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  Group Faults Response by Nazarene Church to Sex Abuse Lawsuit

By Matt Campbell
Kansas City Star
November 23, 2009

http://www.kansascity.com/115/story/1589836.html

An advocacy group for child victims of sexual abuse by clergy on Monday criticized the Church of the Nazarene's response to a lawsuit.

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests points to the lawsuit in Oklahoma that accuses the church of complicity in the sexual abuse of five girls by an elementary church pastor in that state. Specifically, SNAP decries a church response that asserted, in part, that any injuries or damages suffered by the plaintiffs were caused or contributed to by their own conduct.

"This is just despicable," SNAP spokeswoman Judy Jones said Monday in front of the former Nazarene headquarters at 6401 the Paseo. "This is just re-abuse of those victims."

David Wilson, general secretary for the Church of the Nazarene, now headquartered in Lenexa, declined to comment Monday because the litigation is pending.

The lawsuit claims that church officials were aware that the pastor, Ryan Wonderly, was obsessed with child pornography and still placed him in positions of proximity to children. The church has denied those allegations. Wonderly was sentenced in 2005 to 35 years in prison for indecent and lewd acts with children and for rape by instrumentation.

Matt Campbell, mcampbell@kcstar.com

 
 

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