Follow Up with 77 National Leaders Regarding C.J. Mahaney

Yesterday, I followed up with 77 nationally recognized leaders in the Body of Christ regarding C.J., the lawsuit, and other developments in Sovereign Grace Ministries.  That correspondence follows. 

April 1, 2013

Gentlemen, 

I last wrote you on February 6.  A lot has happened since then and I am sorry to report none of it is good.  Here are few highlights.  

• C.J. will “transition from his role as President” on April 12.  That’s when he steps down from all leadership responsibilities in Sovereign Grace Ministries (SGM).  This transition was necessary for two reasons.  First, few pastors trust and believe in C.J. any longer.  They can’t commend him in that role.  Second, he is in legal jeopardy and appears morally culpability in relation to Complaints found in the class action lawsuit.  Discovery is underway.  Future arrests and revelations could make matters worse for him.  

• John Loftness resigned as Chairman of the Board for SGM on February 18.  He is the foremost mentioned Defendant in the lawsuit.  Last week the following charge was added by the lawyers in their motion against dismissal. “Plaintiffs are going to be amending the FAC [First Amended Complaint] to add more parties [plaintiffs], one of whom alleges Defendant John Loftness physically and sexually abused her as a child.”         

• Dave Harvey, C.J.’s number two man, abruptly resigned all his sizeable responsibilities with SGM on December 19, 2012.  He was the Interim President during C.J.’s seven month leave of absence in 2011-2012.  When Dave resigned from SGM, he assumed the role of a pastor in his church.  That too has come to an end.  On March 15, Dave resigned as an elder.  He is currently out of Christian ministry.  Now a major rift exists between Dave and C.J., et al.      

More pastors and churches plan to leave SGM.  In my last correspondence with you, I made my views concerning C.J. clear.  Put succinctly, he should not be held up as an example to the Body of Christ. 

This morning I wrote the following note to current and former leaders in SGM. 

From: Brent Detwiler
Sent: Monday, April 01, 2013 10:20 AM
To: SGM Pastors
Subject: New Information Contained in Motions to Oppose Dismissal of Lawsuit 

SGM Pastors, et al. 

The lawyers for the Plaintiff’s filed their motions to oppose the dismissal of the lawsuit last Wednesday.  I posted about it on Saturday morning.  I held off on sending the post so you would not be distracted over the Easter weekend.  The news is discouraging.  The motions raise even greatly concerns regarding the extent of abuse in SGM and how things have been handled. 

Policies must be put in place that enable law enforcement to detect and incarcerate juvenile and adult predators.  And parents must be alerted to the presence of sex abusers in order to protect their children.  

Brent

I’ve attached my post, “New Information Contained in Motions to Dismiss Lawsuit.”  It provides a summary.  I’ve also attached the three motions for dismissal in case you are interested in more detail.  [Available at http://abrentdetwiler.squarespace.com/]

I hope you will take the time to review this information so we can all stand against policies that enable and protect sexual predators in our churches, ministries and institutions.

For the good of the gospel and the cause of Christ.

Brent

Mailing List:

Danny Akin                                                             
Thabitti Anyabwile                        
Voddie Baucham    
Alistair Begg
John F. Bettler
Jon Bloom
Ian Booth
Jerry Bridges
Mike Bullmore
Robert C. Cannada Jr.
Don Carson
Matt Chandler
Tim Challies
Bryan Chapell
Lane Dennis                        
Mark Dever
Kevin DeYoung
Mark Driscoll
Iain M. Duguid
Ligon Duncan
Sinclair Ferguson                
John F. Frame                      
Richard B. Gaffin
Mark Galli                            
W. Robert Godfrey
Wayne Grudem
Michael A. G. Haykin
Dennis Hollinger
Michael S. Horton
Robert Jones
Douglas F. Kelly                 
Simon J. Kistemaker
Ted Kober
Andreas Johannes Kostenberger
Tim Keller
Edgar Keinath
Timothy S. Lane      
John MacArthur
Michael Milton
R. Albert Mohler, Jr.
Russell D. Moore
Stephen Nichols
Moss Nplha             
Marvin Olasky
Ray Ortlund, Jr.
Burk Parsons
Paige Patterson
Richard Phillips
John Piper    
David Platt
David Powlison
Vern S. Poythress
Guy Richardson
Phil Ryken
Ken Sande
Pete Schemm
Thomas R. Schreiner
Alan Schuster
Scotty Smith            
Winston T. Smith
R.C. Sproul
Ed Stetzer
Sam Storms
Justin Taylor
Tullian Tchivdjian
Bryce Thomas
Derek W. H. Thomas         
Paul David Tripp
Carl L. Trueman
Gene Edward Veith, Jr.
Donald S. Whitney             
Bruce A. Ware
Stephen J. Wellum 
David Wells
Edward T. Welsh
Luder G. Whitlock
John D. Woodbridge

Post Script

From: Brent Detwiler
Sent: Wednesday, April 03, 2013 5:20 PM
To: National Leaders
Subject: Interview with Boz Tchividjian an Absolute Must Read!

Dear Sirs, 

I have a great deal of appreciation for the demands upon your time but I felt it morally incumbent to forward you this interview with Boz Tchividjian.  I just read it today and found it extremely profitable.  

No More Silence: An Interview with Boz Tchividjian of G.R.A.C.E.
http://rachelheldevans.com/blog/abuse-boz-tchividjian 

Grace to you!

Brent

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