Sex abuse victims' advocates go after Southern Baptists

[DeepModem Mom]

CNN/AP: Sex abuse victims' advocates go after Southern Baptists
February 21, 2007

NASHVILLE, Tennessee (AP) -- The victims' advocates who dogged the Roman Catholic Church over sex abuse by its clergy have now turned their attention to the Southern Baptists, accusing America's largest Protestant denomination of also failing to root out molesters.

The Chicago-based Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests has started a campaign to call attention to alleged sex abuse committed by Southern Baptist ministers and concealed by churches.

SNAP presented a letter Monday to Southern Baptist Convention executive committee members in Nashville, asking the group to adopt a zero-tolerance policy on sex abuse and to create an independent review board to investigate molestation reports.

Church leaders concede there have been some incidents of abuse in Southern Baptist congregations, but say their hands are tied when it comes to investigating complaints across the denomination.

Unlike the Catholic Church, with its rigid hierarchy, Baptist churches are independent. They make their own decisions about hiring ministers and conducting investigations, Baptist leaders say.

"They don't want to see this problem," said Christa Brown, a SNAP member from Austin, Texas, who says she was sexually abused as a child by a Southern Baptist minister. "That's tragic because they're imitating the same mistakes made by Catholic bishops."...

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/02/21/southern.baptist.ap/index.html

[Erika]

1. They are leaving the gays and athiests alone for once?

OK

[NI4NI]

2. Too bad SNAP waited until now.

If SNAP had exposed scum like Beverly Russell sooner in South Carolina for molesting Susan Smith, his step-daughter, she may have never ever drowned her two children, the horrendous act that Newt Gingrich quickly blamed on a liberal society.

[xchrom]

3. lol -- oh this is rich!

best news i've had all week.