Christa Brown

“If religion matters at all, it matters enough to be taken to task.”
 — from the manifesto of Killing the Buddha

— Describing pastor Josh Howerton as a “living exemplar of an eternally juvenile & highly toxic form of masculinity,” and adding that “no matter how injurious his teachings, he acts with impunity.” “Dallas area pastor tries (and fails) to apologize for wedding night ‘joke’,” Chron.com, April 10, 2024.

— Describing pastor’s wedding night “advice” to women as “gross” and “Not. Funny.” “Texas pastor tells women to ‘do what he tells you to do’ on wedding night,” Chron.com, March 31, 2024.

— Emphasizing the limited nature of the Justice Department’s apparent closure of an investigation of the SBC Executive Committee, I stated: “The SBC and the executive committee are still morally responsible for grievous documented harms.” “Southern Baptists Say Justice Dept. Has Closed Abuse Inquiry into Leadership Body,” New York Times, March 6, 2024.

— Quoted: The reported end of the federal investigation “does not lessen SBC’s moral responsibility for grievous harms. Nor does it alter the reality that, in countless SBC churches, leaders violated state laws & standards.” “Southern Baptist agency says U.S. investigation into sexual abuse has ended with ‘no further action,’” Associated Press (Washington Post), March 6, 2024 (reprinted in The Press-Democrat & Western Slope Now).

— Stating that the end of a federal probe “does not in any way lessen the SBC’s callous rejection of moral responsibility. Nor does it alter the reality that, in countless SBC churches, leaders have violated state laws and refused to protect kids and congregants.” “Southern Baptist official says federal probe of church abuse allegations closed, no charges expected,” Washington Times, March 6, 2024.

— “Christa Brown, a survivor who has led the charge calling for reforms” said: “This does not lessen SBC’s moral responsibility for grievous harms. Nor does it alter the reality that, in countless SBC churches, leaders violated state laws and standards.” “SBC Executive Committee Says No Charges Following Federal Investigation,” Christianity Today, March 6, 2024.

— “Christa Brown, who has long criticized the SBC’s response to abuse as more theater than substance, noted that the denomination hasn’t yet provided funding for the new independent commission. ‘So I’m gonna wait for real-deal deeds before I cheer… and I’m NOT optimistic,’ she posted.” “Southern Baptists oust one church for having woman pastor, two others over sexual abuse policy,” Associated Press, 2/21/2024 (reprinted on FOX News, Yahoo News, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette).

— Quoted: Alabama bill “would be a small step in the right direction… [in] a state dominated by Southern Baptists who have a terrible track record for failing to protect kids.” “Alabama bill would make clergy sex abuse of teens a felony,” Baptist News Global, 2/21/2024.

— Quotes me: “Church investigatory committee told to sign sweeping NDAs, keeping secret even he existence of NDAs. Deacons made to sign loyalty pledge to pastor. Pastor claims ‘spirit of transparency.’ Got it.” “8 deacons leave embattled SBC megachurch, after leaders require ‘loyalty pledge,'” The Roys Report, 2/15/2024.

— “Abuse survivor and reform advocate Christa Brown has called for Chapman to be stripped of his title as president emeritus of the Executive Committee.” “Morris Chapman is willing to come off the bench and serve the Executive Committee again,” Baptist News Global, 2/7/24.

— Urging that every member of the SBC’s abuse reform task force should resign, I stated: “I believe they’re simply lending credibility to a process that is wholly polluted.” “A Southern Baptist leader hid decades of abuse. Will his fall doom abuse reforms?” Religion News Service, 1/22/2024.

— Quoted: “In the abstract, church and denominational leaders talk the talk of being transparent about sexual abuse allegations, but when those allegations arise on the home turf, they almost always conceal things.” “Abuse claims about Arkansas minister who worked in Moore come to light,” The Oklahoman, January 10, 2024.

— Asked about the Pressler case, I said that Duane Rollins “brought more truth to the table than all of the pontificating poobahs of the Southern Baptist Convention combined.” “Former Texas Southern Baptists react to sex abuse settlement,” Chron.com, January 5, 2024.

— “Cultural change in the Southern Baptist Convention isn’t happening… Kids should not have to wait for cultural change to be safe in Southern Baptist churches.” “Arkansas Baptist State Convention president expresses concern about church’s response to abuse claims,” Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, December 20, 2023.

— “This is something I think I’ll never understand – how so many Southern Baptist pastors & leaders – men who are fathers – can turn a blind eye to child sexual abuse. Why don’t their ‘papa bear’ instincts kick in? Humans protect the young. Mammals protect the young. Why don’t they?” “SBC pastor discloses years-old child abuse allegations against a former church staffer,” Church Leader, December 12, 2023.

— “Kids are not safe in the Southern Baptist Convention. An institution in which such egregious patterns persist doesn’t deserve to have children in the pews.” I’m quoted extensively on the patterns of SBC abuse cover-ups. “Prominent Arkansas SBC church accused of hiding knowledge of former staff member’s abuse of a child,” Baptist News Global, December 12, 2023.

— Sarah Stankorb talks about her interview of me: “There was something really beautiful about seeing her in her natural environment, near mountains. Something about seeing her near these immovable objects after she’d spent years fighting, there was something powerful about that.” “Writer urges Protestant churches to reckon with clergy abuse,” Cincinnati Magazine, November 3, 2023.

— In response to Bart Barber’s apology for the amicus brief, Christa Brown asked: “What will he DO to undo the harm… What will any of them actually DO? That’s the important question. And Barber’s statement comes nowhere near answering it.” “SBC president apologizes for signing off on amicus brief,” Baptist News Global, October 30, 2023.

— Quoting the joint statement of David Clohessy, Dave Pittman & me, urging the SBC’s Executive Committee to “affirmatively disavow” the amicus brief. “SBC legal brief sparks crisis of confidence in denomination over abuse response,” Tennessean, October 27, 2023.

— Quoted characterizing SBC Executive Committee statement as “craven, cowardly & despicable,” and stating: “I will NEVER allow my voice or personhood to lend even an ounce of legitimacy to their grotesquely illegitimate ‘reform efforts.'” “SBC sexual abuse survivors respond to Executive Committee’s amicus brief statement,” Church Leaders, October 27, 2023.

— Quoted: “The reason the SBC filed this offensive amicus brief…is because of the pending lawsuit of [Hannah-Kate]…It is HER courage and HER stamina that is bringing much to light.” “SBC lawyers side against sexual abuse survivor in amicus brief to Kentucky Supreme Court,” Church Leaders, October 26, 2023.

— Quoting me about amicus brief against child sex abuse survivors: “What will he DO to undo the harm of that Amicus brief? What will any of them actually DO? That’s the important question. And Bart Barber’s statement comes nowhere near answering it.” “SBC president apologizes for signing off on amicus brief,” Baptist News Global, October 20, 2023.

— In a profile piece on SBC president Bart Barber, I state: “Barber is good at talking the talk on abuse reform, but… No matter how sincerely spoken, empty promises without substantive actions further wound survivors.” “Bart Barber defied the Conservative Resurgence. How it is now shaping his SBC leadership,” The Tennessean, September 18, 2023.

— Sarah Stankorb talks about my story to Lucy May of WXVU/NPR radio in Cincinnati. “‘Disobedient Women’ chronicles the #MeToo movement in the evangelical church,” WXVU/NPR, August 28, 2023.

— “Activists like survivor Christa Brown…had been after the SBC for decades to address clergy abuse.” “Southern Baptists consider women’s leadership a ‘threat,’” Ms. Magazine, July 7, 2023.

— Quoted on the film Shiny Happy People: “It’s nominally about the Duggars but it’s really about the authoritarian abusive ideologies that have permeated broad swaths of evangelicalism, wounded countless people, and undermined our democracy.” “Duggar exposé sets record for Prime video,” The Roys Report, June 20, 2023.

— Quoted: “My heart aches for all the wounded victims…who no doubt feel betrayed by the SBC’s continuing refusal to protect kids…A year ago, SBC officials proposed, in their own words, ‘the bare minimum’ of reform, and now they have done not even that, not even close.” “Southern Baptists’ sex abuse task force renewed for additional year,” Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, June 17, 2023.

— “It was only in 2022, after years of advocacy by women such as Christa Brown that the SBC finally recognized the voices of survivors and approved abuse reforms.” Beth Allison Barr, “The irony of Rick Warren being the main character in the fight for women pastors,” MSNBC, 6/15/2023.

— On a survivor’s reluctance to report abuse to the SBC: “Until survivors can see a real likelihood & track record for meaningful action, then the emotional cost of extending themselves may not be worth it.” “Survivor wins settlement against Florida mega-church and goes public with abuse story,” The Roys Report, 6/7/2023.

— About the SBC’s proposed model for a database: “Under the SBC’s church-centric system, survivors will have to wait for the local church to commission an inquiry. This asks too much of survivors.” “The SBC embarked on sexual abuse reforms last year. What’s at stake at 2023 meeting?” The Tennessean, 6/6/2023.

— On the SBC task force’s announcement that it was “preparing to launch” a sexual abuse database, I said: “A whole year just to ‘prepare to launch.’ And at this point…they aren’t even going to attempt to deal with ‘credibly accused’… So, just the easy ones.” “Southern Baptist Convention makes changes to who will be included in sex abusers database,” The Oklahoman, May 30, 2023.

— In discussing the SBC’s continuing membership declines, I state: “A faith group that so devalues the safety of children…doesn’t deserve to have children in the pews.” “Southern Baptists erase decades of membership growth, fall to 1978 level,” Washington Times, May 9, 2023.

— In discussing a Title IX promotional sign at Cedarville University: “It implicitly conveys a victim-blaming and victim-shaming message. A girl is not at fault for her own assault.” “‘Shaming’ signs at Cedarville University spark controversy,” The Roys Report, 4/27/2023.

— Quoted: “No matter how much good a ministry may do or how many dollars it may rake in, when it turns a blind eye to child sex abuse, then praise for it is malodorous and brings pain to the victims.” “Charles Stanley, TV preacher and Southern Baptist leader, dies at 90,” The Roys Report, 4/18/2023.

— LISTEN: “Southern Baptist leaders KNEW. They knew that pastors were raping kids and congregants. They knew. They let it happen. They CHOSE to do nothing.” From my interview on NPR’s The Takeaway. “A culture of abuse and coverups in the Southern Baptist Convention,” The Takeaway at WNYC Studios, 3/10/2023 (re-aired).

— Quoted: “If they won’t stop Johnny Hunt, I don’t think they will stop anyone.” “Johnny Hunt returns to preaching despite sexual abuse allegation,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2/10/2023.

— “When Christa Brown opened her mouth about the exploitation she endured in the church, the pastors began to fall one by one. It ended with the exposure of no less than 700 clerics involved in sexual abuse.” “She was 16 years old when a pastor took advantage of her. She went on a crusade…,” Haaretz, 1/20/23.

— Stating that Johnny Hunt’s return to the pulpit shows: “Whatever SBC leaders may say about accountability for sexual abuse, the reality is that their words are toothless. This is a faith group that is marinated in impunity for its pastors.” “Here’s Johnny! Embattled SBC pastor back in the pulpit,” Baptist News Global, 1/20/23.

— Speaking about Johnny Hunt’s return to the pulpit, I state: This illustrates the SBC’s “gross inability…to responsibly reckon with clergy sex abuse…. This is a faith group that is marinated in impunity for its pastors.” “Johnny Hunt, disgraced former SBC president, back in pulpit,” The Roys Report, 1/17/2023.

— “Brown, who was mentioned repeatedly in the Guidepost report, said the SBC’s Executive Committee has done little to make amends to her. ‘They are the ones who did wrong. They are the ones who should make it right.'” “Dispute over abuse hotline reveals how far the SBC still has to go,” Religion News Service, 1/11/2023.

— Profile piece by Sarah Stankorb: “Using just her legal expertise, a Blogspot website, and a Twitter account, [Brown] was fighting an institution…with what was then a $1.2 billion operating budget.” “The Southern Baptist Church ignored its abuse crisis. She exposed it.” VICE, 1/4/2023.

— Religion News Association names Christa Brown as one of the “Top 10 Religion Newsmakers of the Year.” “RNA members name Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision top story of 2022,” Religion News Association, 12/21/2022 (reprinted in The Oklahoman, 12/29/2022, and in The Deseret News, 1/3/2023).

— “What will actually be done?” tweeted survivor & advocate Christa Brown. “Leaders denounce former SBC president Johnny Hunt’s return to ministry amid abuse allegations,” The Tennessean, 11/30/2022.

— In response to Bart Barber’s strong words about Johnny Hunt’s return to ministry, Christa Brown said “But so what? Nothing has changed.” “Hunt’s return and a lack of action to hold former SBC leaders accountable for mistreatment of abuse survivors shows ‘a gross inability to deal with the issue.'” “SBC president Bart Barber says predecessor Johnny Hunt is unfit to return to ministry,” Religion News Service, 11/30/2022.

— “Christa Brown, a survivor of sexual abuse by another SBC pastor, wrote on Twitter that while she ‘appreciates the sentiment’ of Mr. Barber’s statement [about Johnny Hunt’s restoration process], she is ‘weary to the bone of words, words, words.'” “Former Southern Baptist leader accused of abuse not restored to ministry, says president,” Washington Times, 11/30/2022.

— Quotes me calling for an independent investigation of every ministry touched by former SBC president Johnny Hunt, including the City of Refuge which was a restoration program for “fallen” ministers. “Disgraced former SBC president Johnny Hunt announces men’s conference, then deletes details,” The Roys Report, 10/15/2022.

— Quoting my tweet: “Even if Bart Barber is 100% sincere, he’s working within a deeply toxic, survivor unfriendly system that hasn’t yet manifested any meaningful transformation or made amends with those it harmed. That’s what is real.” “Southern Baptist leader’s remarks on church sex abuse cases fall far short, says survivor,” Washington Times, 10/10/2022.

— Christa Brown criticized the Executive Committee for “self-congratulatory” talk and said it has “failed to take concrete steps toward making amends to survivors or to take disciplinary steps regarding former officials faulted in the Guidepost report.” “Southern Baptists cut ties with LGBTQ-friendly church,” Associated Press, 9/21/2022 (reprinted in Washington Post & U.S. News & World Report).

— “‘Do you intend to make any amends for your harms?’ Brown asked the Executive Committee.” “‘Now we can start to live’: Southern Baptist committee looks ahead after tumultuous year,” The Tennessean, 9/20/2022 (with raised fist photo).

— “Christa Brown started calling for a denomination-wide database in 2006…After decades of complacency and cover-ups by SBC churches, Brown said, survivors should not be expected to trust those that have repeatedly betrayed them. ‘If survivors do not trust this process, then the database itself becomes illusory and dysfunctional because it won’t acquire the data,’ Brown said.” “The List,” World, 9/8/2022.

— Quoted in this Sarah Posner piece about the SBC’s merger of religion & Trumpism: Southern Baptists leaders “sacrificed all moral credibility. They normalized & minimized the sexual predations of a president in much the same way they normalized & minimized the sexual predations of their clergy colleagues.” “The Southern Baptist Convention’s Deal with the Devil,” The Nation, 9/3/2022.

— VIDEO: Showing my tweet: “…survived every attempt of a powerful mega-monied tentacular faith institution to silence me.” “DOJ investigating abuse allegations against Southern Baptist Convention,” Fox News, 8/17/2022.

— Quoted: “I’ve long believed the day would come when there would be a federal investigation of the horrific abuses & cover-ups in the SBC. But I wasn’t sure if I would live to see it. I’m still here. And I think it’s happening…For decades, egregious wrongs have been tolerated & even normalized in the SBC…not only because SBC leaders allowed the wrongs to happen but also because countless others turned a blind eye.” “‘Long believed the day would come’: Survivors rejoice at news of federal SBC sex abuse probe,” Reckon, 8/16/2022.

— Fabulous explainer article on the DOJ investigation of the SBC, and quotes me: “The possibility of – and hope for – a federal investigation has been on my mind for quite a while. Hallelujah. It’s about time.” “What it means for the Southern Baptist Convention to be under federal investigation for abuse,” The Tennessean, 8/15/2022.

— “Christa Brown, who has long called for the SBC to do more to address sex abuse across its churches, tweeted here reaction: ‘Hallelujah. Three times I’ve publicly called for a federal investigation of the SBC and clergy sex abuse. Finally. This is what’s needed.'” “DOJ investigating sexual abuse in Southern Baptist Convention,” Hill Reporter, 8/13/2022.

— “The federal investigation comes 15 months after Christa Brown…called for a probe.” “Justice Department opens sex abuse investigation into Southern Baptists,” Washington Times, 8/12/2022.

— “Christa Brown, who has long called for the SBC to do more to address sex abuse across its churches, celebrated the news of the DOJ investigation. ‘Hallelujah. It’s about time. This is what’s needed.’” “Southern Baptists say denomination faces DOJ investigation,” Associated Press, 8/12/2022. (Also on NPR and WRDW-TV, and in The Guardian and The Augusta Press)

— Interview of Rolland Slade. “Q: What have you learned from survivors you engaged with during your tenure? A: Christa Brown stood with courage in the face of this huge, huge organization just to be heard.” “Shepherding and Southern Baptist reforms,” World, 6/27/2022.

— According to Brown, “In countless encounters with Baptist leaders, their words & deeds have left a legacy of hate. The lesson they taught said, ‘You are creature void of any value — you don’t matter.'” “Two viruses threaten the life of the Southern Baptist Convention: Male hierarchy and dominion theology,” Baptist News Global, 6/24/2022.

— Christa Brown “was disappointed that after ensuring such a transparent investigation, the task force ‘pulled its punches’… and didn’t recommend more dramatic changes from the start…She told CT she was ‘perhaps more disheartened than ever.'” “After annual meeting, Southern Baptists begin the hard work of abuse reform,” Christianity Today, 6/17/2022.

— “Sexual abuse survivor Christa Brown first proposed the denomination-wide database 16 years ago.” “Southern Baptists set new tone on abuse,” World, 6/17/2022.

— “Survivor and longtime advocate for reform, Christa Brown, said the convention did the ‘bare minimum’ this week, and renewed her call for a government investigation into abuse in the SBC.” “New SBC president commits to move sex abuse reforms forward,” Associated Press, 6/16/2022.

— Christa Brown criticized the reforms: “I know people like happy endings, but I’m not feeling it. I feel grief. It’s better than nothing but that’s such a low bar.” “U.S. Southern Baptist Convention tackles sex abuse at annual assembly,” Reuters, 6/15/2022.

— Describing me as the survivor “who has received the most aggressive public scorn from SBC leaders over the years,” Sarah Stankorb points out that Christa Brown did not attend the meeting, saying that she felt too much anxiety: “This is what I’m left with after so much meanness for so long from so many. It’s not damage from the sexual abuse. It’s damage from the MANY others.” “Reformers notch a ‘fragile’ victory at Southern Baptist Convention elections,” The New Republic, 6/15/2022.

— Christa Brown, who has advocated for more than a decade on the issue, called the reforms disappointing. She had urged a permanent commission and a more “survivor-centric” handling of allegations. “US Southern Baptists to keep sex abuser list after ignored claims,” Al Jazeera, 6/15/2022.

— Quoted: “I ask you to imagine what it’s like to speak about something so painful to a room in which men disrespect you in such a way…to speak about this horrific trauma of having my pastor repeatedly rape me as a child, only to have religious leaders behave this way.” “Patriarchy and purity culture combine to silence women in the Southern Baptist Convention – and are blocking efforts to address the sexual abuse scandal,” The Conversation, 6/14/2022.

— On why I chose to watch the SBC’s live feed from my home rather than attending in person: “It would feel like standing waiting for a shiv.” And on how I had hoped the sex abuse proposals would be more muscular: “I don’t have it in me to cheer for this.” “Southern Baptists vote on sex abuse proposals, debate female pastors,” Washington Post, 6/14/2022.

— On the SBC’s 2022 sexual abuse reforms: “It’s better than nothing but that’s such a low bar. And if this is all that’s done even when such massive media is mustered, that saddens me.” “Southern Baptists vote ‘bare minimum’ steps dealing with sexual abuse,” Washington Times, 6/14/2022.

— Christa Brown called the reforms disappointing. “I know people like happy endings, but I’m not feeling it. I feel grief. It’s better than nothing but that’s such a low bar.” “Southern Baptists agree to keep list of accused sex abusers,” Associated Press, 6/14/2022 (Bishop Accountability). (Bruce Frank says it’s the “bare minimum.”)

— VIDEO: A video message from SBC abuse survivors, including me. 6/12/2022. (and here)

— Quoted: “After release of the Guidepost report, at a time when the task force should have pushed forward with full strength and vigor, instead it pulled its punches and made timid recommendations.” “Southern Baptists prep for annual meeting with heavy hearts, cautious hope,” Christianity Today, 6/10/2022.

— Baptist Press apologizes for its 2007 article saying that I had apologized for making “false accusations.” “Baptist Press makes corrections to abuse-related stories, issues apology,” Baptist Press, June 10, 2022.

— Quoted: “They must get past this notion of telling survivors to go to the local church. All that does is send bloody sheep back to the den of the wolves who savaged them, and people are horribly wounded in that process.” “The sexual abuse scandal rocking the Southern Baptist Convention,” Vox, 6/7/2022.

— Noting that she had previously called for a federal investigation, Brown said: “I’d also be delighted to see state attorneys general conduct these kinds of investigations, particularly in the southern states wehre Southern Baptists are so dominant…Secular intervention is the way forward.” “Baylor professor in op-ed calls for criminal probes of Southern Baptist sex abuse,” Washington Times, 6/7/222.

— Susan Shaw tells part of my story & quotes me: “So many of the names on the SBC’s recently released list…conjure the horrific stories that went with the names & the voices of desperate wounded survivors seeking help. Countless lives have been decimated in the decades-long process of even trying to get the SBC to this threshold where they might begin to address the problem. And it still remains to be seen whether the SBC will actually choose to cross that threshold and move toward implementing truly meaningful reforms. But even if they do, no one should ever forget the human cost of what it has taken….” “Sexual abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention points to subordination of women and girls,” Ms. Magazine, 6/6/2022.

— Survivors’ proposals include a memorial, with Christa Brown having approval rights on “execution of the monument” & the right to demolish it “for whatever reason she chooses, including if the SBC uses her name as a PR prop.” Quotes my characterization of the task force proposals as “toothless suggestions, a retraumatizing database process, incrementalism as complicity.” “Abuse survivors call for more action than proposed by Southern Baptists’ task force,” Washington Times, 6/5/2022.

— LISTEN: Together with Hannah-Kate Williams, discussing the long fight for justice and accountability in the SBC. “It is all well & good for them to talk about what they will do in the future, to say that they will do better in the future, and maybe even to actually DO better in the future, but there must also be a reckoning with the past and with the enormous harm that they ALLOWED on their watch.” “A culture of abuse and cover-ups in the Southern Baptist Convention,” The Takeaway on NPR, 6/3/2022.

— Timothy Dalrymple writes: “Christa Brown speaks with excruciating eloquence on the consequences not only of abuse in the church but of the callous inhumanity that greeted the survivors’ attempts to tell their stories. ‘For most people of faith,’ she says, ‘their faith is a source of solace…’ For her, however, faith is “neurologically networked with a nightmare…It is not only physically, psychologically, and emotionally devastating, but it is spiritually annihilating. It is soul murder.'” “Abuse in the Church and the Road to Jericho,” Christianity Today, 6/3/2022.

— David Brockman column quotes me: The report “confirms the brutal reality of what many clergy sex abuse survivors, including myself, have been trying to bring to light for the past couple decades. But that vindication goes hand in hand with grief.” Stating “the rot runs deep,” Brown worries the SBC will fail to implement “truly transformation reforms” and instead “will try to get by with tweaking things a bit and then doing a bunch of image-management PR work.” “Southern Baptists face up to sexual abuse,” Texas Observer, 6/3/2022.

— Quoted in column by Cameron Smith: “Sexual trauma and faith are inextricably seared together in my brain. It is not only physically, psychologically, and emotionally devastating, but it is spiritually annihilating. It is soul murder.” “We must face Southern Baptist Convention’s ‘soul murder’ and right the wrongs,” The Tennessean, 6/2/2022.

— About the Sexual Abuse Task Force recommendations, I state: “They are kicking the can down the road. I am gutted.” “Southern Baptist abuse task force requests $3 million for reforms, ‘Ministry Check’ website,” Religion News Service, 6/1/2022.

— Quoted: The Sexual Abuse Task Force recommendations are “absolutely heartbreaking and gutting. Deeply and profoundly disappointing. I weep.” “Southern Baptist panel buries compensation demands in recommendations,” Washington Examiner, 6/1/2022.

— “Included on the list was Tommy Gilmore, the man Brown has for years said abused her as a child.” Quotes me: “It’s a perfect profession for a con artist…All he has to do is talk a good talk & convince people that he’s been called by God, and bingo, he gets to be a Southern Baptist minister…” “75 Texas ministers named on Southern Baptists’ internal list of offenders,” Houston Chronicle, 5/31/2022.

— “Victims Christa Brown, Tiffany Thigpen, Jen Lyell and many others have been vindicated, and their detractors have been put to shame.” “Shocking report reveals depth of hypocrisy in Southern Baptist leaders,” The Ledger, 5/31/2022.

— “Brown is all over the sexual abuse report: gadfly, instigator, lone voice, impetus, seemingly the sole voice, for a time, that harried the self-proclaimed holy men to pay attention to the horrors… There are those people doing the exhausting, demoralizing, indefatigable work of demanding change. Who refuse to be numb. Who buzz like one live nerve for a decade or more. They’re not another species, just people that won’t buy into the bullshit…” “Hopeless and Hopeful (by Talia Lavin), The Sword and the Sandwich, 5/31/2022.

— Spanish language news wire EFE quotes me: “Some of us have been through this before…They waited for the media to stop covering the issue, they did a lot of image repair, they said a lot of good things, but in terms of institutional change, there was hardly anything…I think the Southern Baptist Convention has done things worse than Catholics…as its leaders had the opportunity to learn from the experience of the Catholic Church, and decided not to.” (translation) “America’s largest Protestant church held accountable after decades of abuse,” EFE / Listin Diario, 5/30/2022.

— Profiles me and tells my story, naming Gilmore. Quotes me: “For evil to become systemic, it needs a whole lot of enablers…I am very, very aware of the human cost of what it took to get to this point…Resistance against oppressive forces is energy in the universe that is never wasted.” “She spent decades warning Southern Baptists. This week’s revelations brought ‘no joy.’” Houston Chronicle, 5/29/2022 (photos by Michael Ciaglo).

— Quoted in French language news: “For me, it is a very emotional moment, after more than fifty years, to finally see named on this list the pastor who repeatedly raped me when I was a young adolescent. It is a small form of validation and recognition of the truth of what I have been through. So I’m grateful that I’ve lived long enough to see this day, but at the same time I mourn the girl who lived most of her life without anyone in this faith group ever caring one iota about what was done to me.” (Translation) “In turmoil, the largest Protestant church in the United States publishes a list of suspects of sexual assault,” Libération, 5/28/2022.

— Quoted: “This list is just the tip of the iceberg…People in the pews need to know where and who these men are.” “Georgia pastors, others on Southern Baptist list of alleged abusers,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 5/27/2022.

— David Brooks writes: “Christa Brown had the courage to testify before Southern Baptist officials that her youth pastor had repeatedly sexually assaulted her when she was 16. She reported that one official turned his back, literally refusing to look at her, refusing to see her. That is the sort of dehumanization that creates indifference that enables rape, abuse and all the other horrific dehumanizing acts down the road.” “The Southern Baptist Moral Meltdown,” New York Times, 5/26/2022.

— Quoted with raised fist photo: “This means so much…It’s a reflection of how cruel it was to stonewall any kind of validation for decades…They don’t get to pat themselves on the back for this. God only knows why they were keeping it secret. It’s the very tiniest thing of what needs to be done.” “Southern Baptist leaders release sex abuser database they kept secret for years,” Washington Post, 5/26/2022.

— VIDEO: Nick Papantonis interviews me, shows photo of Tommy Gilmore and FBC-Oviedo (now Crosslife Church). Quoted: “I notified 18 Southern Baptist leaders in 4 states…and not a one of those men did a thing…It is a hard truth. I get that. But it is a truth that must be reckoned with.” “Southern Baptist church leaders share secret list of ministers accused of abusing kids,” WFTV9-ABC in Central Florida, 5/26/2022.

— In response to a pastor criticizing recommendations for abuse reforms, I ask: “Where in that is the scriptural admonition to seek justice and love mercy and walk humbly? ‘Seek’ is an active verb, and that is what the Scriptures call us to do.” “Calvinist Baptist pastor says Guidepost recommendations in sexual abuse report are ‘harmful’,” Baptist News Global, 5/26/2022.

— “Repentance requires restitution. There’s a lot of talk now about what the SBC may do moving forward. In addition, there must be a reckoning with the past and the harm that has been done – harm from the whole institutional failure…Augie Boto did not act alone….” “‘Must be a reckoning’: sex abuse survivors respond to SBC Executive Committee statement,” Baptist Press, 5/26/2022.

— Quoted: “It boggles my mind to try to imagine how they could have rationalized keeping this secret list for so many years…It suggests a level of moral bankruptcy that I find incomprehensible.” “Southern Baptist Convention sex abuse report,” News4Jax, 5/25/2022.

— Describing how Augie Boto called Brown’s requests for reform unreasonable and criticized her for using “hyperbole, argumentative language, strident tones.” “SBC Executive Committee repenting for handling of abuse, disowns lawyer’s 2006 letter,” Church Leaders, May 25, 2022.

— Christa Brown renewed her longtime call for a churchwide database…when she proposed that the Executive Committee make its existing private list public. Quoted: “Going to the church in which it happened will never work…It’s like sending already bloody sheep back to the den of the wolf who savaged them…Repentance requires restitution. There’s a lot of talk now about what the SBC may do moving forward…But in addition to that, there must be a reckoning with the past and harm that has been done — not only the harm from the abuse but the harm from the whole institutional failure.” “Southern Baptists say they will release list of alleged sex abusers,” Washington Post, 5/24/2022.

— Quoted in editorial: “How many kids could have been spared horrific harm if only the Executive Committee had taken action back in 2006 when I first wrote to them, urging specific concrete steps?” “Southern Baptists finally face up to sex abuse. They must follow through,” Washington Post, 5/24/2022.

— “All these years when I was…constantly pleading with them to create a database…and over and over, endlessly and constantly the response was, ‘We can’t do it.’ Lo and behold, they’re keeping a list and simply keeping it secret.” “Southern Baptists to release list of ministers accused of sexual abuse,” New York Times, 5/24/2022.

— Peter Wehner quotes me, explaining how countless encounters with Baptist leaders “left a legacy of hate” and communicated “you are a creature void of any value—you don’t matter” As a result, I said, faith has become “neurologically networked with a nightmare.” Their treatment was “soul murder.” “No Atheist Has Done This Much Damage to the Christian Faith,” The Atlantic, 5/24/2022.

— “‘It is one very small step, and so much more is needed,’ said Brown, who has fought for SBC reforms for years, even as leaders repeatedly mocked, insulted, and sought to silence her.” “Southern Baptist leaders will publish secret list,” Houston Chronicle, 5/24/2022.

— On the Executive Committee’s repudiation of Augie Boto’s 2006 letter, I state: “It is one very small step, and so much more is needed, but I hope that this may be the start of a new era in how the EC relates to SBC clergy sex abuse survivors.” “Southern Baptist Convention leaders decide to release long-secret list of accused ministers,” The Tennessean, 5/24/2022.

— Urging that responses to Guidepost’s findings need to “move forward quickly,” expressing gratitude for the Executive Committee’s rejection of Boto’s letter, but also stating: “Augie Boto never acted alone.” “SBC plans to release list of known sexual abusers in churches, refutes its own former general counsel,” Baptist News Global, 5/24/2022.

— Praising Guidepost’s report but stating “we still have to wait for implementation of recommendations and structures and processes to address the problem.” And with respect to Ronnie Floyd, stating: “He fought tooth and nail to prevent this report, to blockade this report,” she said. “He did nothing that I ever saw to promote any kind of transparency in connection with this.” “Report on Southern Baptists faults Arkansas’ Floyd over clergy abuse list secrecy,” Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette, 5/24/2022.

— Stating that the Guidepost report could change the denomination as much as the 2004 John Jay report changed the Catholic Church, and this: “She recounted that almost every SBC survivor she’s ever talked with – and there have been many – has said that the effort to report an abusive pastor caused even greater trauma than the sexual abuse itself.” “Taylors pastor named in report on Southern Baptist sexual abuse handling,” Greenville News, 5/24/2022.

— “Brown, who has been one of the most outspoken survivors, told investigators…she has received ‘volumes of hate mail, awful blog comments and vitriolic phone calls.'” Quotes me: The report “fundamentally confirms what Southern Baptist clergy sex abuse survivors have been saying for decades. I view this investigative report as a beginning, not an end…No one should ever forget the human cost of what it has taken to even get the SBC to approach this starting line of beginning to deal with clergy sex abuse.” “Report: Top Southern Baptists stonewalled sex abuse victims,” Associated Press, 5/23/2022. (reprinted in Denver Post 5/22, Huffington Post & Democrat-Gazette, & by ABC News, Fox News, NPR and The Today Show, and in large part by UK’s Daily Mail, all with raised fist photo)

— Quotes my tweet urging Executive Committee to release the list of accused pastors, and this: “What is absolutely critical is that the local church cannot function as the default or presumed starting place for a survivor to try to obtain an investigation of clergy sex abuse. If the local church is deemed to be a requisite first stop for survivors to pursue action, then many survivors’ voices will be choked in their throats before sound is ever uttered.” “Southern Baptists face push for public list of sex abusers,” Associated Press, 5/23/2022.

— Michael Gerson discusses my meeting with the bylaws work group: “Is it possible to imagine a more cartoonish version of misogynist evil than a male ecclesiastical leader chortling in response to an abused woman’s story?” “The report on Southern Baptist abuses is a portrait of brutal misogyny,” Washington Post, 5/23/2022.

— Quoted: “No one should ever forget the human cost of what it has taken to even get the SBC to approach this starting line of beginning to deal with clergy sex abuse.” “US Southern Baptists ignored, covered up sex abuse claims,” Al Jazeera, 5/23/2022 (with raised fist photo).

— Quoted: “In countless encounters with Baptist leaders, their words and deeds have left a legacy of hate. The lesson they taught said, ‘You are a creature void of any value – you don’t matter’… Sexual trauma and faith are inextricably seared together in my brain… It is not only physically, psychologically and emotionally devastating, but it is spiritually annihilating. It is soul murder.” “Important details you might have missed from the new Southern Baptist sex abuse report,” Houston Chronicle, 5/23/2022.

— David French writes: “One abuse survivor, a woman named Christa Brown, said that an executive committee member turned his back to her when she addressed the committee…Another member allegedly chortled at her. Brown described the emotional impact…” “The Southern Baptist Horror,” The Atlantic, 5/23/2022.

— Quoted: “Will what #SBCtoo survivors suffer ever matter to the SBC? Will the Guidepost report finally prod real change? Waiting.” “Three key takeaways from the bombshell SBC report on abuse and cover-ups,” Relevant Magazine, 5/23/2022.

— Timeline of SBC sexual abuse crisis names me repeatedly, starting in 2004. “40 years in the making: A timeline of the Southern Baptists’ sexual abuse crisis,” Religion News Service, 5/23/2022.

— Great discussion of the Guidepost report, including: “Evidence in the report suggests leaders also lied…” and Russell Moore suggests statue. Quotes me: “The Executive Committee betrayed not only survivors…but betrayed the whole Southern Baptist Convention. They’ve made their own faith into a complicit partner for their own decision to choose institutional protection over the protection of kids and congregants.” “Southern Baptist leaders covered up sex abuse, kept secret database,” Washington Post, 5/22/2022.

— After the Executive Committee rejected the creation of a database in 2008, Brown warned that the problem of abuse would continue: “Unless and until there is a safe place to which the victims themselves can report abuse with some reasonable expectation of being objectively heard … everything else will be window dressing.” “Southern Baptist leaders mistreated abuse survivors for decades,” Religion News Service, 5/22/2022.

— Includes Boto’s “satanic scheme” reference and this quote from me: “Countless encounters with Baptist leaders left a legacy of hate…The SBC Executive Committee’s longstanding resistance to abuse reforms has now yielded a whole new crop of clergy sex abuse victims & of survivors re-traumatized in their efforts to report… The Southern Baptist Convention has a moral obligation to protect the lives, bodies & humanity of kids & congregants in its affiliated churches, to provide care & validation for ALL who have been sexually abused by Southern Baptist clergy, to ensure accountability for abusers & enablers, and to create systems that will ensure these inhumane & unconscionable travesties do not persist into future generations.” “Southern Baptists refused to act on abuse, despite secret list,” Christianity Today, 5/22/2022.

— Tells of how survivors were denigrated as “opportunists” and I was described as a “person of no integrity” and my efforts as a “satanic scheme.” Quotes me: “People’s lives have been absolutely decimated…All of this could have been prevented.” (Includes raised arm photo) “Southern Baptist leaders mishandled sex abuse crisis,” New York Times, 5/22/2022.

— Russell Moore writes: “Those who called out the extent of the problem—most notably Christa Brown & the army of indefatigable survivors who joined that work—were called crazy and malcontents who just wanted to burn everything down.” “This is the Southern Baptist Apocalypse, Christianity Today, 5/22/2022.

— Quoted: “This has always been a long game and advocacy work in this arena will continue for a very long time and into the future.” “‘Ignored, disbelieved’: Southern Baptist Convention sexual abuse report details cover-up, decades of inaction,” The Tennessean, 5/22/2022.

— “Boto said Brown and Denhollander are signs of ‘the devil being temporarily successful.'” “Guidepost report documents pattern of ignoring, denying and deflecting on sexual abuse claims,” Baptist News Global, 5/22/2022.

— Quoted: “I believe this upcoming Guidepost report will be analogous to the John Jay Report in the sense that it will lay a foundation for the next two decades of work in trying to construct a system that will foster accountability.” “A major report on sexual abuse and the Southern Baptist Convention is imminent,” The Tennessean, 5/15/2022.

— “Christa Brown has repeatedly documented cases where abused persons attempted to get help from denominational officials and not only were told nothing could be done but often were treated with derision.” “As report of SBC Sexual Abuse Task Force nears, Southern Baptists are just beginning to count the cost,” Baptist News Global, 5/11/2022.

— When SBC presidential candidate Willy Rice doubled down on defense of deacon removed for abusive behavior, I labeled it as “exploitation of religious language for obfuscation” and expressed my revulsion for how he used “the blood of Jesus to excuse the church’s irresponsible act of making a known abuser into a deacon.” “In Sunday sermon, SBC presidential candidate defends deacons he removed over past abusive behavior,” Baptist News Global, 4/3/2022.

— Commenting on the removal of a deacon from the church of SBC presidential candidate Willy Rice: “It shouldn’t take a pastor running for SBC president in order for an SBC church to come clean with what it knows about one of its own deacons.” “SBC presidential candidate Willy Rice removes deacon over past ‘abusive’ behavior,” Baptist News Global, 4/1/2022.

— Asked to comment on a recorded & leaked conversation, I pointed out that the SBC is “a buck-stops-nowhere system,” and said: “Morally and ethically, the Executive Committee has an obligation to try to make amends for the harm it has caused in many survivors’ lives.” “Another dispute over SBC’s mishandling of sexual abuse claims breaks out on Twitter,” Baptist News Global, 3/19/2022.

— Regarding the SBC Executive Committee’s settlement of a sexual abuse survivor’s case, I was “less optimistic” in viewing it as demonstrative of care for survivors generally, and described it instead as “a strategic decision in a single case to avoid risks they were confronting.” Includes link to my 29-page memo to Guidepost. “SBC leaders make amends with abuse survivor,” World, 2/25/22.

— “In addition to an in-person meeting, Brown sent a memo to Guidepost Solutions…with suggested recommendations for future policy changes.” Summarizes suggestions and includes Bruce Frank’s quote saying “deeply grateful for Christa’s perseverance, grace, and expertise.” “Southern Baptist Convention sexual abuse inquiry must include policy recommendations, advocates urge,” The Tennessean, 2/14/2022.

— “Christa Brown, who has been among the most prominent and vocal of abuse survivors submitted her list of suggestions to Guidepost Solutions.” “SBC’s sexual abuse investigation has gathered 4 terabytes of data and already produced about 100 interviews,” Baptist News Global, 2/9/2022.

— “Christa Brown said it best: ‘The old guard versus new guard paradigm is not my point of view. There is a long, long entrenched pattern. There is a systemic problem that is wholly lacking structures for accountability. You cannot solve it by simply putting new faces into those same inadequate structures.’” “A story behind the story on the SBC and sexual abuse,” Baptist News Global, 2/4/2022.

— How many times can a survivor be expected to “reach out an open hand only to pull back a bloody stump?” It’s a question raised by my 29-page memorandum detailing the mishandling of sexual abuse by the SBC Executive Committee over the course of 18 years. And: “Regardless of what the SBC may or may not ultimately do, I believe the bringing of truth to light holds value in and of itself.” “Survivor reveals new details of how Southern Baptist leaders mishandled abuse allegations,” The Roys Report, 2/2/2022.

— “A 29-page single-spaced memorandum…alleges at least 18 years of mishandling specific instances of sexual abuse by the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee. The allegations include resistance to meaningful abuse reform initiatives and the mistreatment & intimidation of survivors. The memorandum…describes all these instances with vivid detail & comprehensive documentation.” “29-page memorandum illustrates what the SBC Sexual Abuse Task Force is hearing,” Baptist News Global, 2/2/2022.

— “Some of these recent state convention motions and resolutions may carry the appearance of caring about abuse, but whether they will hold substance remains to be seen.” “Spurred by national debate over sex abuse investigation, Southern Baptists take initiative to state level,” The Tennessean, 11/21/2021.

— Pointing out that, years ago, Christa Brown called on the SBC to create a database of clergy predators. Then: “Heaps of additional data may create powerful pressure for the SBC to adopt recommendations for these kinds of reforms” such as a database, Brown said. Meanwhile, “survivors are left waiting and hoping.” “There’s another sexual abuse inquiry underway within the Southern Baptist Convention,” Tennessean, 10/24/2021.

— “A systemic cure for this institution’s ails will be painful and it will mean sacrifice,” Brown said. “But if the SBC winds up needing to sell nearly all its assets for the sake of providing reparations and restitution to those it has so grievously harmed, then this would be for the good.” “Southern Baptist leader resigns over rifts over sex abuse,” Associated Press, 10/15/2021 (reprinted in Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Claims Journal, CT Insider, La Cross Tribune, Spokesman-Review).