Help keep The Christian Post free for everyone by making a one-time donation today. What Ascol, Buck and Sills share in common is adherence to an extreme version of Reformed theology, known as hyper-Calvinism, that has been on the resurgence in the SBC over the past 30 years. Sills admitted to engaging in inappropriate sexual activity and tendered his resignation. Christian leaders need to remember that they are called to be shepherds in the model of the Good Shepherd, she said, protecting the sheep even if the wolves include their fellow leaders., A woman holds signs about abuse during a rally outside the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex on June 11, 2019, in Birmingham, Ala. RNS photo by Butch Dill. But I am a victim nonetheless.. In her post, the 41-year-old Lyell said that the tenured professor of missions and cultural anthropology first sexually acted against her during a mission trip in 2004. Mohler said his encouragement from the start in any case such as this is that authorities be contacted and that only law enforcement should judge whether laws may have been violated in such situations. Today, she feels that belief, known as complementarianism, has created an unhealthy culture. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Who those others were is not clear. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RNS) Jennifer Lyell was trying to do the right thing. In fact, she claims in a newly leaked audio recording that she has been vague intentionallyso that the Sills grandchildren wouldn't find out much about this by using Google. UPDATE #1: Shortly after this article was published, Jennifer Lyell graciously reached out to us and provided crucial details of her case both to me and to Midwest Christian Outreach, Inc. President Don Veinot. In May, Guidepost Solutions, which investigated the SBC scandal, issued a report that found alleges survivors of sexual abuse encountered resistance, stonewalling, and even outright hostility, from some on the SBCs Executive Committee. The group has no apparent connections to the SBC, and its interview with Lyell seems outside its stated purpose. In a statement posted on her website, Jennifer Lyell, who is now 41 and works for a major Christian book publisher, said Sills first "sexually acted" against her on a mission trip in 2004 and. But that's not quite what we see. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. They simply want to push their agenda & cancel anyone who refuses to kowtow to their self-righteous bloviating. All rights reserved. Because this is a personnel matter, we cannot comment further.. She did so after learning her abuser, former Southern Baptist seminary professor, author, and missionary David Sills, had recently returned to ministry. The campus of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, the flagship seminary for the Southern Baptist Convention, located in Louisville, Kentucky. Lyell is a former Reaching and Teaching International board member. Southern Seminary President R. Albert Mohler Jr. told Baptist Press he could not disclose why Sills employment at the seminary ended. David Sills and his wife, Mary, filed the suit Nov. 21 in Mobile County circuit court. We hope you will! George resigned on May 3 while Sills resigned on May 23, the Biblical Recorder reported. Basham questions Lyells description of events, her claims to have reported the abuse to police, and her ability to enlist others to corroborate her story. Individuals who knew her story alerted that particular mission agency to the details behind Sills resignation from SBTS and Sills is no longer listed as a missionary for that organization. I now realize that despite SBTS handling the situation justly and as I asked without stating the reason for his resignation it led to the exact kind of scenario the SBC is now trying to prevent, she said. Things changed, however, once the abuse became public. It also names Jennifer Lyell, a former seminarian and vice president for Lifeway, who has repeatedly alleged that Sills was abusive, an allegation Mohler has also made on social media and in. Why so much outrage over the burning of an LGBT Pride flag? Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". News broke today that former Southern Baptist Seminary professor, David Sills (who resigned 9 months ago), resigned due Continue reading When Sin Goes Unchecked the Nations Suffer I am grateful for the diligent, fast work of Guidepost Solutions, particularly as the EC leadership delays from June-October 2021 took up 1/3 of the investigation period allowed by the investigation motion. Geiger said he contacted the other missions agency which he identified as Global Outreach International and they removed Sills from their employment. The same day, Geiger and Lyell contacted Mohler, he said. Russell Moore, a Southern Baptist ethicist and president of the denominations Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, said the power dynamics involved in abuse have often been misunderstood in evangelical circles. But we must not be silent. In a grievance filed Nov. 21 within the Circuit Courtroom of Cell, Alabama, David Sills, a former professor of missions and [] He said people often turn to clergy when they are at their most vulnerable. She did so after learning her abuser, a former Southern Baptist seminary professor, author and missionary, had recently returned to ministry. Buck, like Ascol, holds no official role in SBC life and has no direct connection to her claims of abuse from Sills. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. (RNS) A former seminary professor and missionary who admitted sexual misconduct has sued a gaggle of Southern Baptist Conference leaders and entities, claiming they conspired with an abuse survivor to damage his repute. Ascols group, Founders Ministries, once was a fringe movement in the SBC but today has a large following, especially among younger seminarians and pastors who were influenced by the Passion conferences in the 1990s. He unsuccessfully ran for the SBC presidency in June. He also said churches often believe survivors were participants in their abusers sins. Want to help your child build lasting, meaningful friendships? Geiger alleged that Mary Sills threatened Jennifer Lyell in text messages and that Mrs. Sills knew of the relationship between Jennifer Lyell and David Sills. Just over two years later, she stated the allegations to then-LifeWay Senior Vice President Eric Geiger and Mohler. Geiger told Lyell he was responsible to share the allegations with Southern and invited her to participate in the process, Geiger recounted to Baptist Press. Pastors and churches called for her to be fired. "I think she was courageous in making those statements and I think it sets an example for how others should also demonstrate an equal courage," Mohler said. I mean, I was like, literally like, I mean, it was it was police at my house and, you know, safety, Lyell said. Lyell told Religion News Service she wished she had never gone public. Lyell explained that she decided to go public with her story after hearing that Sills was appointed to serve as a missionary with a mission agency not affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. Lyell told RNS she did not initially report what happened because she was in shock, confused and scared about what people would believe. The church needs a way of understanding sin and violence that enables Gods grace without giving abusers back their power, their access and their good regard, she said. Lyell was labeled on social media as an adulteress rather than an abuse survivor, with users leaving scores of vile comments about her on Lifeways Facebook page and the Baptist Press website. In a post on her website, Lyell accused Sills of sexually abusing her during a 2004 mission trip and claimed the abuse continued over a decade. Want to share a story? RELATED: Southern Baptist leader, experts say churches should address the abuse of adults. And the incidents Lyell describes would have caused the creation of police reports. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Return to homepage. The full context of the email is this: Thank you again for replying and taking the time to find a scenario with which you are willing to talk with me. And recovering from abuse as an adult is a long-term process. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. It conclusively demonstrated the non-consensual nature of what happened to her. Although the Sillses live in Mississippi and Lyell lives in Tennessee, the lawsuit was filed in Mobile County Circuit Court because former SBC President Ed Litton, who is among the defendants in the suit, lives in Mobile County and the SBC, the conventions executive committee and other SBC entities own and maintain property, employees and/or agents in Alabama, including Mobile County Alabama, the suit stated. The Sillses contend neither Mohler nor the SBC nor Guidepost did sufficient investigation to find out the truth of the matter. Read our republishing, terms of use and privacy policies here. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. In the spring of 2019, Lyell, then a well-respected leader in Christian publishing, decided to publicly disclose that she was a survivor of sexual abuse. Lyell tells the story in her own wordsso people can finally judge for themselves the particulars of the case. Her case has become one of the most high-profile illustrations of the larger reckoning over mishandled knowledge of sexual abuse within the SBC. If so, when so that press can verify this element of the story that is now so obviously a glaring contradiction in the narrative. RNS published a story about the Sills lawsuit Nov. 28 and noted at the end of the story the complaint against Smietana and RNS. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Lyell says Sills, who was a surrogate father figure to her, eventually abused her again and then continued for years, even after she left seminary. [I] became an aunt to their grandchildren, and their grown children became like siblings to me, she wrote. In her statement, Lyell says that it began when she was a student. Bishop Scott Jones moves from extreme center of UMC to new Global Methodist Church, Jesus Revolution leaves out the tough stuff but gets the music right, From Super Bowl ads to Kentucky revivals, stop the Christian cannibalism, Holy Queer author seeks Black church inclusion beyond singing with choir, Its time to stop erasing Black Muslim Americans from the story of Islam in the US, Saddleback Church doubles down on support for female pastors. Based on the information we now have I retract any suggestion that Jennifer Lyells physical relationship with David Sills was consensual., By Aug. 3, 2021 about six weeks after the SBC annual meeting at which a Sexual Abuse Task Force was authorized Midwest Christian Outreach issued an update to its post with this note from Henzel: Shortly after this article was published, Jennifer Lyell graciously reached out to us and provided crucial details of her case both to me and to Midwest Christian Outreach, Inc. President Don Veinot. And Christian theology about sin and about the roles of men and women often makes it difficult for survivors who come forward. She began her thread saying, " What I referenced today about the Baptist Press' defamatory statements regarding @jenlyell and her abuser, former SBTS prof. David Sills, was the tip of the iceberg. Lyell came to us with an allegation of abuse and should have been cared for throughout the entire process. In a grievance filed Nov. 21 within the Circuit Courtroom of Cell, Alabama, David Sills, a former professor of missions and [] BNG has obtained documentation showing this section of the legal filing misrepresents the context of a quotation attributed to sexual abuse survivor Jennifer Lyell a fact available to the three tweeters because they apparently had access to the original email from which it was drawn. And for so long, people have been unable to understand those categories., RELATED: The cost for coming forward one survivors life after #MeToo. All rights reserved. First, the defendants widely circulated their herein-described defamatory lies about Dr. and Mrs. Sills throughout Mobile County and the state of Alabama. Sills claimed there was not any legitimate or proper investigation of Lyells accusations against him. Buck is an East Texas pastor who shares Ascols beliefs and is aggressive on Twitter in spreading his commentaries and accusations. Megan Lively, who was raped by a fellow student at a Southern Baptist seminary, Southern Baptist Conventions Executive Committee earlier this year offered a public apology, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. Man At Center of Massive SBC Sex Scandal Sues Denomination, Along with 11 Prominent Southern Baptists For Lying About Him The Soap Opera Plods On In addition to being missionaries to these groups it is also our purpose to train and equip those who have placed their trust in Jesus Christ, his death, burial and physical resurrection, for their salvation to do the same., At one point last summer, Henzel sent two emails to Ascol, asking him to communicate with elders at Lyells church about Henzels and Veinots concerns regarding Lyells wellness.. She wrote, "Dr. David Sills, then a tenured professor at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, first sexually acted against me on a mission trip in 2004, a pattern that continued and escalated . NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RNS) Jennifer Lyell was trying to do the right thing. Hope youll give us another try and check out some other articles. . Refresher: Sills was man most prominently named as abuser in report. Sills was a professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary until his resignation on May 23, 2018. It interwove Lyells story with this discussion. In a release to Baptist Press (BP) and others, Jennifer Lyell, now 41 and director of the books ministry area at LifeWay Christian Resources, alleges Sills initiated sexual contact with her on a mission trip in 2004. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Based on the credible [Baptist Press report], which I learned of on Friday evening, we suspended inclusion of Sillss book on our site as we did more investigation, InterVarsity Press Publisher Jeff Crosby told CP in an email. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. The larger reckoning over mishandled knowledge of sexual abuse within the SBC presidency in June Christian theology about and... 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