All posts tagged: Rachael Denhollander

Should Christian men run America? Hell no, say abuse survivors in new documentary

Should Christian men run America? Hell no, say abuse survivors in new documentary

Published by skeptic

Christa Brown speaks about experiencing abuse, at a rally outside the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex, June 11, 2019, in Birmingham, Ala. (RNS photo/Butch Dill) (RNS) — Christa Brown has heard former President Donald Trump and his supporters boast of returning Christians to power in the United States — and returning the nation to what they say are its Christian roots. She wants none of it. Brown, a sexual abuse survivor and longtime advocate for abuse reform in the Southern Baptist Convention, has seen what happens when Christian men have power over women in the church. The thought of them having the same power over the country makes her quake. “I have seen what it means for the largest evangelical Protestant faith group in the country, and it is bloody awful,” Brown says in a new short film about the connections between abuse and Christian nationalism called “For Our Daughters.”  “That is not the country I want,” Brown says. “For Our Daughters” film poster. (Courtesy image) Brown is …

In new book, Tim Alberta sees another way for evangelical Christians in politics

In new book, Tim Alberta sees another way for evangelical Christians in politics

Published by Sam

(RNS) — In Iowa’s Republican caucuses this month, 53% of white evangelical Christians voted for Donald Trump. In the New Hampshire primary, 70% of them did. Are you surprised? Of course not. The attachment of white evangelicals to Trump has been described, discussed and derided for years. But to understand what it’s all about, the place to go is Tim Alberta’s new book, “The Kingdom, The Power, and the Glory.” Alberta, an evangelical pastor’s kid as well as a seasoned political reporter, has used his insider’s knowledge to compile what amounts to a field report on the spiritual politics of white evangelicalism in America since the 2020 election. The impact of COVID-19 cannot be overestimated. Government mandates restricting in-person worship seemed to provide concrete evidence for a widespread belief among evangelicals that secular authorities are coming after Christianity. Around the country, Alberta found, many congregants abandoned evangelical churches that observed the mandates in favor of those that defied them. The effect, which Alberta lays out in “The Kingdom,” the book’s opening section, has been an intensified politicization …

A Southern Baptist leader hid decades of abuse. Will his fall doom SBC abuse reforms?

A Southern Baptist leader hid decades of abuse. Will his fall doom SBC abuse reforms?

Published by Sam

(RNS) — Paul Pressler has long been an eminent Texas Republican, having served as a state representative and judge in Houston. He also once served as the first vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention, but the title doesn’t capture his true place in the firmament of the SBC. As one of the architects of the “conservative resurgence” that reshaped the largest U.S. Protestant denomination beginning in the 1970s, he was been hailed for decades as a hero who helped rid SBC churches of a creeping liberalism. But recently, Gene Besen, a lawyer for the SBC, called Pressler, 93, a “monster” and “a dangerous predator” who leveraged his “power and false piety” to sexually abuse young men even as he was building his reputation as a conservative reformer.  “The man’s actions are of the devil,” Besen said, clarifying that he spoke in his personal capacity and not as a representative of the denomination. “That is clear.” What makes Pressler’s case so enraging to many Southern Baptists, however, is that his abuse has been detailed for …