'The Tongue is a fire' Southern Baptist Church fractures over secrets and spiritual abuse

[AtheistCrusader]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/the-tongue-is-a-fire-southern-baptist-church-fractures-over-secrets-and-spiritual-abuse/ar-BBZWrGr?ocid=spartanntp

Trigger Warning: This article contains information and details about sexual assault and/or violence, which may be upsetting to survivors.

Resources to help survivors of sexual assault include the National Sex Assault Hotline [phone]), and The Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network (RAINN) online hotline.
CAMP HILL, Pa. – On a Sunday morning in late 2017, Oakwood Baptist Church pastor Donald Foose stood before a congregation that had been blindsided by the sudden departure of their previous head pastor.

Foose offered no answers to their lingering questions. Instead, his voice booming through the sparse sanctuary, he preached about the destructive power of gossip.
“The tongue is a fire,” Foose declared, reading from the Letter of James. He held up a piece of paper with his own name and the name of the church on it. With his other hand, he struck a match – and lit the paper ablaze.

It is unclear to me why the headline says 'spiritual' abuse rather than 'sexual' abuse, but w/e, I post it as it was written.

[Thomas Hurt]

1. Gossip? rumor, lies, conspiracy and more lies are the stock and trade of the christofascists

bet the good pastor voted to Trump too

[AtheistCrusader]

2. Yeah, when they start howling 'NOTHING TO SEE HERE' there is definitely shit to see.

[guillaumeb]

3. A friend of mine is a Baptist Minister.

He says that at times, he is reluctant to say that he is a Baptist Minister. He feels that Trump is bringing out the craziest of the crazy people.

[Cartoonist]

4. This line doesn't surprise me

Church leaders who were aware of his past concealed it from the congregation.
_

That's what church leaders do.

[CaptYossarian]

5. Pointing their crooked fingers in all other directions.

These are people first, with people desires and urges.

Maybe they should stop and think about it. Then they can accept (tolerate is too weak) their LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters.

The heart wants what it wants.

[Major Nikon]

6. "culture of casual indifference to predatory sexual behavior."

Yep, sounds familiar. I guess some would have you believe religion has nothing to do with this. Meanwhile those who lack such casual indifference understand the enabling power religion has.

I’m sure the leaders of that church who knew about this sexual predator were content with the knowledge that Jesus had healed him from sexual predation of children in much the same way the RCC believes it with their priests. It’s just too convenient to dismiss all of it as the work of the devil rather than admitting the hocus pocus doesn’t really work.