save for one other occasion where an insurer settled to avoid high legal costs) and awarded damages for the action of a local church minister.

We Baptists do have this polity that we tout early and often, local church autonomy. In our system everyone knows that "Southern Baptist Convention" hires, supervises, and fires exactly zero local church ministers. Each church does that on their own, as they see fit. Critics maintain that SBC leaders "hide behind" this local church autonomy polity to avoid responsibility for the actions of local church ministers. SBC leaders respond that there is no material connection between an SBC church and the denominational machinery, since the Executive Committee of the SBC, state conventions, and associations have no control and power over any church or any church's ministers. 

But  we do have some hybrid arrangements where ministers receive funds from various SBC organizations other than their local church, where some ministers have some supervision by denominational entities, and where some have mandatory reporting requirements. Church planters, for example, are interviewed, trained, vetted, and selected by various people representing associations, the North American Mission Board, or other entity and some by joint arrangements among these. The failure of the FBC to check the abuser's previous places of service was the cause of the jury's decision in this case.  

I'm guessing that associations and associational missionaries, denominational executives, seminary administrators, state convention executives, and some pastors are pondering this matter now moreso than ever. 

Questions:

1. Associational Missionaries often handle resumes, try and place ministers seeking a church position, and provide references to churches asking about particular ministers. Will the association be held liable for negligence if an abuser with a history easily discovered is passed along to a church? Will associational missionaries just stop handling resumes altogether?

The common scenario for a clergy sex abuser is for him to leave a church where he has been suspected of abuse, either voluntarily or by forced termination, but without arrest or prosecution and relocate to another association or state where he is unknown and can start over with the same behavior. Associational Missionaries are the closest to the local churches, so they may be involved, unknowingly, in helping such a minister relocate and find another church. 

2. State conventions maintain online resume services. Will they continue or require more of those whom they permit to place a resume on their server? Will the state convention pastor relations staffer restrict or refuse to make referrals?

Most of us have been referred to churches sometimes in our career by state convention staff who assist in relocations. In my state a minister may create and place his resume on the state convention's website where church may access it and contact the minister about a position. I am unsure if state conventions are as helpful in placing ministers as they once were.

3. Will any SBC entity who provides funding, training, and supervision for church planters or other ministry positions tighten up their vetting processes?

The answer to this had better be 'yes' or we have cases of denominational malpractice. We would be severely ill served were our denominational staff not to have already done and be doing this.

4. Will churches or SBC entities that sponsor an individual as a church planter by providing funding be open to liability for his actions?

Take the mammoth and successful North American Mission Board's Send North America church planting program. Among other things, each planter must have a sponsoring or partner church, some local SBC congregation that commends him and is involved in some way with his church planting work. Does this expose that church to liability for the planter's actions? NAMB provides millions in funding for planters. Do they thereby acquire liability for each planter's actions?

5. What can be done?

The question of what Southern Baptists can do is a rather prickly one. We have in the past refused to establish an SBC Executive Committee level registry for convicted and confessed clergy sex abusers. Part of the reason for not doing this was, as I have heard, the question of liability. Even if there were such a registry, the abuser in this Florida case would not have been on it.

Should Southern Baptists establish an independent committee of professionals who would receive and maintain credible accusations against SBC clergy? This is one of the goals of Christa Brown and Stop Baptist Predators. The abuser in this case might have been reported to such a committee. Do SBC clergy wish to have an independent committee evaluating accusations against them and judging whether or not they are credible accusations? 

The long running Roman Catholic clergy sex abuse scandal has caused the matter of clergy sex abuse in local SBC churches to undergo not a few changes. Many, perhaps all, church insurers require churches to have formal sex abuse policies and to do background checks on staff and volunteers. State conventions and otther entities have had such policies for years. I expect more change is coming. 

Perhaps our denominational brain trust could be roused to address this.

Whether the FBC award stands or not, now would be a good time to do something more than we are doing.

How can churches be so stupid in responding to clergy sexual abuse?

How can large evangelical churches, organizations with considerable resources, multiple specialized staff, and highly sophisticated social media resources be so stupid in their responding to allegations of sexual abuse of minors by their staff members?

I cannot explain it but see it regularly.


Check the recent case of The Church in Corinth, an Assembly of God church near Dallas:

Texas pastor tried to coerce high school girl into stripping for him

 The pastor, perhaps forty something, locked the high school girl in a room and tried for two hours to get her to strip for him. The actions, if proved, constitute a felony.

Here is the initial statement of the church:

“We have no knowledge of nor any reason to suspect any inappropriate behavior,” Fink said. “We intend to and will fully investigate the allegations, and we will fully cooperate with the authorities. Our prayers go out to this family of our church.”

Here is a formal statement issued later by the church:

 

Allegations have been made. At this time, they are allegations. And, our Pastor is on a leave of absence. A leave of absence is the best thing we can do for him to give him time to be with his family and to deal with everything going on in his life. Any time, when something like this happens, the impact that it has on everyone is painful. With that pain often comes a response that looks very much like the stages of grief. You may be feeling hurt, afraid, and confused. Many of us will feel angry. Anger is a response that we use to defend ourselves against the hurt, fear and confusion. Some will feel depression. But, with time – and a lot of prayer, we will begin to go through a period where we can begin to heal.

Wonder of wonders, the pastor is a victim!

We are going to give HIM time to be with HIS family, to deal with what is going on in HIS life...it's painful...the church family is grieving, hurt, confused, afraid, and angry...but in time WE can begin to heal.

The church website has this message for members:

So, what will the future look like at The Church of Corinth? In the short term, the Deacon board will continue to help in the day to day decision process of the operation of the church. We have already been in contact with the leadership of the Assemblies of God about the events of this week and are following their direction as well as getting input from their vast experience and wisdom.... 

Something missing from the church's response?

How about ANY mention of the victim, the girl the spiritual leader, authority figure trapped in a room with lecherous intent?

Not a syllable.

This is as pathetic as it is stupid.

Sure, the charges are allegations (although authorities have audio recordings, a couple of hours worth, of the pastor) and a measured response would be appropriate.

But to read the church statements one would think that it is all about them, their people, their future.

Oh, by the way, the church website says this:

Our community believes that it is our responsibility to be the hands and feet of Christ to the world. We desire that our body is marked as Christ-followers in a culture that is broken and in need of hope.

 Something is indeed broken here.

Clergy sexual misconduct three times as frequent in black churches

Diana Garland of Baylor University’s School of Social Work has been featured often for what some call a “groundbreaking” study of clergy sexual misconduct. She rightly calls this an abuse of power offense and admantly refuses to allow it to be euphemized as a consensual “affair” between a minister and a congregant. The study found that that more than 3% of women who regular attend houses of worship have been victims of clergy misconduct.

Do the math for your church.

Her opinion piece in ABP earlier this year: Opinion: Don't call it an affair. Call it abuse of power

I join her in condemning this and in calling it serious clergy misconduct and an abuse of power.

But at the recent Cooperative Baptist Fellowship meeting in June she added a not insignificant detail. Emphasis is mine:

Garland and Baylor’s study, funded by the Ford Foundation, surveyed 3,559 respondents in 17 Christian and Jewish congregations. She found statistical consistency in abuse across the board. The one anomaly that surfaced – which she had never published until speaking at this meeting – was that the incidence of clergy abuse appeared to be three times as frequent in black congregations. She didn’t publish that information for fear it would become the focal point in coverage of her findings, or that other congregations and denominations would excuse themselves by comparison.

I give her the benefit of the doubt that the researcher’s judgment might find sufficient reasons not to publish information that was discovered by the study; however, were I a member of a black congregation I would certainly want some focus on why this “anomaly” exists and would desire that it be publicized widely. That women in black churches are abused by clergy at three times the rate of women in other churches is appalling.

She offers speculation as to why this is so:

She offered as possible explanation that black churches typically have smaller staffs who have heavier loads; a higher proportion of members are female and there are fewer eligible men in the church.

Exactly how is it that “smaller staffs” make a difference? More opportunity for unsupervised counseling and liason?

Garland now appears to be tiptoeing into these racial waters. It would certainly be groundbreaking to pursue this.

For the record: the stories most of us white pastors have heard for years about our predecessors, collegues, and other clergy are not to be ignored or excused.

Association expels church with accused pedophile pastor

A Southern Baptist association in Missouri has dropped from its membership a church whose pastor is to stand trial for sex crimes with minor females. The charges include six felonies involving two different women who were minors when the incidents allegedly occurred.

Bob Allen of Associated Baptist Press has the story:

Association drops church with accused pastor

Headlines notwithstanding, the Lamine Baptist Association dropped the church for "non-compliance with the association’s constitution and bylaws" without mention of the sex charges.

The pastor was acquitted of similar charges in 2011 and the current charges are for forcible rape, statutory rape, sexual abuse and sodomy that are alleged to have occurred in 1998, 1999 and 2005.

Our cherished and closely guarded doctrine of autonomy, each level of Baptist life is independent and cannot be ordered to do anything, means that a local church may have an accused sexual predator as pastor if they wish, and this church, inexplicably, so wishes.

Southern Baptist pastors are fired for the most trivial of reasons and one would think that if a church's pastor is indicted for such serious felonies, he would not last long in the pulpit.

Think again in this case. The church stands by her man.

Indeed, one of the earlier crimes for which the pastor was acquitted was a statutory rape charge. It turned out that the victim was 17, the age of consent in Missouri, and that no crime occurred. 

The church is comfortable with their pastor having crime free sex with a 17 year-girl?

Evidently.


Sure, the law presumes innocence until guilt is proven in a court of law. But, if a church volunteer worker or staff member is accused of sexual crimes with minors, at the very least such an individual would ordinarily be suspended from their duties and prohibited from contact with minors until the charges are resolved.

I'm not sure how one can pastor a church without contact with  minors, but the church is untroubled by such things, one member claiming that the pastor is "wonderful" with children in the church.

Wonderful indeed.

Update on Florida sex abuse liability case

A jury found the Florida Baptist Convention liable for the criminal actions of a church planter they trained and assisted. The jurors concluded that the FBC and local association did not do enough checks on this man who is a convicted child abuser.

Now, the Florida Baptist Convention requests verdict reversal in liability case and the Convention will appeal if motions fail. 

While the jury found the Convention liable for sexual abuse of a minor committed by a church planting-pastor, it also agreed with the Convention’s contention the pastor was not its employee.

“You can’t make a finding that we’re responsible for, in essence, behavior that is associated with someone who’s under my employ and then turn around and make a decision factually that the person was never under my employ,” said E.T. Fernandez III in a June 7 interview with Florida Baptist Witness.

“Legally, we call that an inconsistent verdict,” the Jacksonville-based attorney representing the Convention explained.

Fernandez has filed a motion for a new trial and a motion for “judgment notwithstanding the verdict.”

I read "slam dunk" between the lines of the Florida Baptist Convention lawyer's statements.

Nonetheless, one would hope that those in positions of responsibility have already tightened the procedures for vetting church planters that we may enlist, train, and support. It doesn't look good for Southern Baptists at any level to be putting child abusers in new churches.

We can do better than the FBC and Lake County Association did in this case. It will cost more money and take more time but has to be done.

A thirteen year old boy, in the eighth grade at the time, was selected and abused repeatedly over a period of six months by this man who convinced the kid it was a normal part of growing up.

The man had incidents but no convictions in two previous churches once authorities began to investigate.

A more thorough vetting process would have uncovered no prior convictions but would have found these prior suspicions and incidents.

Someone is at fault here and it is not the victim nor the church plant. The state convention and association should have strict rules and procedures in place to approve fund, and train church planters.

If state conventions and associations, along with churches, do a better job here and less kids get sexually abused in churches.

Catholics flummoxed, Tebow touted, but why so much sadness in Louisville?

Roman Catholics are Confused by Mass Changes, as in changes to their Mass rather than a great number of changes. Seems that the prescribed english wording has added the term "consubstantial" to the litany. I recommend that my Catholic friends do what we SBCers have done when mass changes have been made in our churches, namely moving from hymns with real meanings and substantial words to chorus ditties with endless repetition of simple words. For the latter you just repeat as in a mantra without thinking about it.

Al Mohler comes down hard with the Southern Seminary family in ordering that credible accusations of sexual abuse be immediately reported to authorities, secular authorities. ""...just dial 911..." he wrote. Seems that a SBTS trustee had different advice for his church as reported in this ABP (where else?) story. Al is a clever fellow. Let's see how he reconciles these two items.

Speaking of Southern Seminary, Louisville is rated as the country's fifth saddest city. Perhaps all the joyless calvinists have made an impact.

Georgia plays LSU for the SEC championship tomorrow the tigers being heavy, heavy favorites. Should the dawgs pull a big upset talk on the sports shows is that LSU would still go to the national championship game and play Alabama. While I would like to see another SEC national champion, that scenario is the height of absurdity.

Tebow is touted, but sometimes criticized, for his on-field and after game Christian expressions. Celebrity athlete Christians as a group haven't added much to the Kingdom of God in my estimation. Your everyday, workaday hacker and plodder is what really counts.

Unless I get an invitation to preach for this coming Sunday, an unlikely possibility, this is be the longest stretch of Sundays (three in a row) in three decades where I have not filled a pulpit. I'll take a pew and listen to someone else and do my dead level best to learn, though, perhaps assisted by the sharp elbows of my wife. Plodder feels up to the task.

Have a nice weekend.

Plodder's advice for Frank Page, new XCommittee President (Part 1)

I like Frank Page. I voted for Frank Page for SBC president. I think Frank Page is a good choice for President of the Executive Committee. I am pleased that Frank Page is willing to take the helm there even though his bosses were significantly divided over hiring him. I think he will do well.

The current issue of The Christian Index has a nice interview with him: Frank Page to lead SBC Executive Committee

He doesn’t need my advice, may not benefit from it, and may see it as being highly presumptuous; however, since the SBC is nothing if not a mob of pontificators and advisors, I offer my advice as he becomes only the sixth in his position as titular, day-to-day leader of the Southern Baptist Convention:

Congratulations on your election. You have my prayers, goodwill, and support. I appreciate your record as a pastor and as SBC president and believe you have both the necessary skills and instincts to do well as Executive Committee President.

I don’t expect you to "set the vision...for all of the SBC." I do expect you to "set the...tone for all of the SBC" by being, as you state it "irenic," committed to Christ, selfless, forgiving, and loving.

Please lead the XC back to where they were prior to hiring high profile people for new positions. Take care of the convention’s business but don’t take mission money to build a large staff. We have sufficient entities that we already fund that can address those things.

Try and navigate us through the minefield that is the clergy sexual abuse scandal. Some of your previous statements hit the wrong notes here. The SBC should be seen as taking this issue seriously, as not tolerating affiliated churches who harbor such criminals, as deploring the scandal, but also as maintaining our polity. If additional appropriate steps can be taken we should take them.

Be forward looking with respect to denominational funding, trends, and change. I get the sense that you are.

Be careful handling amendments to our constitution. We added a clause to kick the homosexual-approving churches out. Now you are faced with looking at one to kick out churches for racial discrimination. How far should we go? How long is the list of odious sins for which the SBC should be intolerant? No doubt, you get this picture better than me.

You can set the tone for the SBC and all of our entities by being completely open and transparent. We're tired of paying the bills and being stiffed while we do it. No more executive sessions, private employment contracts, confidentiality agreements than is legally necessary. We should have access to them. And, please, no more blue ribbon panels who insist on secrecy.

Give Baptist Press a long leash. If we have solid people there then let them investigate, examine, evaluate and report. I’m tired of depending on Associated Baptist Press and assorted bloggers for news.

Do you really need SBC Life to promote stuff? Take a look at that (just don’t drop Charles Lowry’s column).

Don’t try and make a living beating up the Calvinists (but do keep an eye on them).

I know that it’s not in your job description, but could you do something about NAMB? I’m tired of being embarrassed.

I don't know if this will happen again but if you convene a Cooperative Program promotion study group and all they come up with is to tell churches to give more, fire them all. That dog hasn't hunted in decades.

More later...

Depressed pastor? Entirely predictable.

Easter is over. The big crowd is gone. The pastor has another 51 or so Sundays before he gets to the next highest, holiest Sunday. In that time it will be back to the old grind of probably a couple of sermons and at least one teaching occasion, every week...after week...after week, hospital visits, the dreaded church administration ("Pastor, what are we going to do about VBS this year? It's only three months away and I can't find any workers..."), working with perhaps recalcitrant deacons, surly staff, and the occasional (or frequent) complaint from the congregational hoi polloi.

It shouldn't be but sometimes it is rather depressing.

Take a look at a story of a few weeks ago in Associated Baptist Press f  by Jeff Brumley on clergy depression. Clergy depression is a regular subject for reporting, and certainly ought to be.

Rising stress boosts clergy depression

A few quotes:

There is a cultural expectation that our pastors have it all together and that they are the last people who are going to be depressed...

 In seeking help for severe depression, [prominent moderate Baptist pastor Stephen] Shoemaker, 64, is an example of a trend that's seeing more ministers confronting mental illness and letting their congregations know about it.

Clergy financial and sexual abuse scandals have publicly tarnished ministers, while declines in membership have added financial stresses that turn pastors into nearly full-time capital campaign managers, [Methodist minister and counselor Christopher] Carlton said.

OK, all of you who think about church revenues at least some each week (day?) raise your hand.

I thought so.

You know that when your congregation does this you call it "worry" and preach about how believers ought not to worry.

Yeah, I thought that might depress you. It's called at worst 'hypocrisy' and at best, 'willful ignorance.'

What makes this more worrisome (uh, sorry) is that credible bloggers and admired leaders either purposefully or inadvertently make it worse by maintaining the 'bullet-proof' pastoral posture (can't happen to us) or by foolishly ignoring that depression is a serious medical issue that should be treated by a physician and medication at times.

You are not bullet proof, I don't care how long you read your Bible and pray each day.

I have never experienced severe depression but I have seen plenty enough of it to have a layman's understand that it should be taken seriously.

But you go ahead and pray your way out of it or move to another church or engage in reckless behavior to compensate for it.

Oh, did I mention that every community I have ever lived and pastored in has at least one and sometimes more than one pastor suicide story. Ask, they will tell you (Oh yeah, preacher Morose shot hisself over at Hardtimes Baptist Church, and in the pastorium too).

Megachurch pastors get sabbaticals, perhaps every August off, and get sent on cruises. That might help.

You and I might try something more realistic, like going to the doctor.

God bless you. You are in my prayers.

 

SBC annual meeting attendance, elections, and resolutions

I am a statistics junkie, an interest that goes back to my baseball days and batting averages, slugging percentages, etc. So SBC stats are interesting to me, if not to many others.

Registration was 5,013, the lowest number for an annual meeting held in one of the Bible Belt southern states since World War II. The attendance was lower in 2011 but the meeting was in Phoenix.

One has to conclude that these meetings just aren't what they used to be and, absent a raging controversy that is a lot hotter than the Calvinist/Traditionalist one, we will likely not see numbers above ten thousand again.

Many have proposed alternatives such as regional meetings in addition to the main convention location. While this is doable, I'm not optimistic that there is any will to change. If SBC pastors and others do not see a lot of value in attending the annual meeting when it is in a location proximate to where the greatest concentration of SBC churches are located, I doubt they will see much value in several such locations.

One result of lower registration is seen in election results. For two consecutive years the office of 2nd Vice President was won (a) by a reasonably well known blogger, (b) by a Calvinist blogger, and (c)  at a time when most messengers were not present and voting.

Here are the figures:

2012 SBC Annual Meeting, New Orleans   

      Total registration, 7,484
           
      First  ballot for 2VP:
                  Dave Miller,    673
                  Eric Hankins, 572
                  Brad Akins,    370

      Second ballot:
                  Dave Miller,    1,202
                  Eric Hankins,    798

Miller was elected at a time when about 27% of messengers were present and voting.

2013 SBC Annual Meeting, Houston   
      
       Total registration, 5,103

       2VP ballot:
              Jared Moore, 451
              Don Cass,       223

Moore was elected at a time when about 13% of messengers were present and voting.

I doubt that there has been a convention officer elected with fewer votes in a century. Some enterprising researcher can look that up.

One might conclude that bloggers are now in a position to pull a significant number of votes, especially at times when most messengers are drinking coffee and browsing the bookstore and exhibit hall.

With so few in attendance, and with the resolutions being presented on Wednesday when many messengers have already left, there is the potential for some mischief in resolutions. Issues of national interest like the Boy Scout controversy and clergy sexual abuse usually generate some mainstream media interest. A goofball amendment supported by just a few hundred of the millions of Southern Baptists could embarrass us. Thankfully, no such goofball was foisted on the convention this year.

On resolutions, we might consider taking the course of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship which does not do resolutions, but this would deprive many SBCers of a fun time where they get to have their moment of fame at a mic. I hardly think the SBC would be harmed by eschewing resolutions and our Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission can speak for us and should on important matters. I don't see any change in the resolution process, however.

Next year the convention is in Baltimore, a non-traditional location though still south of the Mason-Dixon Line. There will be a contested presidential election (Eric Hankins? Ronnie Floyd? J. D. Greear, David Platt or of one of the other young turks? Blogger?) which should ensure attendance greater than this year.

I'm saving my pennies and planning to make the trek.

Hurt by the pastor, destroyed by the church

The title is a slight paraphrase of a statement made by Diana Garland, dean of Baylor University’s School of Social Work, and author of a groundbreaking study on clergy sexual misconduct in the church. She personally interviewed 83 victims of clergy sexual misconduct and said,

...victims were “hurt” by a religious leader, but they were “destroyed” by the congregation. Operating from what she called a “normalcy bias,” congregants want to believe they are nice people, and their pastor is a nice person and it’s normal to be nice. Such an accusation is not nice, therefore not normal and the accuser must be the one in the wrong.

To read of ministerial colleagues involved in such deplorable and often criminal conduct is appalling but to read of victims being re-victimized by the reaction of the congregation is especially painful.

When cases of such abuse are made public, it is sad that many have this exact scenario: a victim hurt by the pastor but destroyed by the church.