Was Joe David Nelms Listed in SBC Abuse Investigation Report?
Joe David Nelms, a youth pastor at Pacific Coast Church in San Clemente, CA (originally named First Baptist Church of San Clemente, CA) and a volunteer Bible study teacher at First Baptist Church in Lindale, TX, was found guilty of lewd or lascivious acts with a minor, aged 13. When he was arrested on California charges, he had already relocated to Texas. In California, Nelms was sentenced to one year in prison and five years probation, as well as lifetime registration as a sex offender. In Texas, he is a convicted sex offender.
Southern Baptist Convention 2022 Report
According to the Washington Post, a 300-page report was launched on Sunday, May 22, 2022. The file consists of scary brand-new specifics regarding certain abuse instances and clarify how denominational officials actively opposed abuse prevention and reform for years.
Southern Baptist Convention leaders have announced a comprehensive and independent third-party investigation that found that abusers were typically neglected, forgotten, and even condemned by high-level church authorities from within this religious denomination of more than 16 million members. Additionally, it disclosed these leaders often lied to their very own members to avoid them from knowing the flagrant sexual wrongdoing.
Click to continue reading more about the Southern Baptist Convention 2022 Report
A Story of Dismissed Mishandling
Practically all of these disclosed incidents fell outside of the statute of limitations, making it uncertain how many abusers were actually charged. According to the report, a secret list was kept.
The report alleges that a key Southern Baptist leader was credibly accused of sexual assault only 1 month after completing his two-year duration as the convention’s president. Furthermore, Johnny Hunt, a well-known Georgia Southern Baptist preacher and senior vice president of the SBC’s objectives arm, was credibly accused of abusing a fellow congregant during a 2010 trip in Panama City Beach, FL. The North American Mission Board president claimed he was uninformed of the allegations prior to Hunt resigning on May thirteenth. The report likewise identifies three previous presidents of the convention, a former vice president, and the previous head of the SBC’s administrative arm as prominent SBC leaders who assisted in covering up for and even motivated suspected abusers.
Accountability in the Baptist Church
Russell Moore, the previous head of the SBC’s policy arm, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, mentioned ‘this is not all Southern Baptists, look at all the good we do.’ The bombshell report demonstrates a pattern of stonewalling, coverup, intimidation, and retaliation.” He hopes this report will bring much-needed reform and hold those accountable for their horrific actions.
The document claims that a key Southern Baptist leader was credibly implicated of sexual assault merely 1 month after completing his two-year stretch as the convention’s president. The report also names three prior presidents of the convention, a former vice president, and the former head of the SBC’s administrative division as renoun SBC leaders who assisted in protecting and also encouraged believed sexual abusers.
For more information about resources available to survivors in Texas, visit our page: https://abuseguardian.com/sexual-assault-lawyer/texas/sex-trauma-therapist-tx/
For more information about resources available to survivors in California, visit our page: https://abuseguardian.com/sexual-assault-lawyer/california/sex-trauma-therapist-ca/
Abuse Guardian for Texas
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