“Church members, elders, and leaders must demand stricter policies for investigating claims of misconduct if they want to demonstrate their commitment to the Gospel of Christ.”
Moved recently and am looking for a church. The church I used to be part of has a policy of turning over any accusation to the cops for investigation. We also did background checks on anyone working with kids. During the decade I was there no accusations were made.
I’d argue this is a reason for a smaller LOCAL church versus a huge church organization. Hard to hide among 50 people.
I’m also leaning more to the “home church” movement, perhaps combined with online sermons. I think we need to prepare for going underground as government persecution sets in.
The problem with home churches/ small groups is they are far easier to fall to a cult of personality. Having seen quite a number of home Bible studies turn into out right heresy, there needs to be an oversight mechanism.
Which can lead to corruption to.
People are crappy.
I fully agree with that church. When it comes to abuse, there is absolutely no room for internal investigations.
I know of one large church. An abuse allegation came forward from a couple boys. Within minutes the police were called.
As a senior volunteer with a national Christian youth organization, protection of our youth is a huge priority. We strive for better than world class