By Bob Allen A victim support group held signs outside a Houston megachurch Jan. 9 calling for greater transparency about the reporting of child sex abuse in Southern Baptist churches. Representatives of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests…
Texas minister helps bring abuser in Kenya to justice
By Ken Camp When Calvary Baptist Church in Waco, Texas, commissioned Chris Pillsbury to serve in Kenya a year and a half ago, he expected to help women market fair-trade handcrafts, work with a humanitarian medical program and maybe start a…
Abuse trial delayed for accused pastor
By Bob Allen The trial of a Missouri Baptist pastor charged with sexual child abuse scheduled earlier this month has been postponed. Moniteau County Circuit Judge Kenneth Hayden granted a continuance Dec. 2 in the case against Travis Smith, pastor…
Trial gets underway for accused pastor
By Bob Allen A Southern Baptist pastor charged with sex crimes stands trial this week in a county court in California, Mo. Travis Smith, pastor of First Baptist Church of Stover, Mo., faces felony charges of sodomy and statutory rape…
Mahaney, Mohler share speaker platform
By Bob Allen An embattled preacher at the center of what has been called the biggest evangelical sexual-abuse scandal to date heaped praise on a Southern Baptist leader criticized for sticking by him at a weekend conference attended by both…
Calvinist preacher dropped from program
By Bob Allen A controversial evangelical preacher, named in a highly publicized lawsuit alleging participation in what has been described as the biggest evangelical sexual-abuse scandal to date, is no longer listed as a speaker for an upcoming collegiate conference…
Youth worker accused of molesting girl
By Bob Allen Members of a Florida Southern Baptist church expressed shock and dismay at Wednesday’s arrest of a lifelong church member and trusted volunteer with youth and the choir on charges of sexual battery against a child. William Allen…
Pastor resigns amid abuse allegations
By Bob Allen An independent Baptist pastor has resigned his church in Georgia after allegations of sexual abuse 18 years ago in Michigan resurfaced on the Internet. Leaders at King’s Way Baptist Church in Douglasville, Ga., confirmed in a letter…
Why Paige Patterson’s anti-outsider stance is wrong
By Christa Brown Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary president Paige Patterson preaches that churches should resolve their conflicts internally and should not take them to “the world of unbelief.” This means, he explains, that when a person has been “offended ……
Activist says media helps fight abuse
By Bob Allen A lifelong Baptist who advocates on behalf of clergy sex-abuse victims says the media is doing more to promote healing and children’s safety than pastors who try to keep it out of the headlines. Amy Smith, Houston…
Advocate says SBC leader gives bad advice
By Bob Allen A leading advocate for victims of clergy sex abuse says a Southern Baptist leader’s advice not to take congregational disputes to the media “flies in the face of common sense and civic duty.” David Clohessy, national director…
Blogger: SBC leaders ignoring abuse decree
By Bob Allen A Georgia pastor and blogger says denominational officials are ignoring a resolution adopted at this year’s Southern Baptist Convention calling for a zero-tolerance policy toward the sexual abuse of children in churches. Peter Lumpkins, who blogs at…