A Southern Baptist church being sued over sexual abuse committed by a former Vacation Bible School volunteer currently behind bars is asking a court to reveal the identities of two underage victims.
Advocates fault new SBC president’s record on child sex abuse
Advocates for survivors of clergy sex abuse say they are disappointed the Southern Baptist Convention has elected a new president once accused of shielding a child molester. “We’re disappointed that the Southern Baptist Convention just elected Bellevue Baptist pastor Steve Gaines…
Youth volunteer at S.C. megachurch charged with abuse
A 20-year-old youth group volunteer at the nation’s largest Southern Baptist church has been arrested on a charge of sexually assaulting a minor. Leo LaSalle Comissiong III is accused of kissing and fondling a 15-year-old boy in February at the…
Child abuse a Calvinist problem, podcast says
Child abuse isn’t just a Catholic problem, it’s also a Calvinist problem, according to an April 20 podcast sympathetic to the so-called “young, restless and reformed” movement popular among evangelicals belonging to denominations including the Southern Baptist Convention. Mortification of…
C.J. Mahaney says churches should defend their pastors
Fresh off an invitation to speak at a major pastor’s conference that stirred up memories of an alleged child sex-abuse cover-up at his former church, Pastor C.J. Mahaney reminded members of Sovereign Grace Church in Louisville, Ky., of their biblical…
Pastor seeks higher standard for reporting sexual abuse
A Southern Baptist pastor/blogger has submitted a resolution for consideration at the upcoming meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention calling on leaders to get tough on churches that tolerate or conceal sexual abuse. Bart Barber, senior pastor of First Baptist…
Pastor in alleged sex abuse cover-up returns to preaching conference roster
Organizers of a major preaching conference this week in Louisville, Ky., ignored calls to disinvite a founder of the conference accused of participating in a cover-up of child sexual abuse. C.J. Mahaney, pastor of Sovereign Grace Church in Louisville, took…
Abuse survivors want conference speaker removed
A support group for clergy sex abuse victims is asking organizers of an upcoming religious conference to revoke a speaking invitation to a pastor accused of concealing multiple sex crimes. The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests said March…
A church that protects sexual predators isn’t much church at all
“This was like God showing up.” That’s how one victim of clergy sexual abuse in the Boston archdiocese described his family’s response when a priest came to visit. He added fatefully, “When a priest paid attention to you it was…
Maryland senate panel hears two sides of evangelical sex abuse scandal
A Washington-area evangelical church featured in recent reports in an alleged cover-up of child sexual abuse took center stage March 9 at a Maryland state senate hearing. Proposed legislation considered at the hearing would extend the statute of limitations on…
Spotlight: Lessons to be learned
The movie “Spotlight” has received six Oscar nominations, including best picture, and on February 28 when the Oscars are presented, clergy sex abuse survivors all across the country will be watching and cheering. The story focuses on the Boston Globe…