Southern Baptist Sexual Abuse Spreads as Leaders Resist Reforms - Word&Way

Southern Baptist Sexual Abuse Spreads as Leaders Resist Reforms

Former Judge Paul Pressler, who played a leading role in wresting control of the Southern Baptist Convention from moderates in 1979, poses for a photo in his home in Houston on May 30, 2004. (AP Photo /Michael Stravato; caption amended by RNS)

Former Judge Paul Pressler, who played a leading role in wresting control of the Southern Baptist Convention from moderates in 1979, poses for a photo in his home in Houston on May 30, 2004. (AP Photo /Michael Stravato; caption amended by RNS)Since 1998, roughly 380 Southern Baptist church leaders and volunteers have faced allegations of sexual misconduct, an investigation by the Houston Chronicle and the San Antonio Express-News reveals.

They left behind more than 700 victims, many of them shunned by their churches, left to themselves to rebuild their lives. Some were urged to forgive their abusers or to get abortions.

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