Baptist churches take responsibility to prevent clergy abuse
The Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, like the national convention, say they don’t have the authority to assemble such a database, but continue to equip churches with the most powerful resource they have against abusive pastors: background checks.
Only in the past 20 years have background checks become standard practice for Southern Baptist churches, and some lay leaders are still hesitant about questioning the word of a man of God, but it’s an absolutely necessary step for church staff, said Gary Ledbetter, spokesman for the Southern Baptists of Texas.
“Any prospective staff member with a lick of sense is not going to be offended,” he said....
