Posted on 12/04/2019 11:20:39 AM PST by Gamecock
The Rev. Wes Feltner, lead pastor of preaching and vision at the multi-campus Berean Baptist Church in Burnsville, Minnesota, has resigned from his post amid an investigation into allegations from two 35-year-old women who say he manipulated them into sexual relationships while they were teenagers 17 years ago.
“After much prayer and deep consideration for his family and the mission of Berean Baptist Church, pastor Wes Feltner has submitted his resignation,” elders of the church read from a statement to the congregation last weekend, according to the Star Tribune. “Pastor Wes and his family are entering a period to seek healing and we will walk with them during this process.”
Feltner and his wife have three children and reside in the south metro area of the Twin Cities in Minnesota.
Berean Church officials said earlier this month that they had hired an outside firm to investigate the claims of JoAnna Hendrickson and Megan Frey, who allege in separate narratives on a website they created that Feltner used his position of authority to dupe them into explicit relationships while he was their youth pastor at First Southern Baptist Church in Evansville, Indiana.
“After 17 years of guilt, shame, blaming myself and questioning every authority, I can see that I did not ask for it, and I did not initiate it. I was not too immature or naive. I was a youth asking for help … I was manipulated. I was sexually abused,” Frey concluded in her account.
Both women, who were about 18 when they got involved with Feltner, shared similar stories of how they went to him for counseling about relationship issues that evolved into prolonged sexual relationships.
“Unbeknown to us, Wes would have JoAnna over to his home a couple nights a week, and then have me over the opposing nights. Many nights, he would have the youth group over for a movie or games, etc., and I would then have to pretend to leave, drive to Bethel Temple Church to park in the lot, and await his arrival, after everyone had left his house, usually around 10 p.m.,” Megan wrote in her story.
“At a point in our [almost 9 month] relationship, I began questioning it all as I felt a change in his behavior and found an earring and a hair pin on the floor by his bed. This was especially alarming alongside a pregnancy scare, to which he responded that he’d marry me and it will all work itself out soon. A noticeable pattern of change had developed [months prior] in his moods and sexual behavior toward me. He went from caring, attentive, sharing bubble baths and candlelight to sexually ‘rough’ and dominant behavior. I was young and naive enough to think this was how older people appropriately handled intimacy,” she added.
Feltner’s betrayal was only discovered at a youth winter retreat in 2002 when both women discovered, through mutual friends of their youth pastor, that they were both involved in a messy love triangle.
When their parents confronted the church’s pastor about the alleged abuse of Feltner’s authority, they were urged to keep things quiet, the two women allege.
“JoAnna’s and my parents met with pastor Don Moore to discuss the betrayal and lies that were exploding before us. Wes told Joe Donahue [his friend in ministry] that ‘he was a dead man,’ and ‘his ministry was over!’ In response to Wes’ behaviors that evening, a few men from the church went to Wes’ house and removed all guns and risk of him hurting himself,” Frey wrote.
“Meanwhile, at the church Pastor Don simply dismissed it all, saying that allowing the church to know what had happened and telling the truth would only allow the church body to see myself and JoAnna for the blame we deserve, and that we needed to protect the church. This meant, ‘what had happened will not be made public, and we should not talk about it,’” she said.
Hendrickson, who also said she blamed herself for a long time for the alleged abuse she experienced after seeking help from Feltner regarding her ex-boyfriend, says she is no longer doing so.
“Just because he made sure we were 18, and legal, did not make it right! We trusted him, and the parents of First Southern entrusted their youth to him. And he abused his authority as a minister,” she wrote.
Feltner, 41, told the Star Tribune that some details of the accusers’ narratives were true but not all. He said he offered to speak with the women with the help of a mediator but they declined. Once the investigation is over, he said, the allegations will be addressed in more detail.
Church elders further noted in a statement that it was “necessary to complete this investigation to be able to speak into the healing process for Wes and for all involved. We also know that this season has opened wounds in our faith family and we are developing a plan to make resources available to help heal our faith family.”
Feltner was reportedly in the running for a pastor position at a church in Clarksville, Tennessee, the Tribune said, but he was dropped in October after officials there heard the women’s stories. He was also suspended from teaching at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.
Gamecock, your big hole with morons lacking discernment is fine in some cases. But it still applies to the Church of Rome, which you belong to.
Had a high school classmate, she was 18, she married one of the teachers , (30 something), who had previously coached the girl’s then boyfriend in cross country and track. The boyfriend was a year older than her, graduated and went on to college.
“What would he possibly need a lawyer for?”
Under the generalization that Allegations quite often have lawyers attached. Of course seeing the actions that the church took could involve a lawsuit as well, and since the 24 year old youth pastor is part of that dynamic...
"Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
Simply put, a fornicator is unfit to be a pastor. The bigger skunk, however, is the evil pastor who engineered the coverup.
You are correct. His position was such that this behavior was cause for scandal. I can’t believe I missed that very important point.
And?
We are talking about a church, which should have higher standards than a public school.
FRiend Gamecock, I didn't realize you had Poped! Welcome to the Dark Side ... we have cookies!
Just kidding. Fwiw, someone who once called me a "cultist" believed I was a Southern Baptist!
She whining about something she did freely as an adult nearly 20 years ago. Why?
Looking through the comments, I see a little discussion over whether or not he broke a law. Most conclude it doesn’t. There is a comparison to licensed counselors, but that probably doesn’t apply. I know many states have laws about teachers and students in public schools, but I haven’t heard of any law broad enough to make this a criminal offense.
Wrong. The Pervy pastor targeted girls he was counseling. The pervy pastor also knows that fornication before marriage is a sin. He’s a deviant who targeted vulnerable girls which makes him a predator and pig.
I agree. I don’t think there’s relevant criminal law.
An 18 year old is a adult woman, not a girl. Why does an adult need a youth pastor?
Why was the pervy pastor targeting people he was counseling? Why was the pervy pastor committing sin of fornication?
Clergy targeting followers isn't a bug in religion it's a feature.
What happens in church stays in church.......
but gee, I sure hope Wes "heals"....
its the money.....
If they were of legal age how did he manipulate them
Women don’t want equal treatment
They want more victim status
You learn this young as kids messing with girls
They cry easier
They feign hurt feelings easier
They are willin to stop a groups desires just to get their own way
They tell.....this is a big one
Then they grow up and exploit the same talents
If you expect a woman to reason and react logically and listen like a man
You’ll be frustrated a lot
This is why men get quiet..
It’s just easier.
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