Southern Baptists face push for public listing of intercourse abusers

A blistering report on the Southern Baptist Conference’s mishandling of intercourse abuse allegations is elevating the prospect that the denomination, for the first time, will create a publicly accessible database of pastors and other church personnel identified to be abusers.

The creation of an “Offender Info System” was one of the key suggestions in a report released Sunday by Guidepost Solutions, an impartial agency contracted by the SBC’s Government Committee after delegates to final yr’s nationwide assembly pressed for an investigation by outsiders.

The proposed database is anticipated to be certainly one of several suggestions offered to 1000's of delegates attending this year’s national meeting, scheduled for June 14-15 in Anaheim, California.

“Those suggestions can be open to questions, debate and feedback on the assembly flooring,” mentioned SBC President Ed Litton.

He expressed hope that the stunning findings in the Guidepost report will bring “lasting change” to the SBC, America’s largest Protestant denomination. It has been losing membership steadily in recent times, while being wracked by internal divisions over race and gender roles.

The Guidepost report mentioned survivors of abuse by SBC clergy repeatedly shared allegations with the Executive Committee, “solely to be met, time and time once more, with resistance, stonewalling, and even outright hostility from some inside the EC.”

“Our investigation revealed that, for many years, just a few senior EC leaders, together with outdoors counsel, largely controlled the EC’s response to those studies of abuse ... and have been singularly centered on avoiding liability,” the report mentioned.

The motion for an unbiased investigation was put ahead at last 12 months’s nationwide assembly by the Rev. Grant Gaines, senior pastor of Belle Aire Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Studying the Guidepost report, Gaines said he was struck by repeated examples of a callous disregard for survivors, in addition to leaders prioritizing safety of the SBC from liability over abuse prevention.

“We’re at a fork in the road,” Gaines said. “I feel this report supplied the knowledge that we wanted for there to be a groundswell of help to take the correct actions.”

Specifically, Gaines stated he supports the proposal to create a system that alerts communities to recognized offenders.

“I believe that’s one of the first things we should always do,” he stated.

Lawyer and author Christa Brown, who says she was sexually abused as a teen by the youth minister at her SBC church, has been pressing the SBC since 2006 to create a publicly accessible database of known abusers. She was heartened that Guidepost was recommending such a system, however stated questions stay about its implementation.

“What is totally important is that the native church can't perform because the default or presumed starting place for a survivor to attempt to obtain an investigation of clergy sex abuse,” she stated by way of email. “If the local church is deemed to be a requisite first cease for survivors to pursue action, then many survivors’ voices shall be choked in their throats earlier than sound is ever uttered.”

Among the many Guidepost report’s findings was that the Govt Committee stored a secret checklist of tons of of SBC-affiliated clergy and different personnel recognized as intercourse abusers. Brown said the committee, at a particular meeting Tuesday, should comply with release this record.

“I urge you to make public the entirety of your listing of pastors & ministers accused of sexual abuse, in no matter form it’s been kept for lo these many years,” Brown tweeted. “Publish. It. Now.”

The final selections about recommendations to submit to the Anaheim delegates might be made by the SBC’s Sexual Abuse Activity Power, comprising seven members and two advisors. Its work over the past 12 months has been an emotional journey, said Pastor Bruce Frank, who led the group.

“We noticed patterns and issues that had been deeply concerning,” he said. “Our primary job was to empower Guidepost to do their job, and they have accomplished a very outstanding job in the final nine months to take a look at events that occurred over 20 years.”

In the subsequent week or so, the duty force will bring forth formal motions in “exact language,” which can be made public and presented to the delegates in Anaheim for a vote, stated Frank, lead pastor of Biltmore Baptist Church in Arden, North Carolina.

Frank said the crux of the task force’s suggestions based on Guidepost’s report will be summarized in two words – prevention and care.

“Our important purpose needs to be preventing sexual abuse,” he said. “And if abuse does occur, how will we care for survivors in a a lot better pastoral method? How can we better communicate to make sure (abusers) don’t go from one church to a different?”

His hope is that this report serves as “a catalyst for change.”

“Any one that is fair-minded will take a look at what’s in that report and demand that things be higher,” Frank mentioned. “SBC is a giant family with 48,000 churches. There is perhaps some disagreement on methods to make things better. But I’m assured that we’ll work by means of the difficulties.”

Along with intercourse abuse, the agenda for the meeting in Anaheim includes election of a brand new SBC president to succeed Litton.

One of many leading contenders is Bart Barber, a pastor from Farmersville, Texas, who expressed dismay on the mean-spirited behaviors attributed to some SBC officers in the Guidepost report.

If elected, Barber mentioned in a broadcast interview Monday, “I’m praying that God will give me the wisdom to know what to do.... We’re crusing into uncharted waters.”

“The work’s not carried out,” he added. “We’ve gotten the report, but I feel all people within the survivor neighborhood that I’ve heard from has said studies are one factor, however we’ll see if this family of churches has the courage and resolve to take motion.”

The sex abuse scandal was thrust into the spotlight in 2019 by a landmark report from the Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News documenting a whole bunch of cases in Southern Baptist churches, including several in which alleged perpetrators remained in ministry.

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