4 Realities Concerning SBC Response to Sexual Abuse
Pastor Tim Moffett
1. There has been and continues to be a sexual abuse problem in churches, including SBC churches.
2. Messengers to the SBC have made clear the expectation that convention agencies take meaningful steps toward prevention of sexual abuse, legal accountability for past sexual abuse (including expanding of reporting windows/removing statute of limitations), and compassionate care for victims of sexual abuse.
All three of these expectations required a change of direction and practice by SBC agencies.
3. It was revealed last month that multiple SBC agencies (SBC, SBC Executive Committee, Southern Seminary, and Lifeway Resources) worked together to file a legal brief in a case that did not involve any SBC agency.
This was done to defeat expansion of reporting windows for fear that it would have impact on future SBC cases.
This was done in direct defiance of the vote of the messengers.
* The deacons of the church voted unanimously on November 13, 2023 to accrue all Cooperative Programs until further notice. These funds will be clearly designated as accrued missions offering and will not be used in any other way. The deacons will revisit this topic at the Deacons Meeting following the SBC convention in June 2024 to determine how and if the situation has changed.