Was Michael Lee Jones Named in Southern Baptist Abuse Investigation?
Michael Lee Jones of Houston, Texas, was on probation for sexual assault on a child in 1998. (2 16-yr-old girls). After his release, he founded the Cathedral of Faith, also known as the Church of New Beginnings, a Southern Baptist church in Houston, Texas. Jones is a sex offender listed on the TX Sex Offender Registry for two counts of sexual assault on a child in Harris County in 1998. One victim was identified as a 16-year-old female. According to court records, he received deferred adjudication, which was then terminated in 2006 after eight years of probation. The Baptist General Convention of Texas published a list of church leaders convicted of sex crimes in 2007.
Southern Baptist Convention News
According to the Washington Post, a 300-page report was released on Sunday, May 22, 2022. The report includes horrible new information relating to particular abuse occurrences and sheds light on how denominational officials actively opposed abuse prevention and reform for many years.
Southern Baptist Convention leaders have actually revealed a substantial and independent 3rd party examination that revealed that abusers were frequently ignored, forgotten, or perhaps condemned by upper-level congregation administrators from within this religious denomination of greater than 16 million members. Additionally, it revealed these leaders frequently deceived their own members to prevent them from being aware of the rampant sexual assaults.
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A Past of Ignored Mishandling
The report claims that a key Southern Baptist Convention leader was credibly implicated of sexual assault just one month after finishing his two-year stretch as the convention’s president. Additionally, Johnny Hunt, a well-known Georgia Southern Baptist preacher and senior vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s missions arm, was credibly implicated of assaulting a fellow congregant at a 2010 vacation in Panama City Beach, FL. The North American Mission Board president claimed he was unaware of the allegations prior to Hunt resigning on May 13. The report likewise names 3 prior presidents of the convention, a previous vice president, and the previous head of the SBC’s administrative arm as prominent SBC officials who assisted in covering for and even motivated suspected abusers.
One victim detailed being treated with hostility as she claimed she was sexually assaulted by a youth pastor. The accused pastor served in several Southern Baptist churches in several states. At a meeting with the SBC leaders in 2007, a member of the Executive Committee “turned his back to her during her speech and another chortled.”
Responsibility in the Baptist Convention
Russell Moore, the former head of the SBC’s policy branch, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, specified ‘this is not all Southern Baptists, take a look at all the good we do.’ The sensational report demonstrates a trend of stonewalling, coverup, intimidation, and retaliation.” He anticipates this document will bring much-needed reform and hold those liable for their actions.
The report claims that a leading Southern Baptist leader was credibly accused of sexual abuse only one month after finishing his two-year term as the convention’s president. The report likewise names three previous presidents of the convention, a former vice president, and the previous head of the SBC’s administrative council as notable SBC leaders who assisted in protecting and even encouraged believed abusers.
For more information about sexual abuse cases in Houston, Texas, visit this link: https://abuseguardian.com/sexual-assault-lawyer/texas/
Abuse Guardian for Texas
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