This past Sunday, Guidepost Solutions released a 288-page report that they were commissioned to create last summer at the 2021 Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) Annual Meeting in Nashville, TN. The scope of the investigation was from January 1, 2000, to June 14, 2021. The scope was to include: (1) allegations of abuse by Executive Committee (EC) members; (2) mishandling of abuse allegations by EC members; (3) allegations of mistreatment of sexual abuse victims by EC members; (4) patterns of intimidation of sexual abuse victims or advocates; and (5) resistance to sexual abuse reform initiatives.
After reading the report, I felt compelled to share a few thoughts as many Southern Baptists will be looking to their local Pastor for answers.
Abuse in any form should never be tolerated or excused. As Believers in Christ, we are commissioned to be the hands and feet of Jesus and should be a safe place and refuge for victims to find safety and compassion. We need to stand with and care for those who have experienced abuse.
Unfortunately, we have allowed our traditions to create a culture that can make victims of abuse feel diminished or even unable to find their voice—resulting in many victims remaining silent and carrying the heavy burden of abuse inside for fear of how they will be judged or treated.
The report unfortunately, has shed light on a problem of inappropriately dealing with issues of abuse within the SBC. It details how many of our denominational leaders on the EC chose to hide behind the autonomy of the local church as a convenient way to ignore abuse victims and advocate on their behalf.
I believe that many of our local level SBC churches are willing to deal with the problem of abuse directly and head-on. But the actions revealed in this report can be used by those outside the denomination to make generalizations of all SBC churches, which isn’t the case. The report clearly identifies key leaders, their conversations, comments, and actions that led to the problem of neglecting abuse victims. It reveals how there was a systematic and consistent attempt to either ignore the problem or offer a cursory solution.
My prayers are with the men of the Southern Baptist EC that made such an egregious mistake. I truly believe that many thought their actions of simply ignoring the problem was the best course of action. However, as a Pastor, I believe that while we should not be controlled by the denomination, I do believe the denomination leadership has a duty to help protect the local churches from abuse claims like the ones documented in the report.
It is my hope and prayer that as a denomination, we as Southern Baptists, will take these findings as a wake-up call. I hope that the current EC leadership will take seriously the recommendations of Guidestone Solutions to make corrections in the handling of abuse cases and bring healing and a voice to the many abuse survivors in our pews that need to be heard and receive the justice they deserve. I want to encourage my fellow SBC Pastors to stand with the survivors and let’s use these findings to make our denomination a cooperation of like-minded churches that are focused on the Great Commission and the shepherding of the Believers that God has entrusted to our care.
After reading the report, I felt compelled to share a few thoughts as many Southern Baptists will be looking to their local Pastor for answers.
Abuse in any form should never be tolerated or excused. As Believers in Christ, we are commissioned to be the hands and feet of Jesus and should be a safe place and refuge for victims to find safety and compassion. We need to stand with and care for those who have experienced abuse.
Unfortunately, we have allowed our traditions to create a culture that can make victims of abuse feel diminished or even unable to find their voice—resulting in many victims remaining silent and carrying the heavy burden of abuse inside for fear of how they will be judged or treated.
The report unfortunately, has shed light on a problem of inappropriately dealing with issues of abuse within the SBC. It details how many of our denominational leaders on the EC chose to hide behind the autonomy of the local church as a convenient way to ignore abuse victims and advocate on their behalf.
I believe that many of our local level SBC churches are willing to deal with the problem of abuse directly and head-on. But the actions revealed in this report can be used by those outside the denomination to make generalizations of all SBC churches, which isn’t the case. The report clearly identifies key leaders, their conversations, comments, and actions that led to the problem of neglecting abuse victims. It reveals how there was a systematic and consistent attempt to either ignore the problem or offer a cursory solution.
My prayers are with the men of the Southern Baptist EC that made such an egregious mistake. I truly believe that many thought their actions of simply ignoring the problem was the best course of action. However, as a Pastor, I believe that while we should not be controlled by the denomination, I do believe the denomination leadership has a duty to help protect the local churches from abuse claims like the ones documented in the report.
It is my hope and prayer that as a denomination, we as Southern Baptists, will take these findings as a wake-up call. I hope that the current EC leadership will take seriously the recommendations of Guidestone Solutions to make corrections in the handling of abuse cases and bring healing and a voice to the many abuse survivors in our pews that need to be heard and receive the justice they deserve. I want to encourage my fellow SBC Pastors to stand with the survivors and let’s use these findings to make our denomination a cooperation of like-minded churches that are focused on the Great Commission and the shepherding of the Believers that God has entrusted to our care.
Pastor Kevin
