Update: Status Of Victims Advocacy For Clergy Sexual Abuse

I Am My Brothers Keeper Christian Advocacy Council: HERE

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ALL Is Not Lost...COGIC General Election Turmoil...Who Has The Authority?

It seems that the secular world is not the only place where there is election turmoil and confusion during COVID times. There seems to be "confusion" and mixed messages over exactly what to do and who is authorized to do it. 

SHORT STORY:

Former Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake chose not to seek reelection. Allegedly, and according to church rules his term as Presiding Bishop expired in November 2020. A date was set to hold a VIRTUAL General Assembly December 28th, 2020. At that time a date of Feb. 23rd 2021 was set to hold the Quadrennial Election for Presiding Bishop and General Board Members of our church. Allegedly 93% of delegates voted to conduct the election during that time as opposed to waiting until April of 2021. Under  normal circumstances the election would have been held in November 2020, so the time was already past for which a decision should have been made by the General Assembly. However, to make matters worse,  there were 4 General Board Members who had passed away and 2 (including Bishop Blake) not seeking reelection. 

That information can be confirmed HERE at about the 12:55 mark into the video. 

This is where the waters get kind of MURKY:

Well, it seems that on the Feb. 23rd date, not only was it unusually cold and half the country was in an unexpected deep freeze, which allegedly knocked many delegates out of the ability to vote at the appropriate time, but according to a letter sent to COGIC Delegates, by Bishop L.F. Thuston, The Chair Of The General Assembly, there were many unnamed "IRREGULATIRIES" in voting that occurred causing the leaders of the General Assembly to shut down the vote. ALLEGEDLY all parties concerned agreed to suspend the General election until such a time as was acceptable, this included the FORMER Presiding Bishop in his now technically nonexistent role...Yea, I know more confusion...

Well, it gets even worse...According to Bishop Thuston, the ACTUAL election is to take place March 20th...and ALL previous votes are to be zeroed out and everyone, including those who voted previously, are to vote again. 

This has led the FORMER Presiding Bishop to make a statement as we can hear for ourselves in this video:

As of this writing, there is an alleged letter being circulated among COGIC Bishops from the Presiding Bishop, or FORMER Presiding Bishop Blake instructing nobody to vote on March 20th, and wait until April to take up the entire matter. However, is that what should be done?

Serious QUESTIONS Have Arisen that must be addressed

Has the General Board Powers Expired because we are beyond November in which their term, all terms have expired?

If an election is had tomorrow, are the votes valid and binding? 

Does Former Presiding Bishop Blake have any authority to call a General Board Session to any degree while General Assembly is in session?

Remember, the General Assembly is the ONLY legislative and rule making authority in the Grand Ole Church. It doesn't matter what a preacher preaches and or believes. Only the General Assembly makes laws of the church. (Believe me, it's a complex relationship and I don't mean to over simplify it, as the General Assembly also includes the Bishops) 

So an additional question does Bishop's Thuston's have power as Chair of General Assembly to wield as he supposes in tandem with or with the authority of the General Assembly? 

The COGIC  JUDICIARY BOARD

"The Judiciary Board is the Supreme Court of the Church Of God In Christ, Inc. (COGIC). As the final authority of questions of ecclesiastical constitutional doctrine, it maintains balance between the Legislative (General Assembly) and Executive Branch (General Board). The Judiciary Board is also the final appellate forum of the COGIC for disputes, except in cases that have been appealed to the Presiding Prelate for executive clemency (i.e. Pastoral and Bishops removals and Church disorganization).

The Judiciary Board is comprised of nine members from Episcopal, Ministerial and General Assembly categories of the church. Three members are Jurisdictional Bishops (Episcopal); three members are elders other than bishops (Ministerial); and three members are from the church at large (General Assembly). Board members are elected and retained in office by the General Assembly.

Each member cannot serve more than two terms; nor can he or she serve more than 14 years in office, unless approved by the delegates of the General Assembly. Each Judiciary Board member is at least 45 years of age and an active member of the Church Of God In Christ in good standing. Because their duties require them to function as “judges,” it is imperative that each possess mature judgment, proven ability, integrity and a thorough knowledge of the Church Of God In Christ constitution and doctrine." ~ COGIC Judiciary Board

There appears to be a "court of appeal" to settle these issues. What is certain is that these questions can be answered and addressed and the situation is, in my opinion, not as desperate as it seems. 

The JUDICIARY is the only organization within COGIC that determines standing and ultimately authority under the church's constitution. It is the JUDICIARY headed by COGIC Chief Justice Bishop Martin Luther Johnson, that should be entrusted to make the final rule as it pertains to the Constitutional or organizational operations on this matter. Until then, all things are comments, observations and suggestions.

We deserve much more than that on all things and should be in a better position to know what is going on AFTER Judiciary has received the arguments and reviewed the cases.

CONCLUSION 

In short, it seems that everyone wants to see COGIC broken up yet again. COGIC is responsible for I would say, nearly 20 to 30% of independent churches that exist today. For one reason or another a COGIC Minister, Elder and in some cases Bishop, left COGIC to start their own church. Many for good cause and being led of the Lord because God is greater than any denomination or organization among men...HOWEVER, COGIC can certainly weather this storm. 

COVID has come to reveal motives and that is exactly what has happened. I have said time and time again, what needs to be asked of any and all future leaders, is what is the agenda for God's people? It needs to be more than just updating computers or buying land. It needs to be centered around SOULS, doing JUSTICE and RIGHTEOUSNESS of God. It must be against pedophiles and abusers of men and women in church. It must take an OPEN stand against sexual promiscuity and homosexual sins and perversions. 

These are things that are right and all I really care about...LET GOD ARISE AND HIS ENEMIES BE SCATTERED!

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COGIC Pastor Senteced To Life PLUS 220 Years For Sexual Abuse

Special thanks to a reader of the Dunamis Word who recently brought to my attention the outcome and ongoing circumstances regarding a horrific case of sexual abuse. I want to stop and say this first....

COGIC SEXUAL ABUSE BY A SMALL PERCENTAGE OF OUR CLERGY STILL EXISTS AND NOT ONLY MUST BE DEALT WITH AND PUT DOWN, BUT VICTIMS MUST BE HEALED, MINISTERED TO, AND RECONCILED. FAILURE TO DO THAT IS NOT REPRESENTATIVE OF CHRIST, NO MATTER HOW MUCH WE SHOUT, DANCE AND SPEAK IN TONGUES!  

Although clergy sexual abuse is not unique to our church, and happens in every church and every denomination on Earth, I am disturbed when it happens in my church.

I would say to any pastor and any Jurisdictional prelate, unless you have a "Safe Church Plan" in place, you and the people in your church, and organization are dangling on the edge. I'll continue to deal with that in another writing, but background checks and sexual harassment training doesn't do it!

Logan Wesley III of Texarkana, AK was recently sentenced to life PLUS 220 years for his filthy and perverted acts and actions with youth of his church over a number of years. It seems that this "pastor" was so much of a predator, that he took time to defile kids on church vans, at his personal residence, at the church and seemingly whenever and wherever he could get time to rape his victims, and then would threaten them or bribe them not to tell of his demonic acts.  

After the sentence prosecuting States Attorney Kelly Crisp stated the following:

“The jury, having heard evidence that Logan Wesley has been terrorizing and

raping children since at least 1981, sentenced him to the maximum amount of prison time for each of the counts for which he was convicted,” Crisp said. “Wesley’s prolific and outrageous criminal behavior entirely justifies the sentence he received. The repeated violations of the criminal laws of the State of Texas caught up with Logan Wesley this week. Thankfully the 12 citizens of Bowie County who made up this jury showed this defendant the same amount of mercy he showed his victims, which was none.”

What adds insult to injury is that Pastor Wesley's wife and even Church Mother is now caught in the web of sin and defilement, because as mandated reporters, they failed to act and tell authorities when knowledge came to them that pastor Wesley was engaging in or potentially engaging in these acts and actions. The Texarkana Gazette reports that the next round of liability lawsuits have begun HERE.

YES, if a person comes to you, and you re in a position of leadership within a church, and you reside in a mandated reporter state, and you fail to report such acts, YOU COULD GO TO JAIL for being complicit in abuse. 

So here we have a church completely destroyed, victims that have had their life totally upended, an alleged pastor jailed for life, his family destroyed in the process, and many of you will only yet sing the praises of the church as if, "that was them, this is me"...well, YOU'RE NO BETTER than any of these folk. You're ungodly too, if you don't see the sense of urgency in dealing with and putting this mess and mess like it down for good!

For a considerable amount of time, COGIC has stood behind a "faith mission" concept claiming no direct responsibility for sexiually abusive clergy, while simultaneously demanding payment for annual credential assessment in the name of "National Reports", and no direct obligation to victims of said abuse at the hands of many of these national report holders. Allegedly, checks have been written by the national church to victims and several NDA's have been signed that continue to keep silence and allegiance among the ranks. While these reports may or may not be true, what is still clear, is that there's STILL NO CLEAR PATH TO RESTORATION for those who have suffered victimization, and I still await meetings to discuss plans that this church can implement to reverse all of the negative stigma and ungodly actions surrounding this issue.  

As stated, progress has been made in certain areas, such as background checks and sexual harassment training, which are issues prior to Elder DL Foster's COGIC ABUSE WATCH, were not on the horizon to be fixed and or addressed. So thanks for "some "progress, but that is not nearly enough!

NO PROGRESS has been made as to how the church handles those who have been victimized or reintegrates and restores them that have been hurt and suffer this abuse. NO PROGRESS has been made as to how the church immediately removes such pastors or delays pastoral activities until such questions have been given a response. The procedural codes need to be updated, but there is no will to do so in many instances. 

Well, as stated above, the victims have filed civil suit for damages and COGIC has been named a party to their suit. For certain COGIC will seek summary dismissal, claiming that they have no direct responsibility for this pastor's actions as I have witnessed in many other instances and been party to in at least one. Who knows how that will go or how that will be interpreted by the court, but the fact is, beyond the courts, the CHURCH SHOULD DO RIGHT and be actively engaged in the RESTORATION of these victims both emotionally and spiritually. Be the LIGHT that we claim that we are. It's really just that simple.

Blessed!

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