The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) voted on June 14 to create a “ministry check” website to track pastors and other church workers credibly accused of sexual abuse following a report that revealed how leaders had mishandled sexual abuse cases for years.
In May, Southern Baptist leaders published a nearly 300-page report (pdf) conducted by an independent firm detailing decades of sexual abuse and cover-ups within the denomination as leaders sought to protect their own reputations.
The report revealed that “for almost two decades, survivors of abuse and other concerned Southern Baptists have been contacting the SBC Executive Committee (EC) to report child molesters and other abusers who were in the pulpit or employed as church staff.” The survivors and advocates reached out to the SBC via phone calls, mailed letters, and emails, as well as meetings and rallies….