A lawsuit brought against leaders of Second Baptist Church of Houston will proceed to a jury trial scheduled for July 27, now that mediation efforts failed.
Nothing more about the mediation efforts is publicly stated, as the letter from the mediator to the court simply says mediation was not successful.
According to court records, the trial is scheduled to take place in the Business Court of Texas, 11th Division.
As BNG previously reported, a group of church members formed a nonprofit corporation called Jeremiah Counsel “to promote, protect and restore integrity, accountable governance and donor protection for churches in Texas,” specifically Second Baptist.
Jeremiah Counsel filed suit against Pastor Ben Young, former Pastor Ed Young, Associate Pastor Lee Maxcy and North Texas attorney Dennis Brewer, who served as chief financial officer of Fellowship Church in North Texas.
The plaintiffs charge these defendants — labeled “The Young Group” — conspired to steal church assets and take away the congregation’s right to choose its own pastor. They accuse Ed Young of enacting a series of changes beginning in 2023 “to secure the ascendance of his son, Ben Young … as senior pastor to Second Baptist’s 94,000 congregants.”
That “circumvented the democratic processes which had long been observed under existing church bylaws for 95 years,” the plaintiffs charge. “This move was not merely about family succession. It was also about consolidating power and control over church governance and church assets.”
Ben Young, Ed Young and the other defendants have denied any wrongdoing.