Whistleblower's death casts pall on Southern Baptist meeting and stalled sex abuse reforms

Boston Globe

2 days ago

Friends reported that the backlash Lyell received after going public with her report took a devastating toll on her.
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Several abuse survivors and advocates for reform, who previously had a prominent presence in recent SBC meetings, are skipping this year's gathering, citing lack of progress by the convention.
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Two people sought to fill that void, standing vigil outside of the meeting at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas as attendees walked by. The pair held up signs with photos of Lyell and of Gareld Duane Rollins, who died earlier this spring and who was among those who accused longtime SBC power broker Paul Pressler of sexual abuse.
'It's not a healthy thing for them (survivors) to be here,' said Johnna Harris, host of a podcast on abuse in evangelical ministries. 'I felt like it was important for someone to show up. I want people to know there are people who care.'
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Barry Bowen (left) and Johnna Harris hold signs honoring the recently deceased Gareld Duane Rollins (left poster) and Jennifer Lyell, whistleblowers who faulted the Southern Baptist Convention's handling of sexual abuse.
Peter Smith/Associated Press
Past attempts at reforms in the SBC
The SBC Executive Committee, in a 2022 apology, acknowledged 'its failure to adequately listen, protect, and care for Jennifer Lyell when she came forward to share her story.' It also acknowledged the denomination's official news agency had not accurately reported the situation as 'sexual abuse by a trusted minister in a position of power at a Southern Baptist seminary.'
SBC officials issued statements this week lamenting Lyell's death, but her fellow advocates have denounced what they say is a failure to implement reforms.
The SBC's 2022 meeting voted overwhelmingly to create a way to track pastors and other church workers credibly accused of sex abuse. That came shortly after the
But the denomination's Executive Committee president, Jeff Iorg, said earlier this year that creating a database is not a focus and that the committee instead plans to refer churches to existing databases of sex offenders and focus on education about abuse prevention. The committee administers the denomination's day-to-day business.
Advocates for reform don't see those approaches as adequate.
Southern Baptist Convention President Clint Pressley gave the President's Address during the 2025 SBC Annual Meeting on Tuesday. SBC officials issued statements this week lamenting Lyell's death, but fellow advocates have denounced what they say is a failure to implement reforms.
Richard W. Rodriguez/Associated Press
It is the latest instance of 'officials trailing out hollow words, impotent task forces and phony dog-and-pony shows of reform,' abuse survivor and longtime advocate Christa Brown wrote on
In a related action, the Executive Committee will also be seeking $3 million in convention funding for ongoing legal expenses related to abuse cases.
What is on the agenda?
As of Tuesday afternoon, attendance was at 10,456 church representatives (known as messengers). That is less than a quarter of the total that thronged the SBC's annual meeting 40 years ago this month in a Dallas showdown that marked the height of battles over control of the convention, ultimately won by the more conservative-fundamentalist side led by Pressler and his allies.
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That conservative consensus remains in the convention. This year's convention will be asked to approve resolutions lamenting 'willful childlessness' and calling for bans on same-sex marriage and pornography and restrictions on sports betting.
Messengers will also debate whether to institute a constitutional ban on churches with women pastors and to abolish its public-policy arm, the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission — which is staunchly conservative, but according to critics, not enough so.
Brent Leatherwood, president of the ERLC, said Tuesday he would address the 'turbulence' during his scheduled remarks Wednesday but was confident in the messengers' support.
'I think the majority of Southern Baptists are going to say once again, like they always have, 'We need an entity that is dedicated to taking a distinctively Baptist voice and speaking in the public square,' ' Leatherwood said.