When I first heard about the SBC sex abuse scandal, I assumed that it was the same as the Catholic sex scandal. The SBC is one of the largest Prot denominations, after all. But when I started reading into the details, what struck me was the near-absence of homosexual conduct. And all the responses focused on centralization of church authority under the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), currently headed by Russell Moore, a Soros ally.

The Soros link is below but I want to pass on it to consider the sex abuse report.

George Soros-Funded Southern Baptist Leader: One Day, We Will Be Ashamed of Trump’s Refugee Policy

While I’m at it, here is the mentioned ERLC report.

Archive:

Report: How Southern Baptists Failed to Care About Abuse

https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2019/june/sbc-caring-well-abuse-advisory-group-report.html

By Kate Shellnutt, 10 June 2019

[The] Southern Baptist Convention report on sexual abuse.released Saturday as the culmination of a year of study, listening sessions, and expert consultation.begins with the story of a woman who was sexually abused by her youth minister and pastor starting at age 14, at a church outside Birmingham, Alabama.

Susan Codone, one of more than a dozen survivors whose personal accounts appear in the report, calls herself “living proof that sexual abuse has been overlooked for many years in Southern Baptist churches” and declares the crisis “an epidemic powered by a culture of our own making..

The 52-page document details the practical and theological failures of SBC churches and recommends a more rigorous response to prevent predatory behavior and “care well” for victims.

“Care Well” is the ERLC’s new program for addressing sex abuse, carewell.com.

It is seen as a major first step to a denomination-wide movement around addressing abuse. What will come next depends, in part, on what happens in Birmingham this week, as thousands gather in Codone’s hometown for the convention’s annual meeting.

The issue of sexual abuse looms large, the subject of ancillary events, outside protests, and official business. The messengers are slated to vote on a proposed amendment to specifically name mishandling sexual abuse as grounds for disfellowshiping a church and may task a new committee to handle claims of misconduct by SBC churches.

President J. D. Greear commissioned the sexual abuse advisory group following his election last summer; the group was responsible for the recent report as well as a free curriculum for churches. He will present their findings officially on Wednesday.

The report’s tone reflects the kind of frank acknowledgement of the problem recently modeled by Greear and other top SBC leaders.including Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission president Russell Moore and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president Albert Mohler.and incorporates directed critiques from survivors and advocates involved in the advisory group.including attorney-advocate Rachael Denhollander and abuse survivor and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary alumna Megan Lively. (Both are profiled among the 10 women changing the SBC response to abuse featured in CT.s June issue.)

In one section, the authors state, .We recognize failures have occurred in many ways, including:

Emphases mine, as usual.

Failing to adequately train our staff and volunteers.on the national, state, and congregational levels.to be aware of and respond appropriately to abuse
Using church autonomy improperly to avoid taking appropriate action
Failing to care well for survivors of abuse
Failing to take disclosure seriously and to believe the survivor
Failing to report abuse to civil authorities
Recommending suspected perpetrators to new employment
Promoting political, institutional, and congregational leaders whose language and behavior glorifies mistreatment of women and children..

Notice they’re conflating patriarchy with child abuse. They make a pattern of it. Similarly, church autonomy is a ‘problem’ that they repeatedly call out.

After a major Houston Chronicle investigation found credible abuse allegations against 380 SBC church leaders earlier this year, more from within the denomination began to push back against the common defense that because SBC churches are independent and autonomous, the convention could not address abuse among them.

The report owns the denomination’s position in repenting of its mistakes and building better systems to respond to abuse. North American Mission Board president Kevin Ezell stated that the SBC had “sometimes hid behind our autonomy,. but .we’ve waited way too long and the time is now to act..

The advisory group’s report also goes deeper than previous statements on the subject; the report names .theological misapplications. seen as factors behind insufficient and harmful responses to abuse.

It’s not just the abuse, it’s the badthink:

The list includes .wrong teaching that leads to treatment of women and children as inferior to men in value, intellect, and discernment. and “misapplication of complementarian teaching, leading to women submitting to headship of all men. as minimizing the sin of abuse, rushing to restore perpetrators, and suggesting victims might be to blame.

The report also condemns sexual relationships between pastors and members of their congregations as an abuse of power.a position written into law in the 13 states where clergy, like counselors, doctors, and other professionals, are barred from sleeping with their clients.

.Clergy abuse not only encompasses abuse to children, but also a “consensual” adult sexual relationship between a clergy member and a congregant. The power and spiritual influence that a member of the clergy wields over their congregants essentially renders consent impossible,. the SBC report stated. .They often get the benefit of the doubt as spiritual leaders, can leverage their positions of power to manipulate others, can play the victim card if they are caught, and can spiritualize the situation to minimize personal responsibility..

In sections on practical ways to improve abuse responses, the advisory group describes warning signs around people who may be grooming the church by pushing boundaries and recommends rules to minimize the risk of abuse: barring one-on-one settings in the church or transportation; requiring doors remain open; requiring volunteer screening beyond background checks; and avoiding sexual humor or innuendo.

Okay, those are good ideas, but when it was implemented in the workplace wimminz became unhappy about the lack of mentorship.

The report follows a LifeWay survey on Protestants. perceptions of abuse in church contexts; around a third believed there were “many more” abusive pastors yet to be found out. According to the survey, 10 percent of churchgoers under 35 and 5 percent of churchgoers overall had left a church because they felt sexual misconduct was not taken seriously.

The issue may be stirring involvement, concern, and prayer among younger Southern Baptists in particular. This is the second year in a row that women speaking out about abuse stand to shape the annual meeting; last year’s came just weeks after Paige Patterson’s resignation. Messenger attendance nearly doubled in 2018, with significant growth among first-time attendees and younger members.

This strongly suggests that the SJWs are using “listen and believe” tactics to Converge the SBC. Methinks the scale of the actual, sex/child abuse problem is being dramatically overblown. Even the Houston Chronicle’s original expose had 700 incidents but only 250 of them eventually resulted in criminal charges being filed. Not convictions; just charges.

.Though sexual abuse has rocked the SBC, I believe more progress has been made during the last 12 months in Christian transparency, gender equality, and Gospel fidelity than during the last 40 years combined,. tweeted Wade Burleson, a pastor and blogger who has critiqued aspects of the SBC for years, including Patterson’s leadership. “Brokenness brings repentance..

Survivors have expressed disappointment that it took the #MeToo movement and attention from secular media for them to see significant momentum around reform in the SBC.

This strongly confirms the SJWs are using “listen and believe” tactics.

Over the weekend, many pastors and messengers headed to the annual meeting shared the new report on Twitter.

.This Caring Well report is tough reading,. wrote Malcolm Yarnell, theology professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. “But the epidemic trauma caused by the evil of sexual abuse cannot be overcome through denial, ignorance, and changing the subject. Let us read, weep, become better informed, and change..

The sexual abuse study group will continue to assess denominational responses as it enters the second year of a two-year, $250,000 project. According to an update posted earlier this year, the group will evaluate the possibility of a creating database of known predators, requiring background checks for SBC appointees, and adding survey questions on abuse incidents to the Annual Church Profile (ACP).

Churches can commit to implementing the strategies set forth in the report by signing up at CaringWell.com.

That’s a pathetic way to address criminal conduct of any kind. The only action in these 8 points is the ERLC’s Care Well program providing mandatory training for all SBC churches in the future.

On that note, let’s fisk the ERLC report.

THE CARING WELL CHALLENGE

In June 2019, the Sexual Abuse Advisory Group will be launching the Caring Well Challenge, a unified call to action on the sexual abuse crisis in the Southern Baptist Convention. The goal is to equip churches to be safe for survivors and safe from abuse. It provides churches with an adaptable, and attainable pathway to immediately enhance their engagement on abuse. We urge all Southern Baptist churches to commit to taking the challenge over the next year as an important next step in addressing the crisis of abuse. Beginning at the SBC annual meeting in Birmingham, churches will commit to the challenge and find resources for the initiative at caringwell.com.

The Caring Well Challenge is designed for any church to be able to implement. It encourages the entire denomination to take a stand against sexual abuse together as one body. Each church that takes the challenge would commit to work through the following eight steps:

Shown in the pic above.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In response to the revelations of a sexual abuse crisis in American society and recognizing that such abuse has occurred within our Southern Baptist churches, Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) President J. D. Greear commissioned a Sexual
Abuse Advisory Group. He tasked the group with considering how Southern Baptists at every level can take discernable action to respond swiftly and compassionately to incidents of abuse, as well as to foster safe environments within churches and institutions.

This report is the product of a that inquiry, in which the Advisory Group listened to and learned from hundreds of survivors of sexual abuse, and church leaders, and national experts in this field. It includes the personal words and testimonies of many of those survivors. Additionally, it aims to begin to educate our churches on the abuse crisis, equip our churches to care well for survivors, and prepare our churches to prevent abuse.

Education, education, education. Don’t think for yourself, just repeat what you’re told.

THE PREVALENCE OF SEXUAL ABUSE

Although research varies on the prevalence of abuse in America, the commonly accepted rates of abuse from the most frequently cited sources are staggeringly high.

Following stats say roughly 1 in 4 of everybody over a lifetime.

Sexual Abuse Rates within a Church Context

Most alarming, for the purposes of this report, is the rate of incidences of abuse that have been reported within a church setting. According to three insurance companies
that insure a majority of Protestant congregations in the United States, there are approximately 260 annual reports of children being sexually abused by ministers or
other church workers.

Additionally, researchers Donna Eshuys and Stephen Smallbone found that, contrary to what many Christians believe, the sex offenders who are most committed to church throughout their life (what the researchers called .stayers.) accumulated the most victims and the youngest victims of all sex offenders. They found that a perpetrator’s involvement in a church community did not seem to deter their criminal sexual behavior, in fact it seemed to worsen it.

The manly, patriarchal men you ran off? We aren’t the ones raping kids. It’s the male feminists, your allies, who diddle the kiddies.

It is dangerous to assume that we don’t have offenders in our congregations. As the experts from Darkness to Light stress,

“Those who molest children look and act just like everyone else. [GQ: *ahem*] There are people who have or will sexually abuse children in churches, schools, and youth sports leagues. Abusers can be neighbors, friends, and family members. People who sexually abuse children can be found in families, schools, churches, recreation centers, youth sports leagues, and any other place children gather.”

Furthermore, the preconceived notion that most incidences of sexual abuse are perpetrated by strangers is a myth. In fact, the majority of survivors of sexual abuse
know their abuser. The Department of Justice found that 3 out 4 of female adult victims knew their offender.

Additionally, 90% of child victims of sexual abuse know their perpetrator.

They stopped just one statistic short. The least likely child abuser is… the FATHER. The order of child abuser relationship, from high to low, is not-bio-dad male, the mother, a stranger, the bio-dad.

Great work rejecting patriarchy, you fuckwitted Pastors. You know what reform would banish child sex abuse from the Church one again?

GIVE

THE

CHILDREN

BACK

TO

THEIR

FATHERS

While it’s tempting for Christians to believe that our communities are safe, the fact of the matter remains that we all know survivors of sexual abuse even if we don’t know who they are specifically. Time and time again, as survivors bravely come forward, an alltoo-common refrain is heard: .We never thought it could happen in our church or our community.”

As the body of Christ, charged with being His hands and feet in a broken world, we weep and lament the devastating impact on each person that makes up these statistics. Behind each number is a face, a story, a precious person created in God’s image. No matter if the abuse occurred within our church walls, on a college campus, or hidden inside a home, we grieve the violation that each statistic represents, and resolve to be a beacon of hope and healing to survivors and a safe haven free from abuse for future generations.

They don’t want to stop just abuse in the church. They want to stop abuse in your home, too.

THE EFFECTS OF ABUSE

The devastation of sexual abuse does not end when the abuse stops. The physical, emotional, mental health, and spiritual effects of abuse reverberate for a lifetime.
Studies show that children who are sexually abused have a significantly greater risk of developing emotional and mental health issues into adulthood, including posttraumatic stress and other anxiety symptoms, depression, and suicide attempts.

What does this have to do with anything? The Church’s motivation for opposing child abuse should be that God wants us to. All this wellness bunk is for atheists.

How Did We Get Here?

Russell Moore explains, “What we are dealing with in the sexual abuse of the
vulnerable is, after all, demonic (and I mean that quite literally). And that means that the devil, and those carrying out his will, are able to hide behind, and to use, virtually any ideology or theology or church structure. Evildoers can hide behind church hierarchy (as we’ve seen), and behind church autonomy. They can hide behind systems where leaders are mandatorily celibate or in systems where the leaders have families with double-digit numbers of children. They can hide behind theologies that minimize “gender roles” or in those that exaggerate them.

While I’m glad to see a pastor use the “E” word, a Soros toady in charge of Church Ethics who believes God’s people aren’t doing enough to forward the One World Government is likely to be doing so as projection.

Regardless, sex abuse isn’t demonic. It can lead to it but enough perpetrators are motivated by basic appetites that this is a bad assumption.

Failure to Recognize and Value God’s Image in Every Person

We have failed to follow Christ’s example in loving vulnerable people in our churches and communities. Quick to teach that all people are created in God’s image, we
nevertheless undermine that teaching when we neglect to properly care for women, children, and the least of these, as modeled by our Savior (Matt. 18:6, John 4:26).

That’s a lie and hello, Duluth model!

We see this neglect in many ways, including:

. Wrong teaching that leads to treatment of women
and children as inferior to men in value, intellect, and
discernment

. Misapplication of complementarian teaching, leading
to women submitting to headship of all men

They want to criminalize patriarchy.

. Failing to provide proper spiritual, physical, emotional,
and mental care for survivors of abuse

. Tending to believe testimony of the accused over disclosing abuse

Listen and believe!

. Failing to recognize abuse in the home and call abusers to account.

Here’s your demon worship, Russell Moore. Eve rebelled and you, Adam, are aiding her rebellion.

The point is not that we shouldn’t examine all of those things, to see whether our beliefs are right. The point is that we shouldn’t think that making a correction here or there will absolve us of the need for constant need for vigilance. Some theologies lead to horrible consequences, yes. Some church structures lend themselves to a lack of accountability and should be revised. But, after all of that, we must recognize that there is no safe harbor from this horror, this side of the New Jerusalem. That means that, whatever our theological tribe and whatever our denominational system, the struggle to keep children and other vulnerable people safe cannot stop with a revision to a confession of faith or an amendment to a by-law.

Protestant accountability is supposed to come from the laity. What Russell Moore proposed is we go back to Catholicism. That alone should see him dismissed. Even if he was a Christian, he would still not be a Protestant.

We must all be on watch. We must all be constantly examining not only how we may have wrong theologies, but just as much examining how predatory people can use “right” theologies too for awful ends.

Confusion Over the Doctrine of the Church

Not only have we failed to report crimes, but we have misunderstood the way God equips and uses His church in the advancement of His Kingdom. By elevating the
importance of the reputation of the church or institution, we have sacrificed honesty for optics, justifying the means by the ends of “church growth.” Rather than seeing church growth as something God gives and removes for His purposes, we have pursued it at high cost to the most vulnerable members of our congregations. We see this in many ways, including:

. Attempting to cover up or silence allegations of abuse
because we believe it could damage the reputation of
the church or of Christ

. Elevating leaders to inappropriate platforms and
pedestals upon which they are revered and believed to
be indispensable

. Creating cultures where pastors and leaders cannot
be questioned and where accusers are seen with
skepticism and fear, rather than love and concern.

I’ve waited a long time to hear this but why is it first being said in the context of imposing a new Commissariat? The answer:

. Emphasizing competency over character in our hiring
practices. We are quick to see power and a dynamic
talent, but undervalue humility and a shepherd’s heart.

. Lacking a John the Baptist’s mentality: .He must
increase, but I must decrease. (John 3:30)

This is a cunning call for low & mid-level church leaders who are too badly cucked to stand against the lies and wickedness now being spewed by Greear and Moore. Incompetent bootlickers are more valuable than skilled independents once Convergence has been achieved.

Misunderstanding that Sexual Abuse is Not Only Sin.But a Crime

So often church leaders receive reports or outcries that involve child sexual abuse or peer sexual abuse and respond as if the behavior is simply a sin, like premarital
sex or a spouse having an affair. The church then attempts to address the matter only through steps of repentance, reconciliation and restoration.

Which sex abuse? The criminal sex abuse or the doctrinal “sex abuse” of patriarchy? This malicious conflation must be pointed out.

Misunderstanding of Church Autonomy

Church autonomy has been one Southern Baptist doctrine that has been misunderstood in the context of sexual abuse within the church. Church autonomy is a valid reason that some things can’t be done, but it is not a valid reason that nothing should be done.

…Moving forward, we must determine to no longer allow our church structure or its leadership to hinder justice or healing for survivors of sexual abuse. We, instead, must
utilize our Convention to encourage policies and practices that protect the vulnerable, .maintaining the witness of Christ in the holiness and safety of his church..

Classic forked-tongue speaking. You can have all the autonomy you like… after you do everything I order you to.

EDUCATING OUR CONGREGATIONS ON SEXUAL ABUSE

In the spirit of lament and repentance, it is now time for the SBC to resolve to educate our leaders and congregations on the crisis of abuse that is plaguing our church and our community.

A fundamental aspect of atheism is that it has no word for evil. Instead, people are assumed to be inherently good so if what they do isn’t to the Party’s preference, it can only be because they got bad ideas in their brains. Educating good ideas into their brains is therefore the atheist version of salvation.

There is no evil. There is only badthink.

Author and survivor of sexual abuse, Mary Demuth, recalls what it is like to tell her story of sexual abuse in the church setting…

The subsequent statement is about her abuse story not being believed rather than what her abuse was. I have reasons for skepticism:

CEO Mary Demuth of Mary Demuth, Inc., international speaker and author of over 30 books. I couldn’t find her education but her face and bio are typical feminist. So, there’s reason to believe she lied about abuse for personal gain.

Rachael Denhollander, survivor of sexual abuse, advocate, and attorney, explains: “In your role as a pastor, you are very likely to receive disclosures of abuse. This is because the victim desperately needs what you preach and promise. Surely, someone who understands holiness and sin, justice and perfect love, will understand the depth of
the evil they have experienced.

…The lies a victim hears in her own mind.it.s their fault, their shame, it’s not that bad, they are overreacting.are so loud that if your response in any way reflects those lies, it is absolutely crushing. They are unlikely to speak to you again, they may even retract or soften their own allegations if your response indicates they are not safe and have not been believed. It often takes years for a victim to seek help after being crushed, even unintentionally.

Which is it? Are women so frail that their statements must be accepted at face value, or are they Strong & Independent as any man? Can’t have it both ways.

Per Wikipedia, “On December 12, 2018, Denhollander was announced as the winner of the Sports Illustrated’s Inspiration of the Year Award. The award was announced by Christine Blasey Ford, who, a few months earlier testified to Congress alleging then Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh had assaulted her as a teenager.”

Now we get… finally… to the actual proposed process for “helping abuse victims”.

1. Develop a team of caregivers to walk alongside a survivor of abuse.

It is important to identify key staff members, church leaders, and professionals to include on a care team to walk alongside a survivor who has disclosed abuse. Each
scenario and survivor will be different, so the team needed may be different for each survivor as well. Pastors, elders, women.s ministry leaders, youth leaders, professional counselors, medical professionals, and attorneys are all examples of people who may need to be included on a team.

What about her father? Shouldn’t he be involved?

Here are three things to consider when developing care teams:

a. Consider the needs and agency of the survivor: …But whatever actions need to be taken, be it in the case of child sexual abuse, adult sexual assault or domestic
violence, it is imperative that we hear and respect the agency of the survivor.

The bullet point continues to describe a generic incident of a counselor who accidentally made suggestions that the abuse might possibly have been her victim’s fault or not have happened, and the victim clammed up for another decade.

Police report or it didn’t happen, Barbie. Too bad clergy won’t be allowed to make that demand anymore.

b. Make sure to protect the survivor’s confidentiality

Because that’s been a big part of the SBC abuse scandal thus far? No, because SJWs hate allowing the accused to face his accuser.

c. Include men and women in the process:

It is essential that the care team be made up of men AND women. As complementarians who believe that men and women were equally created in God’s image but have been given unique roles and giftings, we recognize the importance of having both men and
women on a care team. Both genders brings a unique and invaluable perspective.

Okay, Barbie, but a lot of those male feminists you want to include are child rapists. A LOT of them. And again, WHERE IS DADDY?

2. Know your legal requirements for disclosure.

As Russell Moore has said, .The Kingdom is a mandatory reporting state..

BWAHAHAAAA!

3. Get to know your local Child Advocacy Centers (CAC) and other agencies that work with survivors of abuse

So much for separation of church and state. Our clergy are being Converged to serve the frivorce courts and feminist-industrial complex.

Child Advocacy Centers (CACs)

Your local Child Advocacy Center will be an invaluable resource to you when child abuse is discovered. CACs are designed to protect children from having to tell their traumatic stories of abuse over and over again. When a child makes a disclosure of abuse, they should be taken to a CAC where a trained interviewer will ask the right questions to record their story without retraumatizing the child. From there, a team that includes medical professionals, law enforcement, mental health, prosecution, child protective services, victim advocacy, and other professionals can use the recorded interview to make decisions about how to proceed and protect the child.

I thank God our birth rate is cratering. The kids who do exist, get used as weapons against their fathers by armies of SJWs, childless hags and professional misandrists, carefully protected from “abuse” while being taught sodomy is healthy and fun!

4. Implement a policy for how to deal with the accused perpetrator, especially when minors are involved.

When determining a policy for how to deal with an accused perpetrator, it is crucial to remember our first priority is always to the survivor of abuse and protecting potential victims. Repeated studies have found that only 1-7% of allegations of child sexual abuse are false.

YOU LIAR!

Thus, when it comes to accusations involving children, it is wise for us to receive disclosures as credible until outside professionals demonstrate otherwise. Assuming innocence can endanger children.

If innocence does not protect then nobody will bother to be innocent.

5. Develop an after-care ministry for survivors of abuse or connect them with local resources.

Regardless if the sexual abuse disclosed is ongoing or happened many years ago, it is crucial to create a safe suggestion for survivors to heal within the context of the
church. Psalm 91:4 tells us that “He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.” As the body of Christ, we are to be that refuge.

No. Suck it up, buttercup. That’s how you treat us men. Once again, are women so fragile that they should be kept safe at home or not? You don’t get to have it both ways.

This year SBC President J.D. Greear directed a team of nine experts to develop a free, 12-lesson video series designed to equip the church on how to respond well to the initial report of abuse. The Becoming a Church that Cares Well for the Abused curriculum brings together top experts from various fields to help church leaders understand and implement the best practices for handling a variety of abuse scenarios at church, school, or ministry. We highly recommend that every church walk through this curriculum together.

That’ll be an interesting review. Pure Convergence, of course. Outside, secular, Feminist authorities are being invited into the Church to dictate our internal procedures.

Because God the FATHER’s way of protecting families is no longer welcome.

Speaking of Greear, would you like to know what the false positive rate of abuse accusations is likely to be? Greear named ten specific churches for investigation while calling for these new guidelines.

J.D. Greear’s Address to SBC Executive Committee Last Monday Night, 2/18/19

And the result… is 70% false positive under the new guidelines.

SBC bylaws workgroup releases sexual abuse response

http://www.bpnews.net/52467/sbc-bylaws-workgroup-releases-sexual-abuse-response

By Staff, 23 February 2019

On Monday, February 18, 2019, in his presidential address to the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention, Dr. J.D. Greear mentioned ten churches he deemed worthy of inquiry regarding whether or not they were “operating with a faith and practice that upholds the Baptist Faith and Message, specifically Article XV, which says that we should seek to provide for the abused.” On the following day, Tuesday, February 19, pursuant to both the president’s request and the Executive Committee’s internal structure, this list was brought under the initial purview of the Bylaws Workgroup of the Executive Committee. …

Although the overwhelming majority of sexual abuse cases remains tragically unreported, in virtually all reported cases, the abuse and cover-up of abuse were criminal acts undertaken by a few individuals within a church. The church body rarely knew about these actions and even more rarely took any action to endorse or affirm the wrongful acts or the actors themselves. The Convention, through its Executive Committee, should not disrupt the ministries of its churches by launching an inquiry until it has received credible information that the church has knowingly acted wrongfully in one of the four ways described in the proposed amendment:

(a) employing a convicted sex offender,

(b) allowing a convicted sex offender to work as a volunteer in contact with minors,

(c) continuing to employ a person who unlawfully concealed from law enforcement information regarding the sexual abuse of any person by an employee or volunteer of the church, or

(d) willfully disregarding compliance with mandatory child abuse reporting laws.

…Under the principles set out above, we make the following report with respect to the churches identified by President Greear to our Workgroup:

1. Arapaho Baptist Church, Garland, Texas

Based on the information provided by the president, we have no evidence that the church, as a body, violated any of the four provisions. We believe no further inquiry is warranted based on that information.

2. Bolivar Baptist Church, Sanger, Texas

Since [no staff member or volunteer] is … reported to be a convicted sex offender, (a) and (b) are not applicable. If the allegations are true and provable, the church may have violated (c) and (d). We believe further inquiry is warranted.

3. Brentwood Baptist Church, Houston, Texas

Since [no staff member or volunteer] is … reported to be a convicted sex offender, (a) and (b) are not applicable. There is no allegation in the president’s material of (c) or (d) on the part of the church. We believe no further inquiry is warranted based on that information.

4. Cathedral of Faith, Houston, Texas

Information provided by the president states that a “registered” sex offender “leads” the church. We believe further inquiry is warranted.

5. Eastside Baptist Church, Marietta, Georgia

Based on the information provided by the president, we have no evidence that the church, as a body, violated any of the four provisions. We also note that, based on media reports and conversations with church leaders, it appears that after the events in question the church strengthened its existing policies to prevent abuse and properly respond to charges of abuse. We believe no further inquiry is warranted based on that information.

6. First Baptist Church, Bedford, Texas

Since [the former pastor] was not reported to be a convicted sex offender during his time in the church, (a) and (b) are not applicable to First Baptist, Bedford. There is no allegation in the president’s material of (c) or (d) on the part of the church. We would note, however, that media reports allege [former pastor Charles] Adcock was under indictment on 29 counts of rape and sodomy of a child at the time he was hired by the church. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported on February 22, 2019, that Adcock “is now a registered sex offender living in Arkansas, online records show.”

A published statement by the church’s current pastor, who was not the pastor at the time of the hiring described above, is available on the church’s website and states, “In 2015, the church membership was shocked, disgusted and angered to learn about the cases against Charles Adcock. When his background came to light Adcock left the church and those responsible for allowing Adcock to serve at FBC Bedford were removed from their positions shortly after his departure.” The church also indicated it has revised policies and procedures to help prevent such a hire in the future.

We believe no further inquiry is warranted based on that information. We further believe this church appears to be an example of a church, affected by the actions of a few individuals, that has taken decisive steps as a congregation.

7. Second Baptist Church, Houston, Texas

Based on the information provided by the president, we have no evidence that the church, as a body, violated any of the four provisions. It appears that the church has had, and continues to have, significant, detailed procedures and policies in place to prevent abuse and properly respond to charges of abuse. We believe no further inquiry is warranted based on that information.

8. Sovereign Grace Church, Louisville, Kentucky

Information provided by the president includes the statement “two Great Commission Council member[s] went on the record about their concerns over the leadership and their previous handling of abuse cases within churches they led.” This information provides a basis upon which to believe the church may have evidenced indifference to sexual abuse. If the allegations prove to be true, the church may have violated (c) and/or (d). We believe further inquiry is warranted.

9. Trinity Baptist Church, Ashburn, Georgia

Based on the information provided by the president, we have no evidence that the church, as a body, violated any of the four provisions. We believe no further inquiry is warranted based on that information.

10. Turner Street Baptist Church, Springdale, Arkansas

This church is not a Southern Baptist church.

Of Greear’s first ten accused, only 3 actually violated the new SBC guidelines. And one wasn’t even in the SBC.