Southern Baptists face push for public list of sex abusers

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

The creation of an “Offender Info System” was one of the key suggestions in a report released Sunday by Guidepost Options, an unbiased firm contracted by the SBC’s Government Committee after delegates to last year’s national meeting pressed for an investigation by outsiders.

The proposed database is anticipated to be considered one of several recommendations introduced to 1000's of delegates attending this year’s national assembly, scheduled for June 14-15 in Anaheim, California.

“Those recommendations will likely be open to questions, debate and comments on the assembly ground,” stated SBC President Ed Litton.

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

The Guidepost report stated survivors of abuse by SBC clergy repeatedly shared allegations with the Govt Committee, “solely to be met, time and time again, with resistance, stonewalling, and even outright hostility from some throughout the EC.”

“Our investigation revealed that, for a few years, a couple of senior EC leaders, together with exterior counsel, largely controlled the EC’s response to these experiences of abuse ... and had been singularly targeted on avoiding liability,” the report mentioned.

The movement for an impartial investigation was put forward eventually year’s nationwide meeting by the Rev. Grant Gaines, senior pastor of Belle Aire Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Reading 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 legal responsibility over abuse prevention.

“We’re at a fork in the road,” Gaines mentioned. “I feel this report offered the information that we wanted for there to be a groundswell of assist to take the correct actions.”

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

“I think that’s one of the first issues we should do,” he said.

Lawyer and writer 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, but stated questions stay about its implementation.

“What is absolutely essential is that the native church can not perform because the default or presumed starting place for a survivor to attempt to get hold of an investigation of clergy sex abuse,” she said through e mail. “If the local church is deemed to be a requisite first cease for survivors to pursue motion, then many survivors’ voices might be choked of their throats earlier than sound is ever uttered.”

Among the many Guidepost report’s findings was that the Govt Committee kept a secret list of tons of of SBC-affiliated clergy and other personnel recognized as intercourse abusers. Brown mentioned the committee, at a special assembly Tuesday, should comply with launch this checklist.

“I urge you to make public the whole thing of your list of pastors & ministers accused of sexual abuse, in no matter form it’s been kept for lo these a few years,” Brown tweeted. “Submit. It. Now.”

The ultimate choices about suggestions to submit to the Anaheim delegates will be made by the SBC’s Sexual Abuse Task Power, comprising seven members and two advisors. Its work over the previous 12 months has been an emotional journey, said Pastor Bruce Frank, who led the group.

“We saw patterns and things that had been deeply regarding,” he mentioned. “Our foremost job was to empower Guidepost to do their job, and so they have carried out a really outstanding job in the final nine months to take a look at occasions that occurred over 20 years.”

In the subsequent week or so, the task power will convey forth formal motions in “exact language,” which will likely be made public and introduced to the delegates in Anaheim for a vote, said Frank, lead pastor of Biltmore Baptist Church in Arden, North Carolina.

Frank said the crux of the duty drive’s suggestions primarily based on Guidepost’s report may be summarized in two words – prevention and care.

“Our foremost purpose needs to be stopping sexual abuse,” he mentioned. “And if abuse does occur, how can we look after survivors in a significantly better pastoral way? How can we higher talk to ensure (abusers) don’t go from one church to a different?”

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

“Any one who is fair-minded will take a look at what’s in that report and demand that issues be better,” Frank said. “SBC is a giant household with 48,000 church buildings. There could be some disagreement on how one can make issues higher. However I’m assured that we’ll work by the difficulties.”

Along with intercourse abuse, the agenda for the assembly in Anaheim includes election of a 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 officials within the Guidepost report.

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

“The work’s not done,” he added. “We’ve gotten the report, however I feel all people in the survivor group that I’ve heard from has stated stories are one factor, however we’ll see if this household of churches has the courage and resolve to take motion.”

The sex abuse scandal was thrust into the highlight in 2019 by a landmark report from the Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Specific-News documenting tons of of circumstances in Southern Baptist churches, together with a number of during which alleged perpetrators remained in ministry.

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