Travis Gettys
August 29, 2024
Evangelical worshippers (Photo by Larry Marano for Shutterstock)
Congregants are streaming out the doors of a Texas megachurch after another pastor resigned over an undisclosed "moral issue."
Gateway Church founder Robert Morris stepped down in June after allegations surfaced that he had sexually abused a 12-year-old girl in the 1980s, and executive pastor Kemtal Glasgow became the fourth pastor since then to resign as the number of worshipers dwindles each Sunday, reported CNN.
“It’s anger, it’s all the range of emotions,” said Emily High, who quit attending services at the church shortly after the allegations came to light. “Being a pedophile, a molester, that’s not okay.”
A spokesman said the church, which was recently renamed Newlands Church, has seen a decrease of 17 percent to 19 percent of weekend service attendance since Cindy Clemishire, now 54, went public with her allegations that Morris, who served as a spiritual adviser to former president Donald Trump, had molested her over a period of five years.
Morris admitted a short time later to having “inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady” decades earlier, and the church initially said he had been been “open and forthright about a moral failure" and had undergone a two-year “restoration process,” but he resigned days later.
“As an elder, I did not know the truth, and frankly, like so many of you, my wife and I are shocked, devastated and grieving,” said megachurch elder Tra Willbanks, during a church service in June.
The board said Morris had discussed the inappropriate relationship with them many times, but members said he assured them that had taken place before founding the congregation and never mentioned it involved a child.
The founding pastor's son James Morris had been expected to become lead pastor next year, but he and his wife Bridgette resigned after he was asked to take a leave of absence while an independent law firm conducted a review of the abuse allegations.
Three current elders who served on the board from 2005 to 2007 were placed on leave during that review following a recommendation from the law firm, but all three said they had "no knowledge of the true facts of this situation."
“As an elder, I did not know the truth, and frankly, like so many of you, my wife and I are shocked, devastated and grieving,” said megachurch elder Tra Willbanks, during a church service in June.
The board said Morris had discussed the inappropriate relationship with them many times, but members said he assured them that had taken place before founding the congregation and never mentioned it involved a child.
The founding pastor's son James Morris had been expected to become lead pastor next year, but he and his wife Bridgette resigned after he was asked to take a leave of absence while an independent law firm conducted a review of the abuse allegations.
Three current elders who served on the board from 2005 to 2007 were placed on leave during that review following a recommendation from the law firm, but all three said they had "no knowledge of the true facts of this situation."
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