How to Catch a Sexual Predator with Your Eyes Closed, Miracle of Mercy, October 3, 2007

How to Catch a Sexual Predator with Your Eyes Closed

Miracle of Mercy
October 3, 2007

http://miracleofmercy.blogspot.com/2007/10/how-to-catch-sexual-predator-with-your.html

In the June 2007, Wade Burleson of Enid asked the convention's executive committee to study the development of a database identifying sexual predators within the nation's largest Protestant denomination. The response to Burleson's resolution was over 8600 Southern Baptist messengers directed this group to study the feasibility of creating a database of ministers who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse, or who have confessed or been legally convicted.

After the convention, in September of 2007, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests and other Clergy, (SNAP) sent a letter asking the members of Bylaws Workgroup of the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention, Dr. Frank Page, President of the Southern Baptist Convention and Dr. Morris Chapman, President of the Executive Committee of the SBC for more information. The letter asks for an update on the progress looking at ways to make kids safer in church. The letter from SNAP also asks the committee for openness and transparency during the ongoing study by asking, "we urge you to set an example of transparency in the study process itself. Be open and transparent about your study's methodology and resources."

Seems fair enough to me. Especially in light of the overwhelming support from the messengers of the SBC.

For those who might question why it is necessary to bring this up..here is your answer. I'm a mother. I minister as a counselor/mentor for women who have been released from prison. How many of them have suffered from abuse? Overwhelmingly, most of them. I believe our responsibility as believers is to watch, protect and value children as well as any who are weak or vulnerable and in cases of abuse, children, teens and women are just that.

Some are concerned that the perpetrator is given more grace that the victim. Such as one church in Denton, Texas, where the minister publicly confessed to "making a terrible mistake" last November after a woman sued, claiming she'd been raped as a teen. Church members responded by throwing the minister a retirement party and raised $50,000 as a "love offering." To this day, he has a church building named after him. Now keep in mind he confessed. He admitted his crime against this young girl.

The Southern Baptist Convention said the problem is neither widespread nor systemic. But this story is not going away.

We sat and watched with disgust the Catholic Church cover up for priest who for years abused children. Are we guilty of the same?

In a 20/20 program titled "Preacher Predators," Frank Page said he agreed to be interviewed to provide balance to a story he predicted may be "overwhelmingly negative." He responded by saying "Some persons have accused Southern Baptists of ignoring the issue and hiding behind our polity," Page said. "Let me clearly state that we believe in the autonomy of the local church as a biblical mandate. We are not hiding behind anything, except the Bible." In Baptist governance, Page said, "The local church is where accountability must be enforced." He called upon every Southern Baptist church to have a system in place for handling accusations of clergy sex abuse and to prosecute any abuses of trust "to the fullest extent of the law."

Christa Brown responded by saying, "Leaving it up to local church leaders to review allegations of abuse against a colleague "within an insular system, now causes many cases of abuse to go unchecked and allows predatory ministers to move on to new churches, where they can find new prey." Page said "even one instance of sexual abuse by a minister is too much," but Brown said victims that speak up are "treated like disposable trash" by the denomination's leaders. She said 18 leaders in four states received substantiated information about her own abuse, which occurred decades earlier when she was a teenager in a Southern Baptist church, and none thought it was important enough to take action. "Instead, I was ignored, insulted, given misinformation and intimidated," she said. "Those kinds of deeds do not send a message of 'even one is too many.' They send a message of 'what was done to you doesn't matter.'" Brown said she has talked to other survivors of sexual abuse by clergy who report similar experiences.

Page called on churches to "provide an atmosphere where trust will not be abused." Brown responded that trust is abused not only by acts of perpetrators, but also by "many, many more who turn a blind eye." Are we?

In March of 2007 Timothy Byers resigned as minister of youth, education and music at Springhill Baptist Church in Dyersburg, Tenn., following his November arrest on charges of rape, sexual battery by an authority figure and aggravated statutory rape. He is still identified, however, as a staff member on the church Web site and in a minister-search database at the Southern Baptist Convention Web site, SBC.Net. Of course the SBC does have a disclaimer on this database, it says, Disclaimer: This database of Southern Baptist ministers should not be taken as an endorsement of any individual by the Southern Baptist Convention or as an indication of accountability to the Southern Baptist Convention with respect to any person named.

Recently a Nashville television station, WSMV posted on their web site (WSMV.com) the request by SNAP for the SBC to hold public and private hearings with victims, experts and other religious leaders who have dealt with this issue for that database. Convention relations vice president Roger Oldham responded this way, "The database by itself would be an insufficient safeguard of our children. We're looking at a much broader, multi-pronged approach of how we can best, first of all, protect the autonomy of the local church, and second, protect the children, too," Please note the progression of this response. FIRST, protect the autonomy of the local church and then SECOND, oh yes later protect the children TOO? This is appalling.

"Our request is that Baptist officials do not take the most narrow view possible, but in fact create a broad, true helpful list of dangerous predators," said SNAP national Director David Clohessy. In addition, the group wants the SBC to release its study methodology and its budget. SBC officials said they do not plan to release the status of the study.

Why not? Is anyone asking this question? Why not?

I would like an update on the status of the study. It's time to open our eyes, perhaps then we could actually catch a sexual predator. I don't for a minute think that Frank Page, Morris Chapman or the members of the Bylaws committee think this is a insignaficant issue. I'm simply asking for information, updates and an openness to the progress being made. As a mother, mentor, member of an SBC church, messenger, I need to know. I don't want to keep my eyes closed any longer. One abuse is too many.