The Southern Baptists are at it again - their annual meeting is underway in Indianopolis today. I guess I should have expected this to have happened, but I'm still in shock the Executive Committee struck down the idea of a national registry of child sex-offenders among Baptist clergy.
This is an abomination and a moral failure far worse than any of the so-called "sinful" actions that the SBC is known to condemn. Their reasoning? It would be too hard to maintain the database and keep track of predators because of local church autonomy.
Hogwash. They seem to have no trouble tracking donors. They seem to be able to track their baptism numbers. They seem to be able to track conversions, church membership, and growth rates. I hear they even follow the trends in the denominational politics of the pastors. I guess the countless details of running a theocracy outweigh the safety of children and the will of the messengers who voted on this issue favorably at last year's meeting.
I'm not a Southern Baptist anymore - if you know me, you know I left that dysfunctional family a while back. So why would I even care what they do? I don't have a dog in the fight. Perhaps this true & personal story will help you understand:
It's about a friend I'll never forget whom I met in seminary. As a child of missionaries on the field, he was sexually abused by a Souther Baptist missionary that worked with his parents. He was able to name his abuser, but swears there are dozens of other children -all nationals on the mission field - who had no voice to cry out against their oppressor. His abuser was forced into early retirment and came back to the states with a promise never to work with children again.
But that promise was broken. My life intersected with both the abused and abuser a number of years ago, that's how I know the promise was broken. I still get a knot in my stomach with worry that one of those precious children in my charge was harmed.
I have three children of my own, and a church full of children I love and care for as their pastor. Any one of these children alone is worth the cost in time, money, and people resources to get this registery going. Sorry, SBC execs - you got this one wrong.
