By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org
NASHVILLE — In what was originally to be an informational meeting, members of the Executive Committee voted to suspend the rules in order to vote on a statement of support for survivors of sexual abuse.
Roland Slade, chair of the Executive Committee, noted during the Zoom call that everyone is still processing the report and called for members to “lament, listen and learn” in the days ahead.
“This is a new day in the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention,” Slade said. “Now that we know (what happened in the past), we must do better.”
Willie McLaurin, interim president of the EC, agreed. The findings from the task force report “grieved me deeply,” he said. McLaurin issued a public apology to sexual abuse survivors for all that has been done to cause them hurt and pain.
“Our time today is just the beginning,” he pledged. “Now is the time to change the culture” by being open and transparent from this moment on. ”When we do the right things in the right way, it brings glory to God.”
McLaurin, along with interim SBC counsel Gene Besen and Scarlett Nokes, guided the discussion.
Besen noted that it is imperative to focus on the survivors of sexual abuse. He noted that former EC vice president and general counsel D. August Boto said at one point that “a continued discourse between us (the EC and survivor advocates) will not be positive or fruitful.”
The Executive Committee must “repudiate” that statement with every bit of energy it can muster, Besen said.
He also informed EC members that the “secret list” developed by Boto will be released after it has been substantiated and that Boto’s (and others’) retirement benefits may be considered.
Following the meeting, McLaurin released this statement: “The SBC Executive Committee is diligently reviewing the list of offenders and abusers referenced in the Guidepost report with the goal of making as much of the report public as quickly as possible. As mentioned during the meeting on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, names of survivors, any confidential witnesses, and details regarding any unsubstantiated allegations will be redacted before the document is published. That work is being done carefully and as quickly as possible, with an anticipated release date of Thursday, May 26, 2022. Additional information will be provided with the release of the list.”
During the meeting, Besen suggested the EC approve a statement to be released immediately. The statement reads:
“As Southern Baptists review Guidepost’s report and the recommendations of the Sexual Abuse Task Force, the SBC Executive Committee would like to address statements it has previously made, including, but not limited to, the September 29, 2006 statement by then-SBC Executive Committee vice president and general counsel, D. August Boto, in which he concludes that a “continued discourse between us (the Executive Committee and Survivor advocates) will not be positive or fruitful.”
“The SBC Executive Committee rejects this sentiment in its entirety and seeks to publicly repent for its failure to rectify this position and wholeheartedly listen to survivors. Today, in the immediate aftermath of the report’s release, the SBC Executive Committee seeks to make clear that it views engaging with survivors as a critical step toward healing our Convention from the scourge of sexual abuse and working to avoid its continued impact on our loved ones, their families, and our network of churches.”
Though members expressed agreement with the statement, several EC members, including the chair, questioned whether they could vote since the meeting was “for informational purposes.”
Slade noted that several members could not be on the call because of commitments they could not get out of, including one who had to be in court. “I don’t believe it is fair” for those who would not be able to vote, he said.
Some members said releasing the statement without a vote of the members would be seen as “rubberstamping,” which previous Executive Committees were accused of.
A motion was made to suspend the rules (which require a two-thirds vote). The motion was approved and the EC members adopted the statement by a margin of 97 percent.
McLaurin said EC members will meet again prior to the SBC annual meeting in Anaheim in June. B&R