The Pink Flamingo :: Southern Baptist Child Abuse Scandal

“…Denominational leaders have tried other risk-management efforts, such as toll-free sex-abuse hotlines for missionaries and the approval of anti-sex-abuse resolutions at annual meetings. But Brown and other activists have clamored for much more proactive measures. Ultimately, Brown continued, Baptists should not “tolerate from their leaders what would no longer be tolerated by people who sit in Catholic, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Methodist, or Lutheran pews….”

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The Episcopal Church did this at least a decade ago. Anyone who works with children must undergo an 8 hour training course every 5 years. In the past 9 years I’ve had something like 24 certified course hours on the subject. I find this absolutely amazing that the SBC is only now getting around to protecting children. For nearly a decade I’ve been the point person at our Parish for this kind of thing. No one in the Diocese of the Rio Grande is to go near a child until they’ve had a background check and have completed this course and have a certificate to prove it.

From The Advocate

“…The Chicago-based Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests has started a campaign to call attention to alleged sex abuse committed by Southern Baptist ministers and concealed by churches. SNAP presented a letter Monday to Southern Baptist Convention executive committee members in Nashville, asking the group to adopt a zero-tolerance policy on sex abuse and to create an independent review board to investigate molestation reports. Church leaders concede there have been some incidents of abuse in Southern Baptist congregations but say their hands are tied when it comes to investigating complaints across the denomination. Unlike the Catholic Church, with its rigid hierarchy, Baptist churches are independent. They make their own decisions about hiring ministers and conducting investigations, Baptist leaders say.

''They don't want to see this problem,'' said Christa Brown, a SNAP member from Austin, Texas, who says she was sexually abused as a child by a Southern Baptist minister. ''That's tragic, because they're imitating the same mistakes made by Catholic bishops.'' In the past six months SNAP has received reports of about 40 cases of sexual abuse by Southern Baptist ministers—with some of the incidents dating back many years, Brown said. SNAP leaders hold that abuse is typically underreported because being molested is such a painful experience that victims often wait years before stepping forward.

Southern Baptist Convention president Frank Page said the denomination plans to teach its churches how to conduct background checks and to require letters of recommendation for job candidates. But he said the Southern Baptist Convention, which has 16.3 million members, does not have the legal authority to create an independent board to investigate abuse complaints. 'As much as possible within our structure, we're going to assist churches,'' Page said. ''We're deeply concerned about this. We believe children are the most precious gifts from God.''

Southern Baptists passed a resolution in 2002 urging its churches to discipline ministers guilty of sexual abuse and to cooperate with authorities in their prosecution. But Brown said that's not enough. She says the Southern Baptists need an independent review board precisely because there's no clear chain of command among Baptist churches. The SBC also does not keep a list of ministers who have been accused of abuse. Advocates say this means molesters could move from church to church….”

Oricus has a posting about Child Abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention. The burning question is the fact that Catholic Pedophile priests get the spotlight national attention, but pedophile Baptist ministers get a little local attention and that’s about it. Why?

Pam’s House Blend

“…The Chicago-based Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests presented a letter Monday to Southern Baptist Convention executive committee members in Nashville, asking the group to adopt a zero-tolerance policy on sex abuse and to create an independent review board to investigate molestation reports. Church leaders acknowledge there have been incidents of abuse in Southern Baptist congregations but say their hands are tied when it comes to investigating complaints across the denomination, which has 16.3 million members -- about 1.2 million in North Carolina and close to 710,000 in South Carolina.

The Southern Baptist churches are independent, and thus each has to decide how it handles abuse claims, so the Convention has no legal standing to create an independent body that can investigate all churches. That doesn't sit well with SNAP, which has received reports of at least 40 cases of abuse going back many years. Christa Brown, a SNAP member from Austin, Texas, who says she was sexually abused as a child by a Southern Baptist minister, said that's not enough. She says the Southern Baptists need an independent review board precisely because there's no chain of command.
"They don't want to see this problem," Brown said. "That's tragic because they're imitating the same mistakes made by Catholic bishops."

"I believe kids are not safe in Southern Baptist churches," said Brown, who runs a Web site called the Voice to Stop Baptist Predators….”

What is going on here? I don’t mind admitting the person who molested me was the son of a very important Southern Baptist minister. While the above quote is something of a cheap shot, there is something to it that rings true. I think many Baptists live in this bubble and think only Catholic priests are pedophiles.

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This is a list of Southern Baptist Ministers, etc. who have been accused or convicted of child molestation.

“Daniel Earl Allmond* (FL)
Dale "Dickie" Amyx (TX)
Andrew Argent* (TX)
Donald Chrisler Batson* (SC)
John Bonine** (CA)
Mark Lewis Brooks (MO)
Lonnie Broome (FL)
Timothy Neal Byars** (TN)
Jerry Dale Carver** (TX)
Ollin Collins+ (TX)
Shawn Davies* (MO, KY, MI)
Gregory Dempsey* (TN)
Charles Dickerson**(CA)
Garett Dykes* (AL)
Stephen Lee Edmonds**(deacon)(FL)
Jermey Patrick Gable**(FL)
Andres Garcia* (CA)
Luis Federico Garcia* (AL)
Keith Geren* (FL)
Tommy Gilmore (FL, GA, TX)
Brian "Doug" Goodrich, Jr.* (NC)
Robert Gray (FL)
James Griffin** (LA)
Steven Haney** (TN)
Jeffrey Hannah* (IL)
Roy Mace Honeycutt** (NC)
John Hubner* (ME, SC)
Joshua Ross Hyles* (TX)
Fritzner Jean**(FL)
Michael Lee Jones* (TX)
Joel Dean Joslin* (TX)
John Lau* (NY, Army)
Stephen Livingston** (TX)
Roy Long (deacon)(CA)
John O. McKay* (TX)
Mark Woodson Mangrum** (TN)
Leslie Mason* (IL)
Doug Myers* (FL, AL, MD)
Larry Nuell Neathery* (TX)
Kevin Ogle* (GA, SC)
Kenneth Payne* (VA)
Larry Reynolds (TX)
Robert N. Riddle (AL, FL)*(fraud on elderly)
Morris David Roberts* (TX)
Marshal Seymour* (AL, FL)
Frank Sizemore* (TX)
Nathan St. Pierre** (KY)
Phillip Glenn Terrell** (GA)
Sam Underwood (TX)
George "Tom" Wade, Jr.* (AK, Int'l Mission Bd)
Kenneth Ward* (TX)
Stephen Lyle Whittaker*** (FL)
Paul Williams (TN)
Charles "Rick" Willits* (TX)"