Menu Close

Tag: Evangelicalism

Evangelicals Love to Fuss and Fight While the World Goes to Hell

4 Comments
evangelical betrayal of jesus
Cartoon by Bob Englehart

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. (John 15:34,35)

Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. (1 Peter 3:8-11)

These Bible verses and others present a strong argument for unity and love being essential to Christian faith. The writer of 1 John makes it clear that anyone who does not love his brother is not a Christian. Several times in the New Testament, the Law and the Prophets are summed up thusly: love God and love your neighbor as yourself. In the Gospels, professing followers of Jesus are commanded to love even those who hate them. And speaking of unity, the writer of Proverbs 6 lists seven things God hates, one of which is “sowing discord among the brethren.”

Love and unity are essential to Christianity, yet rarely, if ever, demonstrated by Evangelicals. Instead, Evangelicals are known for fussing and fighting over everything from theology to music styles. Countless internecine wars have been fought over matters as trivial as hairstyles, wearing jewelry, women wearing pants, which Bible translation to use, whether to give altar calls, and how often churches hold services. No matter is too trivial for Evangelicals to fight over. One need only look at how many Evangelical sects there are and how fragmented individual churches are to see that Evangelicals never received the “Love and Unity” memo. And thanks to the Internet, the MMA machinations of Evangelicals are on display for all to see, complete with violent personal attacks on fellow Christians deemed heretics.

What’s heresy? In the Evangelical world, heresy is any belief different from mine. One need only watch Arminians and Calvinists go toe to toe over who has the “true” gospel. Each side casts the other as heretical, calling into question the opponent’s salvation. As a long-time Calvinist, I met numerous pastors who believed Arminianism was a false gospel, and anyone who believed it was unsaved! And now that Calvinism has made huge inroads within the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) and has infected numerous SBC colleges and seminaries, non-Calvinistic Baptists are saying that John Calvin’s progeny are preaching a false gospel. Some go even so far as to suggest that Calvinism leads to atheism!

Years ago, I pastored a church affiliated with the Christian Union (CU) denomination. In the early 1900s, CU suffered a schism over the doctrine of sanctification. This led to the establishment of a new denomination called the Churches of Christ in Christian Union. Both denominations have a strong, but aging/dying, presence in Ohio. As an Independent Fundamentalist Baptist (IFB) pastor, I witnessed numerous conflicts and church splits. While virtually all Evangelicals are Fundamentalists theologically, (see Are Evangelicals Fundamentalists?) some sects, pastors, and churches take it to the extreme. Such is the case with the IFB church movement. The narrower beliefs become the more likely it is that there will be division. One oft-told joke about how the IFB church movement got its start comes from a story about Abram and Lot in Genesis 13:

And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south . . . And Lot also, which went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents. And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together: for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together. And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram’s cattle and the herdmen of Lot’s cattle: and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land. And Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren. Is not the whole land before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left. And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar. Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other.

Much like Abram (Abraham) and Lot, the IFB church movement came to be when they said to their former denominations or churches, you go your way and I’ll go mine. The IFB church movement was birthed from denominational battles over various points of Christian doctrine and practice. Scores of churches and pastors left denominations such as the Southern Baptist Convention and the American Baptist Convention, establishing their own fellowship groups or quasi-denominations. In the intervening seventy years, IFB churches and pastors have continued to squabble, fuss, and fight, resulting in a plethora of church splits and new, more “pure” groups. Each group believes they have the truth, and those who believe differently are either deemed heretics or heterodox brethren. This infighting is the main reason IFB churches tend to turn over their memberships every few years. The IFB churches I pastored had a steady stream of members from other churches visiting our services — church hoppers, I called them. These devoted followers of Christ were disgruntled or upset with their current churches, so they left, looking for greener pastures. One church I pastored took in over twenty-five members from one nearby IFB church. They loved my preaching, that is until they didn’t, and off they went to find a new church to attend. Many of them returned to their old church once the offending pastor left. Some of them were instrumental in starting new IFB or Bible Fellowship churches in the area.

I follow and read numerous Evangelical blogs and news sites. One thing is certain: Evangelicals continue to fuss and fight, not only with liberal/progressive Christians, mainline denominations, but amongst themselves. Proverbial blood runs in the streets, a never-ending stream thanks to perceived offenses and heresies. The last thirty-five years have given rise to what is called “discernment ministry.” These ministries believe God has called them to be gatekeepers or monitors of the Book of Life. They alone know what “truth” is, and they aren’t shy about calling out anyone and everyone who violates their standard of orthodoxy. Long-time readers — all the way back to 2007-2008 when I was still a Christian — might remember a previous iteration of this blog attracting the attention of “discernment” preachers such as the late Ken Silva and a man who called himself Pastor Boy (he is now divorced and no longer in the ministry). (Please see the post, Rob Bell and Homosexuals on Silva’s “discernment” blog. I was still a Christian when Silva and I got into a debate about homosexuality.) I was working my way through what it was that I actually believed theologically, and these esteemed discerners of “truth,” and others like them, decided that I was a false prophet and a heretic. My later deconversion was proof to them that they were right about me; that I never was a True Christian®.

It seems to me that there is a huge disconnect between what the Bible says about love and unity and how Evangelicals practice their faith. Evangelicals are roundly condemned as preachers of hate, even more so since they climbed into bed with the Republican Party and Donald Trump. Millennials and Generation Z are leaving Evangelical churches in record numbers. Many of them are abandoning organized religion altogether, and an increasing number of them have become agnostics or atheists. Why are Evangelical churches hemorrhaging young adults? Separatism and anti-culturalism, along with social Fundamentalism — anti-abortion, anti-LGBTQ, anti-public schools, anti-science, and anti-women, to name a few — are driving the train as it leaves the station. Evangelicalism is losing two generations of potential congregants, leading to widespread panic among church leaders and church growth gurus. Of course, Evangelical extremists see such departures as a good thing; that doctrinal purity is far more important than love and unity. Quality rather than quantity, they say. We need to love what God loves and hate what God hates! Of course, the beliefs and practices they love and hate are, oh so ironically, the very things they say their God loves and hates.

I am well aware of what the Bible does and doesn’t say on these issues. I long ago concluded that the Bible can be used to prove anything and that when asked which sect has the “truth,” I reply, all of them. They all have proof texts to support their versions of orthodoxy and orthopraxy. Thus, everyone is right. Here’s my advice to Evangelical truth seekers.  Want to find the “true” church? Choose the one which has the best potlucks.

Christianity in general, and Evangelicalism in particular, is split into thousands of sects, and countless independent congregations, each believing that they are the holders of the one true faith. Lost on Protestants and Catholics and Evangelicals and Mainline Christians alike is what their fussing and fighting says to the unwashed, uncircumcised Philistines of the world. Where’s the love and unity? worldlings ask. Where are the believers who practice what the Bible says about love in 1 Corinthians 13?

What if I could speak all languages of humans and of angels? If I did not love others, I would be nothing more than a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. What if I could prophesy and understand all secrets and all knowledge? And what if I had faith that moved mountains? I would be nothing, unless I loved others. What if I gave away all that I owned and let myself be burned alive? I would gain nothing, unless I loved others. Love is kind and patient, never jealous, boastful, proud, or rude. Love isn’t selfish or quick tempered. It doesn’t keep a record of wrongs that others do. Love rejoices in the truth, but not in evil. Love is always supportive, loyal, hopeful, and trusting. Love never fails! (CEV)

Where, oh where, can we find such faith? Not among Evangelicals, that’s for sure. I am an atheist for many reasons, one of which is the lack of love and unity among Christians. If I looked at Christianity as a whole and saw people loving God and loving their neighbors, I perhaps would pause and reconsider the value of being a follower of Jesus. If I saw a group united in doctrine and practice, I might, at the very least, ponder the historic claims of Christianity. However, all I see is the fussing and fighting, and this tells me that whatever Christianity might have been twenty centuries ago, THAT version of Christianity no longer exists. What we have today is a religious version of WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment). While it is unlikely that anything or anyone will successfully “save” me from atheism/agnosticism/humanism, if I truly saw love and unity in action, I might, at the very least, admire those who follow after Jesus. Until then, I will continue to treat Evangelicalism as a blight on the human race, a worldview that causes great harm. Want to change my opinion of you, Evangelicals? Repent.

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Black Collar Crime: Catholic Brother Rajnal Rehmat Pleads Guilty to Child Enticement

0 Comments
rajnal rehmat

The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

Rajnal Rehmat, a religious brother who has worked in the Diocese of Madison, Wisconsin, pleaded guilty to one count of child enticement. He could face two years in prison.

The Wisconsin State Journal reports:

A former brother with the Diocese of Madison pleaded guilty Monday to enticing a 17-year-old girl into a vehicle for sex, and prosecutors say they will recommend he get two years in prison.

As part of a plea agreement, a Dane County court dismissed a separate sexual assault charge against Rajnal Rehmat, 31, who has been in custody since December for the inappropriate relationship with the girl he met in Bible study at a DeForest-based parish.

Rehmat’s contact with the girl occurred in September and October and involved sexually touching her in a vehicle, sexually explicit video chats and kissing her in an elevator at the Basilica of St. Josaphat in Milwaukee, according to a criminal complaint. The former brother had been warned by St. Olaf/St. Joseph lead pastor Jared Holzhunter not to text with minors and Rehmat frequently remarked to the girl that their relationship was forbidden, the complaint said.

He was “warned” not to text minors? The first inappropriate text should have sent his sorry ass out of town and out of the ministry.

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Black Collar Crime: Christian School Teacher Roberto Diaz Accused of Inappropriate Contact with Student and Asking for Nude Photo

0 Comments
roberto-diaz

The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

Roberto Diaz is an assistant teacher and Bible study teacher at Poinciana Christian Preparatory School South in Poinciana, Florida. Diaz stands accused of inappropriately touching an eighteen-year-old student and asking her for a nude photo. According to WFTS, Diaz admitted his crimes to law enforcement.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports:

A Bible studies teacher at a private Christian school inappropriately touched a student and asked her for a nude photo of herself on WhatsApp, according to a Florida sheriff’s office. An 18-year-old student told school staff that Roberto Diaz, 53, a ninth-grade teacher’s assistant and Bible studies teacher at Poinciana Christian Preparatory School South, sent her about six messages on WhatsApp between Feb. 6 and Feb. 14, according to a news release from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. He asked her for photos of herself, including a nude photo, according to the sheriff’s office.

The student said she refused the requests and asked Diaz to stop messaging her, the release says. On Feb. 15, Diaz put his hand on her chin and neck and “attempted to kiss her and touch her breast,” the release says.

The school’s director said in an email to McClatchy News that Diaz had been terminated. Deputies arrested Diaz on Feb. 21, according to the sheriff’s office. He faces a charge of sex offense on a student by an authority figure, the release says. He is being held without bond, according to Polk County jail records.

….

Poinciana Christian Preparatory School South is a private, non-denominational Christian school serving grades K-12, according to its website.

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Bus Ministry Promotion: Bicycles, Money, and Hamburgers

4 Comments
somerset baptist church mt perry ohio 1987
I put the evangelism training I received at Midwestern Baptist College to work at Somerset Baptist Church, Mt Perry, Ohio, circa 1987. We had four bus routes that fanned out over a four-county area to bring children to church

I was privileged to pastor the fine people of Somerset Baptist Church, Mount Perry, Ohio for eleven years. During my tenure — thanks to our bus ministry — scores of people heard me preach. Using the methodology I was taught at Midwestern Baptist College, I became a modern-day Apostle Paul —  becoming all things to all men that I might by all means save some. Desiring to use any legal means possible to attract bus riders, I turned the church into a carnival sideshow. We would offer riders all sorts of incentives to ride on our church’s four busses and invite their friends, families, and neighbors to ride with them.

Several times a year, we would have what we called Hamburger Sunday. Most of the children and adults were poor — I mean dirt poor. Most church members and bus riders were on some form of public assistance. Eating at McDonald’s was a special occasion for them, so we used our knowledge of this to our advantage.

On Hamburger Sunday, every bus rider received a hamburger and a small drink at the McDonald’s in New Lexington. I warned the restaurant that we would be bringing a hundred or so children to their store; that we would need a hundred hamburgers and small drinks. We arrived at the restaurant around the Sunday lunch rush, so I can only imagine the chaos that ensued when we put in our order. (I was a general manager for several fast-food companies. I personally loved big orders, especially when buses showed up. My assistants were not as motivated as I was. All I saw was $$$. All they saw was “work.”) Hamburger Sunday was a lot of fun. I like to think that the bus children had an opportunity to experience something that was normally unavailable to them.

Some Sundays we would run the Mystery Seat promotion. Prior to leaving for their routes, I would have the route captains take money — $1, $5, and $10 bills) and tape them underneath a few of the seats. Whoever sat in that particular seat won the money.

One of the favorite promotions we ran was Bicycle Sunday. This was a multi-week contest we used to entice children to invite new people to church. The goal was always the same: increased attendance and salvation decisions. We bought a new ten-speed bike for every bus route. Over the course of the contest, the bus worker would keep track of who brought visitors. On the appointed Sunday, we would call the winner before the church body, thank them for their hard work, and award them a brand-spanking new bicycle. This was a big deal for these children. Most of them, if they had a bike at all, had junkers. I know my children did. Getting a new bike was a special moment for them. I only wish, in retrospect, that we could have purchased a new bike for every child.

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Youth Pastor Jonathan Jenkins Sentenced to Twelve Years in Prison for Sexually Abusing a Child

1 Comment
jonathan jenkins

The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

In 2018, Jonathan Jenkins, a youth pastor at Starlight Baptist Church in Santa Ana, California, was accused of sexually assaulting a twelve-year-old church girl.

KTLA-5 reported at the time:

A Santa Ana youth pastor was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of violently sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl in his church’s bathroom during a service earlier this year, police said.

Jonathan Lamont Jenkins, a 57-year-old Riverside resident, allegedly began harassing the girl at the beginning of 2018, making sexual advances toward her when she was just 12 years old, Santa Ana police said in a news release.

The victim attends Starlight Baptist Church, at 1201 W. Second St., where Jenkins has worked as a youth pastor for the last two years. The suspect has been a parishioner there since 2012, officials said.

The sexual assault occurred sometime this March, after the victim went to use the restroom during service.

The girl entered a bathroom she thought was empty and found Jenkins inside, waiting for her, according to police. She then tried to escape, but he allegedly held her against her will.

Jenkins is accused of strangling and sexually assaulting her after threatening her with physical violence.

The girl didn’t immediately come forward to authorities with her story, and continued attending the same church.

When she saw Jenkins there on Aug. 5, he allegedly confronted her and mocked her about the sexual assault. He also told her he would tell police she allowed him to sexually assault her if she reported the incident, investigators said.

Officials did not say when exactly the assault was reported.

Once it was, an investigation was launched. Detectives said they obtained evidence against Jenkins, but didn’t provide details on what it entails.

The suspect was arrested Tuesday as he was going into a liquor store in Santa Ana, police said.

He was being held on suspicion of aggravated sexual assault of a child and other child abuse crimes at the Orange County Jail on $1 million bail.

Jenkins also has a “long criminal history,” according to Cpl. Anthony Bertagna, who said his previous convictions include robbery, burglary, criminal threats and narcotics violations.

Because of that, and other factors, detectives believe the youth pastor could have additional victims, Bertagna said.

“The way he handled this child, in the manner he handled this child, in the location he handled this child, leads them to believe that potentially there are other victims out there,” he told KTLA.

Five years later, Jenkins finally had his day in court, pleading guilty to a felony count of continuous sexual abuse of a child. He was immediately sentenced to twelve years in prison.

My News LA reports:

A 60-year-old former Santa Ana church youth pastor pleaded guilty and was immediately sentence Friday to 12 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl.

Jonathan Lamont Jenkins of Riverside pleaded guilty to a felony count of continuous sexual abuse of a child. As part of the plea deal charges of aggravated sexual assault of a child, aggravated sexual assault of a child-oral copulation with force or fear, aggravated sexual assault of a child with foreign object and two counts of lewd or lascivious acts with a minor.

Jenkins was given credit for 1,848 days in custody, or about five years.

Jenkins initially faced up to 90 years to life in prison, authorities said when he was charged in 2018.

The victim came forward to police in October 2018, police said.

Jenkins had been a member of the Starlight Baptist Church at 1201 W. Second St. since 2012, and served as a youth pastor there for two years, police said.

The victim said Jenkins started making “sexual advances toward her” in January 2018, according to police.

Sometime in March 2018, she was at a service when she went to the bathroom, where Jenkins was waiting for her. The girl tried to get away, but he locked the door, choked her and physically restrained her while he sexually assaulted her, police said.

The girl did not tell anyone and continued going to the church, police said, but on Aug. 5, 2018 Jenkins mocked the girl about the sexual assault and warned her not to tell anyone or he would claim the sex was consensual.

Jenkins touched the victim’s buttocks in January 2018 and attempted to assault her again in April, according to prosecutors. He also attempted to assault her in July of that year as well, prosecutors said.

Jenkins has a lengthy criminal history dating back to 1999 that includes robbery, assault with a deadly weapon and drug charges, police said. He has prior convictions for robbery in Los Angeles in 1983 and burglary in Orange County in 1986, according to prosecutors.

Jenkins has a forty-year felony criminal history, yet the fine people of Starlight Baptist Church deemed him suitable to be their youth pastor. The church should be held criminally liable for Jenkins’ crimes. Of course, they won’t be, and such crimes will continue until the courts punish EVERYONE involved in these crimes.

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Black Collar Crime: Southern Baptist Youth Pastor Keenan Hord Pleads Guilty, Sentenced to Sixty Years in Prison for Sex Crimes

4 Comments
keenan hord

The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

Keenan Hord, a youth pastor at First Baptist Church in Bentonville, Arkansas, pleaded guilty to thirteen sex-related crimes involving children and was sentenced to sixty years in prison. First Baptist is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention.

The Arkansas Democrat Gazette reports:

A former youth minister pleaded guilty Friday to 13 sex-related crimes involving children and was sentenced to 60 years in prison.

Keenan Hord, 33, of Centerton worked for First Baptist Church in Bentonville before he was arrested Aug. 24.

Hord accepted a plea deal. A jury trial in his case had been scheduled to begin March 7.

One of Hord’s victims gave a victim impact statement at Friday’s hearing. The mothers of four other victims also gave impact statements.

Benton County Circuit Judge Brad Karren ordered Hord to register as a sex offender and not to have contact with any of the victims or any children.

Hord will be eligible for parole in 15 years.

Bentonville police received a tip through the Arkansas State Police child abuse hotline Aug. 19, according to a news release from the Bentonville Police Department. James Boothman, a Bentonville detective, testified at Hord’s August bond hearing police served a search warrant and seized several electronic devices. Boothman said police had spoken to six victims and identified up to 30 possible victims with an examination of Hord’s cellphone.

Bentonville police Sgt. Josh Woodhams testified at the bond hearing he examined a cellphone belonging to one of the boys that revealed a romantic and sexual relationship between Hord and the boy. He said there were 5,000 conversations on the phone between Hord and the boy. Woodhams said police located a half-million text messages on the phone. As many as 30 boys had conversations with Hord, Woodhams said.

Hord has served on the staffs of at least two Southern Baptist churches, most recently First Baptist Bentonville, where he joined the staff in 2016 and became student pastor in 2018, according to Baptist Press, the news service of the Southern Baptist Convention.

In 2022, Baptist Press reported:

Keenan Hord, 32, was arrested Thursday (Aug. 25) for sexual indecency with a child. Hord has served on the staffs of at least two Southern Baptist churches, most recently First Baptist Bentonville, where he joined the staff in 2016 and became student pastor in 2018. The church said in a statement Friday (Aug. 26) that the allegations came after Hord’s employment there had ended.

A warrant for his arrest was issued Tuesday (Aug. 23) after First Baptist Bentonville made a report Aug. 19 to the Arkansas State Police child abuse hotline.

Investigators believe there could be up to 30 or more victims, according to KTHV-TV.

“We have been devastated to learn that a former employee of our church has been credibly accused of abusing adolescents during his tenure at our church.,” First Baptist Bentonville said in a statement to Baptist Press. “While these accusations did not come to light until after his employment ended, when we learned of them we immediately contacted our local authorities, made a report to the Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline, and continue to fully support the ongoing law enforcement investigation.”

40/29 added at the time:

A former youth pastor was arrested on a charge of sexual indecency with a child in a case related to his time as a youth pastor at a Bentonville church, according to Nathan Smith, Benton County prosecutor.

Keenan Hord was arrested Thursday night and has been booked into the Benton County Detention Center. He is facing charges that include sexual assault and possessing sexually explicit material involving a child.

A judge set a cash bond of $500,000 in the case.

During the bond hearing, county prosecutors said there are potentially more than thirty victims.

Hord worked as a youth pastor at First Baptist Church Bentonville, Smith said. The church contacted the child abuse hotline immediately upon learning of allegations against Hord.

A detective told a judge Hord had inappropriate contact with a 15-year-old. He said law enforcement found more than 5,000 text messages between Hord and one victim.

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Stephen Morris Sentenced to Ten Years in Prison for Sexual Assault, Now Accused of Assaulting a Family Member

2 Comments
pastor stephen morris

The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

In 2019, Stephen Morris, pastor of Oliver’s Grove Baptist Church in Four Oaks, North Carolina,  was accused of raping a thirteen-year-old girl.

ABC-11 reported at the time:

The Johnston County Sheriff’s Office arrested 61-year-old Reverend Stephen Morris last Friday on 10 felony counts, including five counts of statutory rape and five counts of taking indecent liberties with a child.

According to court documents, Morris is accused of statutory rape with a 13-year-old between June 2013 and June 2014.

….

Detectives say the victim is now 19 years old and reported what happened to police last month.

Because the incident involves a juvenile victim, authorities would not disclose how the victim and suspect knew one another.

Morris remains in the Johnston County jail under a $2.5 million bond.

Morris now faces additional sex crime charges involving two underage girls, along with new charges related to the thirteen-year-old victim.

The Johnston County Report said:

The former pastor of a Four Oaks church charged in July with engaging in sexual acts with a juvenile has now been charged with crimes against two more underage victims.

everend Stephen Arthur Morris was the pastor at Oliver’s Grove Baptist Church on Highway 301 South of Four Oaks when he was originally arrested on July 5th, 2019. He resigned the same day from his role at the church. He posted bail July 26th, 2019 when his bond was lowered to $250,000 and was confined to house arrest at his residence on Parkertown Road. Morris is now back behind bars.

Today (Wednesday), Rev. Morris was served with additional warrants involving the original victim plus two additional victims who have now come forward.

Morris was indicted Oct. 7th by a Johnston County Grand Jury on 12 new charges, that’s in addition to 14 charges he already faces.

Eight of the 12 new charges are for additional incidents in 2013 and 2014 involving the first victim. Those new charges include additional counts of statutory rape and taking indecent liberties with a minor for sexual acts with the female victim, who was 13 at the time of the alleged offenses.

After the arrest of Rev. Morris was reported by the media in July, JoCoReport has learned two additional victims came forward reporting incidents to the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office. Those incidents occurred in 2008. Rev. Morris is accused of soliciting nude photos of the two young girls who were 9 and 11 at the time.

In 2020, Morris was accused of more sex crimes.

The News & Observer reported:

A Johnston County pastor already in jail on sexual assault charges was charged Friday with six counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor, the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office said.

In June 2019, an 18-year-old woman reported that Stephen Arthur Morris, her pastor at Oliver’s Grove Baptist Church in Four Oaks, began sexually assaulting her when she was 13, the Sheriff’s Office stated in a news release.

In July 2019, Morris was arrested and charged with statutory rape or sex offense with a person who was 13 years old, the arrest warrant states. Morris was also charged with taking indecent liberties with the same person when she was under the age of 16. Morris’s court indictments state the alleged offenses occurred between June 2013 and June 2014.

Two more females came forward in October 2019, accusing Morris of attempting to exploit them when they were under the age of 16 in 2008, court records state. Morris was indicted in October 2019 on charges of attempted first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and solicitation of another to commit first-degree exploitation of a minor.

The indictment states Morris “unlawfully, willingly and feloniously did entice, induce, order and command to engage in sexual activity for the purpose of producing material containing a visual representation depicting this activity, the defendant knowing the character and content of the intended material.”

….

Arrest warrants from Friday’s charges state Morris “unlawfully, willfully and feloniously did duplicate material containing the visual representation of a minor, an unknown minor approximately 10-12 years of age, engaged in sexual activity, consisting of posing nude, displaying the genital area.”

In April 2021, Morris pleaded guilty to 11 counts of Attempted Statutory Sex Offense, 13 counts of Taking Indecent Liberties with a Child, 6 counts of Second Degree Exploitation of a Child, one count of Attempted First Degree Sexual Exploitation of a Minor and one count of Solicitation to Commit First Degree Sexual Exploitation of a Minor. Morris was sentenced to a minimum of ten years in prison.

The Johnston County Report reported:

The former pastor of a Four Oaks area church was sentenced to prison Thursday after pleaded guilty to 32 criminal charges. Stephen Arthur Morris pleaded to 11 counts of Attempted Statutory Sex Offense, 13 counts of Taking Indecent Liberties with a Child, 6 counts of Second Degree Exploitation of a Child, one count of Attempted First Degree Sexual Exploitation of a Minor and one count of Solicitation to Commit First Degree Sexual Exploitation of a Minor.

Under the plea agreement all charges were consolidated for one judgment. Resident Superior Court Judge Thomas H. Lock sentenced the 63 year-old defendant to a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of 17 years in prison. Upon his release, Morris will be required to register as a convicted sex offender.

Morris was originally charged on July 5, 2019 with sexually assaulting a juvenile female approximately five years earlier when she was 13. The victim said Morris was her pastor at Oliver’s Grove Baptist Church. Morris resigned from his position at the time of his first arrest. On October 9, 2019, Morris was rearrested after two additional female victims came forward reporting Morris attempted to exploit them. In May 2020, more charges were added after the NC SBI completed a forensic examination of several computers and electronic storage devices previously seized from Morris.

Two years later, Morris is before the court again facing allegations of sexually assaulting a minor. This time, the victim is a family member.

The Johnston County Report reports:

Less than two years after being sentenced to prison for sex crimes involving three juvenile victims, Stephen Arthur Morris of Four Oaks was returned to Johnston County today (Thursday) to be formally charged with more crimes.

The Johnston County Sheriff’s Office said a family member of the former pastor recently came forward and reported she had been sexually assaulted years earlier. The specific date or dates was not disclosed. Following an investigation, Morris, age 65, was charged today with four counts of taking indecent liberties with a child and one count of first-degree sex offense with a minor.

….

Morris was being held at the Columbus Correctional Institution in Whiteville, NC, a medium security prison, before he was returned to Johnston County today to be served with the new warrants. Thursday’s charges reportedly represent a fourth female juvenile victim.

Morris is one sick puppy. He should remain in prison for the rest of his life

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Bus Ministry Promotion: Gobble, Gobble, Gobble

3 Comments
somerset baptist church mt perry ohio 1987-2
Somerset Baptist Church, 3 of our buses, circa early 1987

I was privileged to pastor the fine people of Somerset Baptist Church, Mount Perry, Ohio for eleven years. During my tenure — thanks to our bus ministry — scores of people heard me preach. Using the methodology I was taught at Midwestern Baptist College, I became a modern-day Apostle Paul —  becoming all things to all men that I might by all means save some. Desiring to use any legal means possible to attract bus riders, I turned the church into a carnival sideshow. One such gimmick was giving away a live turkey to the person who brought the most visitors to church during the contest period.

A local farmer donated the turkey. On Saturdays, I would take the turkey with me on bus visitation. I kid you not! I wish I had taken a picture of me and Mr. Turkey in my blue Plymouth Horizon. At the time, it seemed hilarious. In retrospect, I can only imagine what some locals thought of the crazy Baptist preacher. The Sunday before the end of the attendance contest, Mr. Turkey came to church. After letting everyone see him, we took him to the dug-out earthen church basement for safekeeping (the church building was erected in 1835). I still remember to this day hearing the turkey gobble while I was preaching. Everyone got a big laugh out of his gobbling.

As was often the case with such live animal promotions, the kid who won the contest was not allowed to bring the turkey home. He was heartbroken. We bought him a frozen turkey instead. One of the church deacons — an avid hunter — took the turkey home with the hope of butchering it. The turkey escaped, and for a few days was nowhere to be found. But early one morning the deacon heard a turkey gobble, and sure enough Mr. Turkey had returned “home.” He should have kept running. The deacon recaptured the turkey, putting a permanent end to his wanderings.

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Youth Pastor Alexander Blackwelder Accused of Having Sex with Minor

0 Comments
alexander-blackwelder

The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

Alexander Blackwelder, a youth pastor at East Main Street Church of Christ in Tupelo, Mississippi, stands accused of having sex with a sixteen-year-old church girl. Blackwelder has been charged with two counts of sexual battery and enticement of a child to produce visual depictions of adult sexual conduct.

The Daily Journal reports:

Alexander Blackwelder, 26, of Tupelo, is charged with two counts of sexual battery and enticement of a child to produce visual depictions of adult sexual conduct.

“I think the charges are serious enough that we need to keep you,” Tupelo Municipal Court Judge Willie Allen said as he denied bond.

Tupelo police detective Hal Veal said authorities received a tip on Feb. 15 that the youth pastor at East Main Street Church of Christ was having an inappropriate relationship with a 16-year-old girl. During the initial interview with the girl and her parents, the girl denied any improprieties but said she had talked with Blackwelder and communicated via Snapchat.

The parents signed a consent form to allow detectives to search the girl’s phone. Veal said there were sexual videos and pictures on her phone and conversations with Blackwelder that made him believe they were having sex.

When questioned on Feb. 17 by police, Blackwelder also denied having an inappropriate relationship. But when brought back to the police station Wednesday, he allegedly admitted their relationship started in October 2022 and was more than just friendship.

“He admitted that they had sexual intercourse on two occasions and exchanged inappropriate video and pictures,” Veal said.

Blackwelder was booked into the Lee County Jail Feb. 22 around 5 p.m. He has been initially charged with enticement for allegedly getting the victim to send nude pictures and videos. If convicted of that charge, he could face up to 40 years in prison. The sexual battery charges carry up to 30 years in prison for each count.

Blackwelder has retained Ashland-based Tony Farese as his attorney. But during the initial appearance Thursday afternoon, he was represented by public defender Dennis Farris, who asked for a $100,000 bond.

Prosecutor Richard Babb opposed bond, noting that this is still an open investigation and wanted to make sure there are no other victims.

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Black Collar Crime: Lutheran Church Staff Member Michael Schneider Sentenced to Eighty-Eight Years in Prison for Sexual Assault

0 Comments
Michael D Schneider

The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

Michael Schneider, a staff member at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington, Illinois, was sentenced to eighty-eight years in prison for criminal sexual assault of a minor and possession of child pornography.

WGLT reports:

A Normal man was sentenced to 88 years in prison on Wednesday for criminal sexual assault of a minor and possession of child pornography.

Michael D. Schneider worked as a staff member at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington before his arrest in June 2021 on the felony charges. He also spent time teaching piano lessons.

The victim, now a college student, struggled through tears to read a four-page victim impact statement. Periods of depression, suicide attempts and self-harm were all part of the aftermath of the grooming and sexual assaults that started when she was about 14, she said.

Schneider, 33, started by telling jokes “that led to talks of sex, the pornography and the assaults,” said the woman. She did not disclose the abuse that often took place during what should have been piano lessons because of fears that “my sisters would be next.”

In her statement, the victim’s mother said Schneider “used me to get to my child.” Every detail of the assaults was planned, including when Schneider hired the teen to babysit his child when he was actually home.

The mother later learned Schneider took her daughter to buy sex toys, and instructed her — if asked — to say she was his wife.

“He robbed her of a normal teenage life,” the mother said in her lengthy and emotional statement.

The mother also disclosed that her daughter first disclosed the sexual assault to Schneider‘s wife, who advised the girl not to tell anyone. But the girl, who was 18 at the time, did tell her parents who went to police.

In asking for the maximum number of years allowed under a plea agreement, state’s attorney Erika Reynolds noted Schneider gave the girl alcohol as part of the grooming process.

The prosecutor pointed to information in a sex offender evaluation that described Schneider as manipulative and unwilling to acknowledge his misconduct. The fact that the pornography depicted men engaged in sexual acts with toddlers and Schneider blamed the victim “should be enough to lock him up and throw away the key,” said Reynolds.

Defense lawyer Stephanie Wong asked for the minimum sentence on the sexual charges and consecutive probation, or six years on the child pornography charges.

“There’s no question these offenses are very disturbing,” said Wong, adding Schneider “experienced a very dark period in 2017,” but arguing the former music teacher “is absolutely capable of rehabilitation.”

In his statement to the judge, Schneider said the topless photos sent to him by the victim “triggered an addiction” to the child porn.

Schneider denied downloading illegal images on various dates, claiming one file with graphic images existed. He said he was “shocked and disgusted“ by the images. “I realized that is not who I was,” he said.

Schneider apologized to the victim, her family and friends. “I deserve to be up here,” he said.

Judge William Yoder characterized the images as “repugnant and beyond belief,” adding the harm to the victim was severe, and “her life may never be the same.”

The Pantagraph adds:

In a partially negotiated plea agreement, Schneider pleaded guilty in December to two counts of criminal sexual assault and one count of production of child pornography in one case and 15 counts of child pornography in the other.

State’s Attorney Erika Reynolds said her office offered a plea agreement “to save the victim from having to testify” in a trial in the sexual assault case.

Before his arrest, Schneider taught private piano lessons and was director of worship arts at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington, having previously been the church’s choir director and a member of the arts ministry team that organizes and performs productions and other presentations, according to the church’s annual reports, as previously reported by The Pantagraph.

The victim and her mother read victim impact statements during the sentencing hearing Wednesday. 

The victim said Schneider groomed her for years before she realized it was happening, and that she lost her teenage years and her love of music because of the assault, which occurred in 2017.

She said she had taken piano lessons from him and babysat for his children.

In the years since, she said, her mental health has suffered, including depression, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts that led to multiple attempts on her life.

“It’s impossible for me to express the true agony of every sleepless night, every night terror, every scar on my body in the moments of silence in which I still remember every detail of what happened to me,” she said through tears.

Now an adult, the woman said she came forward, “reopening this wound,” for her younger self who could not.

“For that young girl who thought she couldn’t speak about this. … This had to be about justice, for me and any other young women who this has or could happen to,” she said. “… I couldn’t stand up for myself then, but now I can.”

Reynolds said that in Schneider’s sex offender evaluation, he blamed the victim for causing him to become interested in child pornography, though the prosecutor said the digital evidence from indicates that interest already existed earlier in 2017.

She said she does not believe Schneider has any rehabilitative potential and he would be at “moderate to high risk” to reoffend if he were given a community-based sentence.

….

Reynolds said she and co-counsel Assistant State’s Attorney Mary Lawson had agreed to limit their recommendation for the sexual assault and child pornography production case to 20 years in prison as part of the plea agreement.

They asked Judge William Yoder to sentence Schneider to a total of 130 years in the DOC, asking for seven-year sentences on each of the child porn possession charges.

Schneider’s attorney, Stephanie Wong, said the defendant entered a “very dark period” in 2017 — “nothing happened before 2017; nothing happened after that.”

She said this shows Schneider is very capable of rehabilitation and “conforming his conduct” with the support of family, friends and his faith. She noted that no other students or babysitters who interacted with Schneider’s family came forward with criminal claims against him.

“The evidence is consistent that in 2017 Michael did go through a very dark period in his life that is consistent with a horrible — for lack of a better term — addiction,” Wong said. “There’s no question that these offenses are very disturbing. There’s no question about that.”

Reynolds said the sex offender evaluation indicated Schneider believed no one was hurt by his actions, but “he has nearly destroyed her for his own pleasure.”

Reynolds noted the impact of every victim whose image could be seen in the child pornography Schneider possessed, “and some of which were toddlers.”

She submitted 40 letters from family members, friends and at least one former student who wrote in support of Schneider. Wong said the letters express how uncharacteristic the charges are of Schneider.

In a statement to the court, Schneider said he understands that the trust instilled in him by his communities is now broken.

Schneider said the victim “triggered my addiction to pornography,” which “continued a secret struggle for years.”

He said he sought videos of underage teenage girls, which led him to download the numerous child pornography pictures and videos “as one file.”

Schneider said he did not realize the content that was on the file until after he had downloaded it and was “shocked and disgusted” by the number of photos, the ages of those depicted, and the sexual acts shown.

“I promptly exited the file and realized that was not who I was, and I did not view that folder again,” he said.

He said he has had suicidal thoughts since his arrest and was “truly sorry for the pain I have caused” his family, community, his “former student” and her family.

Wong asked Yoder to give Schneider the minimum sentence of 12 years in prison on the sexual assault case and a probation sentence in the child pornography case. She said if Yoder disagreed with a community-based sentence in that case, she suggested a six-year sentence as a combination of concurrent sentences.

Yoder said a community-based sentence would deprecate the seriousness of the offenses and would not be consistent with the ends of justice.

The judge said he did not believe Schneider’s statement regarding a single download of child pornography, and that “anybody who suggests child pornography is a victimless crime quite honestly doesn’t know what they’re talking about.”

Yoder noted the attorneys had agreed to limit the sentence in the sexual assault case, but he said he was not bound by it.

He sentenced Schneider to 28 years in that case — 10 years for each of the criminal sexual assault charges and eight years for the production of child pornography.

He sentenced him to four years in each of the child pornography possession charges, totaling 60 years in that case.

Schneider was also fined more than $17,000.

Bruce Gerencser, 68, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 47 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.