Victim advocates welcomed news of an independent investigation into whether a Southern Baptist Convention entity failed to report a missionary credibly accused of child molestation but cautioned that not all independent investigators are the same.
IMB president announces independent investigation into agency’s handling of alleged abuse
International Mission Board President David Platt pledged Wednesday to commence an independent review of the Southern Baptist Convention agency’s handling of a former missionary now facing criminal charges of sexually abusing a minor. Platt, just back from traveling overseas, declined…
#MeToo fallout continues for Memphis megachurch
Six months after he stood by a staff member accused of past sexual assault of a teenager, the founding pastor of a megachurch in Memphis, Tennessee, has resigned. Lead Pastor Chris Conlee and trustees of Highpoint church released a joint…
Amid #MeToo fallout, Southern Baptist males quietly leaving jobs
An official in the 2,100-church South Carolina Baptist Convention has stepped down for unspecified reasons, adding to a number of men quietly leaving Southern Baptist jobs in recent weeks. The Baptist Courier reported June 19 the resignation of Mark Aderholt,…
Lawyer counters ‘misrepresentation and misinformation’ about seminary president’s firing
The lawyer for former Southwestern Baptist Theological President Paige Patterson says his client did not get a fair hearing before his May 30 firing by the school’s trustees. Fort Worth attorney Shelby Sharpe issued a statement June 4 addressing what…
#AlMohlerToo: Did a Southern Baptist power broker just get woke?
Seminary president Albert Mohler, in a widely circulated essay, has called for independent, third-party investigations of allegations of sexual abuse in churches and Christian ministries. That position stands in stark contrast to the one he took in the recent past.
Paige Patterson, Mother’s Day and #MeToo
Sexual assault and harassment are unconscionable in all environments, but there is something especially vile about the culture in religion that often leads to the abuse and silencing of women.
Third Pressler accuser comes forward
An attorney in Washington state says he resigned a position working for the longtime law partner of former Judge Paul Pressler after the co-founder of a 20th-century movement to shift the Southern Baptist Convention to the right solicited him for sexual activity.
Affidavit alleges unwanted sexual encounter with former judge who led SBC to the right
The attorney representing a man suing former Southern Baptist Convention leader Paul Pressler for alleged sexual abuse has filed the first of what he says will be a series of affidavits corroborating his client’s claims.
Southern Baptist leader steps down over moral ‘indiscretion’
Frank Page, president and CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee, stepped down March 27 over what an official called “a morally inappropriate relationship.” Page, 65, announced Tuesday morning on social media that he was retiring but later clarified details of his decision.
Pressler lawsuit moved to federal court
A lawsuit alleging sexual abuse by a Houston layman active in Southern Baptist Convention politics in the 1970s and 1980s has been moved to federal court.
John Piper blames abuse of women on ‘egalitarian myth’
Evangelical author John Piper says an “egalitarian myth” that men and women are defined by their “competencies” rather than gender role is partly to blame for the #MeToo revolt against sexual abuse by powerful men.