OHIO
Toledo Blade
By TK Barger | BLADE RELIGION EDITOR
Published on Aug. 6, 2016
When the Rev. Kristopher Schondelmeyer, 33, was early in his high school years, he already felt the call to Presbyterian ministry and been in conversation with the head pastor of his church in Sedalia, Mo., about it.
“My family has been Presbyterian for generations,” said Pastor Schondelmeyer, who has been associate pastor at Christ Presbyterian Church since 2010. “This is in my blood; if you cut me, I’ll bleed Presbyterian blue. This is who I am.”
It was very surprising, therefore, that in 2014 the pastor would sue the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) at the national, regional, and local levels in response to his having been sexually assaulted by a certified lay pastor when he was 17.
But on June 22 at the church’s national general assembly in Portland, Ore., the stated clerk, who is the top clergy official, interrupted business to formally apologize to Pastor Schondelmeyer on behalf of the church, after the lawsuit was settled in 2014 and 2015.
“It seemed the right thing to do, to publicly acknowledge this,” said the Rev. Gradye Parsons, who has since retired from the role as stated clerk. “It was really a lack of public acknowledgment that made this all the harder for Kris to get justice.”
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