Guidepost and the SBC are two of 12 total defendants named in the lawsuit that revolves around allegations that David Sills sexually abused Jennifer Lyell starting in 2004, when Lyell was. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Who those others were is not clear. But her feelings toward the denominations beliefs about gender roles have shifted. The lawsuit challenges what has been accepted as fact in one of the highest-profile cases in the web of allegations regarding mishandling of sexual abuse within the SBC. Sills local church, Ninth & O Baptist Church in Louisville, confirmed to Baptist Press that Sills is no longer a member and that the church acted swiftly and firmly after hearing the accusations. She said she was motivated to tell her story following the account of Megan Lively, who was raped by a fellow student at a Southern Baptist seminary in 2003 and then counseled by the president of the seminary to not report the incident to police. Her case has become one of the most high-profile illustrations of the larger reckoning over mishandled knowledge of sexual abuse within the SBC. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Lyell, who served as vice president of LifeWay Christian Resources, posted a confession in 2018 claiming how Sills, who has been married for over 30 years, sexually abused her and groomed her. We say that we are not this hierarchy but in reality, we function like we are protecting the barracks of the Vatican, she said. My thinking was I could just verbally work through your article and clarify/add the information you didnt have or was inaccurate as well as answer the broader questions you asked when the information you had didnt reconcile for you. Critics of the SBC investigation and of the existence of a crisis of sexual abuse in the denomination frequently point to Lyells story as questionable, but they have been minority voices. Christian leaders need to remember that they are called to be shepherds in the model of the Good Shepherd, she said, protecting the sheep even if the wolves include their fellow leaders., A woman holds signs about abuse during a rally outside the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex on June 11, 2019, in Birmingham, Ala. RNS photo by Butch Dill. The same day, Geiger and Lyell contacted Mohler, he said. Hope youll give us another try and check out some other articles. What Ascol, Buck and Sills share in common is adherence to an extreme version of Reformed theology, known as hyper-Calvinism, that has been on the resurgence in the SBC over the past 30 years. Lyell came to us with an allegation of abuse and should have been cared for throughout the entire process. Buck is an East Texas pastor who shares Ascols beliefs and is aggressive on Twitter in spreading his commentaries and accusations. Sills files defamation suit against SBC, Lyell, others MOBILE, Ala. (BP) - A former Southern Baptist seminary professor and his wife have filed suit against the SBC and 10 other individuals and entities connected to the SBC, including Jennifer Lyell and Guidepost Solutions. Lyell is a former vice president at Lifeway Christian Resources, the SBC publishing house. Sills, former professor of missions and cultural anthropology at Southern, did not respond to request for comment. By admitting to having sinned and asking for forgiveness, they can mitigate the consequences of their actions and preserve a future in the church. Though 30 pages in length, the key facts allged are right on the first page. Lyell first disclosed the situation to a therapist in March 2016, she said. But he didnt make it public disclosure, Lyell said. While churches say they want to care for survivors of abuse, those survivors are often viewed with suspicion, having to prove they are worthy of compassion and respect. The hundreds of titles that the Books business team has acquired, developed, or managed under Jennifer's leadership include more than a dozen New York Times bestsellers, as well as CT . This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. RELATED: Southern Baptist leader, experts say churches should address the abuse of adults. "So I want to make very clear that I stand with her in that statement.". What happened instead was a controversy over what kind of relations are consensual and nonconsensual and who gets to make that determination and challenges to the veracity of Lyells account. In 2004, Lyell was a 26-year-old master of divinity student when she met cultural anthropology professor David Sills, who is 23 years her senior, on the Louisville campus of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. In the spring of 2019, Lyell, then a well-respected leader in Christian publishing, decided to publicly disclose that she was a survivor of sexual abuse. She did so after learning her abuser, a former Southern Baptist seminary professor, author and missionary, had recently returned to ministry. The lawsuit centers on allegations that Sills sexually abused Jennifer Lyell starting in 2004 when Lyell was a student and Sills was a professor. He said people often turn to clergy when they are at their most vulnerable. Things made a little more sense last Friday when a woman named Jennifer Lyell (below) released a statement explaining how she had been engaged in an "inappropriate relationship" with Sills for nearly a decade, beginning when she was his student. Lyell explains why she had not confronted Lumpkins because of Lumpkins history with Lifeway and her personal issues. Jennifer Lyell, who now works as an executive for LifeWay Christian Resources, posted a confession online last week claiming how Sills, who has been married for 30 years and has three grandchildren, sexually abused her and even groomed her from the time she was a master of divinity student until just a few years ago. In February, the top-ranked Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) did something that's almost unprecedented: they apologized and offered a monetary settlement to Jennifer Lyell, who for years had been abused by an SBC seminary professor. Filing claims Guidepost never interviewed or even contacted him before publicly naming him a predator. (Guidepost Solutions is the firm hired by the SBC Executive Committee to investigate charges of sexual abuse within the convention. After several years of dispute, the SBC Executive Committee earlier this year reached a financial settlement with Lyell and issued a public apology for the Baptist Press story. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Want to help your child build lasting, meaningful friendships? If I were not to come forward with this letter, a church or ministry who receives Dr. Sills CV and does an internet search for him would have no way to know the truth behind his resignation, she wrote. Baptist Press eventually apologized for the article, but Lyell said she had already been devastated by the repercussions of its inaccurate reporting. Although the Sillses live in Mississippi and Lyell lives in Tennessee, the lawsuit was filed in Mobile County Circuit Court because former SBC President Ed Litton, who is among the defendants in the suit, lives in Mobile County and the SBC, the conventions executive committee and other SBC entities own and maintain property, employees and/or agents in Alabama, including Mobile County Alabama, the suit stated. She praised SBTS for acting swiftly after she contacted Mohler. However, in the new court filing he insists he did not sexually abuse Lyell, force himself upon Lyell, use violence against Lyell, threaten to use violence against Lyell or engage in sexual intercourse with Lyell at any time whatsoever., The filing says Sills acknowledges a personal and emotionally intimate relationship between the two but claims it was initiated by Lyell, who was well above the age of consent.. So, now the question turns to: Did SBTS President Al Mohler call the police on David Sills as alleged by Lyell? I am not a sinless victim. This issue caught fire on Twitter, where critics of SBC leadership and of the sexual abuse study picked it up, prompting retweets and commentary. Based on the credible [Baptist Press report], which I learned of on Friday evening, we suspended inclusion of Sillss book on our site as we did more investigation, InterVarsity Press Publisher Jeff Crosby told CP in an email. Sills was a professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary until his resignation on May 23, 2018. Lyell was labeled on social media as an adulteress rather than an abuse survivor, with users leaving scores of vile comments about her on Lifeways Facebook page and the Baptist Press website. Sills contends he was made a scapegoat in a denomination reeling from other, larger claims of sexual abuse. I now realize that despite SBTS handling the situation justly and as I asked without stating the reason for his resignation it led to the exact kind of scenario the SBC is now trying to prevent, she said. BNG has confirmed Midwest Christian Outreach was working with Ascol, Buck and Basham in the background into 2022. George's resignation was "due to a personal moral failing," Midwestern told the Recorder on June 1. Anytime time you have to invoke these procedures is heartbreaking but simultaneously necessary. Mohler did that. Hes wrong. First, the defendants widely circulated their herein-described defamatory lies about Dr. and Mrs. Sills throughout Mobile County and the state of Alabama. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RNS) Jennifer Lyell was trying to do the right thing. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". In a separate email, Lyell recounts to Henzel her understanding that Ascol put Midwest Christian Outreach on the trail of her story in the first place. Pooler said abusive relationships with clergy often last for years. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Basham frequently tweeted and replied to tweets about the issue, at one point portraying herself as an investigative reporter who was just asking the questions no one else would ask. She graduated from Southern with a master of divinity in 2006 and enrolled in an SBTS doctoral program for one year after that. Jennifer Lyell, 2006 graduate of SBTS, says in her statement that 2004 was the first time Sills acted against her. According to documents obtained by BNG, however, Ascol, Buck and Basham had collaborated with the source of the original quotation that Sills took out of context in his recent lawsuit. On October 7, 2019, Jennifer Lyell, a LifeWay employee, penned an open letter to Southern Baptists expressing her grief caused by what she alleges was an erroneous Baptist Press report released in March this year. Moore said he and his wife are friends of Lyell and he described her as one of the strongest, most courageous and brilliant leaders I know. He hopes she will eventually return to a leadership role in the church. 1. In her statement, Lyell accused Sills of "grooming and taking advantage of his student." Lyell first disclosed the situation to a therapist in March 2016, she said. Instead, for many this incident may have contributed to a perception that the Southern Baptist Convention is not a safe place for sexual abuse survivors to disclose, the statement read. One details Lyells complaint that the video of her interview with Midwest Christian Outreach that was supposed to be kept confidential had been shared with others, including Basham. It conclusively demonstrated the non-consensual nature of what happened to her. A Response to Rachael Denhollander and Others.. On page 18 of the Sills lawsuit, Sills and his attorneys present their accusation as fact. The church said it acted swiftly and firmly and that Sills is no longer a member. In fact, the key facts alleged are right in the first few paragraphs: 1. The resignations of Alvin Reid at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Christian George at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and David Sills at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary were reported by Baptist Press and the North Carolina Biblical Recorder. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. It also names Jennifer Lyell, a former seminarian and vice president for Lifeway, who has repeatedly alleged that Sills was abusive, an allegation Mohler has also made on social media and in. Anthony Jackson Age 51. She stated that the pattern continued and escalated for more than a decade following that trip.. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. She did not revisit all the details of the abuse but did disclose those details to leaders at Lifeway and then to Al Mohler, the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where the professor was employed. She mentions them many times during this recording. In her post, the 41-year-old Lyell said that the tenured professor of missions and cultural anthropology first sexually acted against her during a mission trip in 2004. The group has no apparent connections to the SBC, and its interview with Lyell seems outside its stated purpose. And recovering from abuse as an adult is a long-term process. Louisvilles Ninth and O Baptist Church told BP it is the congregation referenced in Lyells statement. Because this is a personnel matter, we cannot comment further.. We were horrified by what she shared with us. The Louisville, Ky., church where Sills was a member, Lyell said, also took action following Sills resignation. Mississippi lawyer Don Barrett, one of the attorneys representing David Sills and his wife, Mary Sills, said that part of the complaint was in error, the story said. Man At Center of Massive SBC Sex Scandal Sues Denomination, Along with 11 Prominent Southern Baptists For Lying About Him The Soap Opera Plods On Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson thinks he redeemed himself. [I] became an aunt to their grandchildren, and their grown children became like siblings to me, she wrote. She has alleged Sills abused her over a multi-year period. Lyells case is of particular interest because Guidepost did not talk to some described as corroborating the allegations of abuse and because SBC Elites declared on their own authority that this was a case of Sex Abuse. In fact, she claims in a newly leaked audio recording that she has been vague intentionallyso that the Sills grandchildren wouldnt find out much about this by using Google. David Pooler, professor of social work at Baylor University, said sexual misconduct by clergy and other religious leaders is often labeled as having an affair. But that description misses the power imbalance at play. Also at the same time Buck inserted himself into the behind-the-scenes interrogation of Lyell, he maintained a public campaign to identify an alleged leaker of a column written by his wife discussing difficulties in their marriage and in her earlier life. Lyells attorney suggested to Baptist Press that Sills filing the lawsuit in Alabama appeared inappropriate. Geiger, senior pastor of Mariners Church in Irvine, Calif., confirmed to BP that Lyell shared her allegations with him. Reaching and Teaching International told BP in a statement that they are aware of a statement by Lyell regarding her allegations and are committed to ensuring a culture of transparency and accountability., Lyell said, It is my hope that my story, one in which a SBC entity and its leaders acted swiftly and justly but in which that same individual was also in a ministry position only months later, will also help to illustrate the need for some form of a reporting tool that can ensure that those who have victimized others from a ministry position are unable to ever do so again., (EDITOR'S NOTE This story has been edited by Biblical Recorder staff. Im also fine to answer any questions you or the other gentleman has to ensure you have clarity and believe me. David Sills and Mary Sills contend they have been smeared repeatedly in the process and seek monetary damages. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RNS) Jennifer Lyell was trying to do the right thing. Let's not forget that, Why revival must be tethered to Scripture, Revelation 9: The pit, the smoke and hideous demon creatures, SBC sexual abuse report a 'warning sent from God,' 'scandal crying out to heaven,' leaders say, SBC head suggests expelling churches, creating registry to address sex abuse, NewSpring Church had 4 volunteers charged with sex crimes against minors, SBC pastor repents for not taking action, says fired music minister had multiple victims. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RNS) Jennifer Lyell was trying to do the right thing. It also names Jennifer Lyell, a former seminarian and vice president for Lifeway, who has repeatedly alleged that Sills was abusive, an allegation Mohler has also made on social media and in an interview for a documentary about the denomination's response to its sexual abuse crisis. It takes years and years to recover from trauma, and no one should be in the position of having to explain it to the whole public while theyre still trying to do that, she said. The BP trampled on a survivor and shielded a VIOLENT sexual predator who then sought new employment." She continued: This and so much more is contained in a roughly 2-and-a-half-hour audio interview never released that hit the Internet today. . Read our republishing, terms of use and privacy policies here. The larger conversation around sexual abuse has dominated SBC life for the past two years and has been addressed by two special task forces, one of which is still working. It took months for Baptist Press to retract the article and address errors in it and that only happened after the former BP staff had been replaced and the article had been criticized by abuse advocate Rachael Denhollander. ", "We hold unquestionably to a biblical standard of sexual morality and personal morality and we expect that of any who would teach but also even as students. So that's not up for renegotiation," he explained. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Pastoral misconduct is seen as a moral failing rather than an abuse of power. Im also fine to answer any questions you or the other gentleman has to ensure you have clarity and believe me. Thereafter, Ms. Lyell engaged in an effort to restore her reputation and preserve her powerful position of doling out lucrative book deals, while affirmatively and skillfully dismantling the reputations, careers, and family life of David Sills and Mary Sills, the court filing states. . He also said churches often believe survivors were participants in their abusers sins. And the incidents Lyell describes would have caused the creation of police reports. Except the pattern of inappropriate sexual activity continued throughout the relationship., Lyell wrote that when she presented her claims to Mohler, she also shared the responsibility" for being compliant at times and for idolizing the idea of a whole family., I protected [the family] despite what was happening within it, she wrote. He said that he is "brokenhearted over the reality" of the situation. Ascol, Buck and Basham had collaborated with the source of the original quotation that Sills took out of context in his recent lawsuit. Women are seen first and foremost as sexual objects, means to an end, she said, adding women are seen as temptresses, trying to bring a good man down and getting married is seen as a way of helping men deal with their lust. RELATED: Jennifer Lyell wanted to stop her abuser by . ), We have changed software providers for our subscription database. In the spring of 2019, Lyell, then a well-respected leader in Christian publishing, decided to publicly disclose that she was a survivor of sexual abuse. I stand behind her in [her public statement] and believe she is acting righteously, he told BP. George resigned on May 3 while Sills resigned on May 23, the Biblical Recorder reported. On July 6th, this story would resurface because Bob Smietana, a liberal reporter of the pagan Religious News Service wrote an apologetic for Jennifer Lyell, When abuse victims are adults . Part of Lyells reason for being "compliant at times" and remaining silent for as long as she did, she stated, was because she became like part of [Sills] family and feared the collateral damage that telling would cause for those around him. In her statement, Lyell accused Sills of grooming and taking advantage of his student.. She wrote, "Dr. David Sills, then a tenured professor at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, first sexually acted against me on a mission trip in 2004, a pattern that continued and escalated . David Sills (Photo via Baptist Press) Geiger alleged that Mary Sills threatened Jennifer Lyell in text messages and that Mrs. Sills knew of the relationship between Jennifer Lyell and David Sills. George, as curator of the Spurgeon Library and digitized archive, worked with the . 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Sills files defamation suit against SBC, Lyell, others November 29, 2022 By Baptist Press MOBILE, Ala. (BP) - A former Southern Baptist seminary professor and his wife have filed suit against the SBC and 10 other individuals and entities connected to the SBC, including Jennifer Lyell and Guidepost Solutions. She did so after learning her abuser, a former Southern Baptist seminary professor, author and missionary, had recently returned to ministry. I now wonder if the only reason that a family relationship was ever presented as an option was to ensure I wouldnt tell what had happened in those first instances.. Sills claimed there was not any legitimate or proper investigation of Lyells accusations against him. Lyell said that at the time, she did not want the seminary or Lifeway to publicly disclose what had happened to her. If not, why not? Jennifer Lyell . How did Bob Smietana avoid being named in this lawsuit? The suit states: On June 18, 2022, Defendant Lyell wrote to Religion News Services (RNS) and Reporter Bob Smietana, the following: My thinking was I could just verbally work through your article and clarify/add the information you didnt have or was inaccurate as well as answer the broader questions you asked when the information you had didnt reconcile for you. "Dr. Sills was out of the country traveling internationally. Hilary Scarsella, assistant professor of ethics and director of women and gender studies at Colgate Rochester Crozier Divinity School, said survivors of clergy abuse can feel trapped because they know publicly disclosing the abuse may have consequences, both to their own faith and their place in the community. Veinot and his senior researcher, Ron Henzel, had conducted a video interview with Lyell and wrote about it on their blog under the headline Does Abuse Absolve Adultery? Lyell is a former Reaching and Teaching International board member. The string of email correspondence viewed by BNG implies Buck contacted Lyell to ask questions about her claims. "Defendants saw him as an easy target; a bona fide scapegoat." . The church needs a way of understanding sin and violence that enables Gods grace without giving abusers back their power, their access and their good regard, she said. Ascol ran for SBC president on the slogan Change the direction.. One of Lyells advocates over the past three years has been Mohler, who has publicly stated he believed Lyells story as she has told it. It presented its report just prior to the SBCs annual meeting last summer.). They may, at best, support survivors or criticize fellow denominational leaders in private but will not use their power to do the same in public, she said. Lyell contends it was not consensual. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. And because of their power and influence, pastors and other religious leaders have a responsibility to set up boundaries in their relationships with other people. It interwove Lyells story with this discussion. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RNS) Jennifer Lyell was trying to do the right thing. If so, when so that press can verify this element of the story that is now so obviously a glaring contradiction in the narrative. By Lyells previous accounts, Sills cultivated a relationship with her. She claims . Jen came forward at incredible personal cost to herself, to defend those who had no voice, Denhollander said. All rights reserved (About Us). How did Saddleback get kicked out of the SBC? Rest assured, though, that regardless of venue, the case will be vigorously defended.. I mean, I was like, literally like, I mean, it was it was police at my house and, you know, safety, Lyell said. Mohler said his encouragement from the start in any case such as this is that authorities be contacted and that only law enforcement should judge whether laws may have been violated in such situations. We must clearly tell the truth so that our churches and ministries are safe and as pure as they can be.. In her statement, Lyell says that it began when she was a student. Lyell told RNS that at first, she did receive a great deal of support from Southern Baptist leaders when she told them about the abuse she experienced. By the time Lyell had come forward publicly with her story, she had been in counseling for over two years. According to Baptist Press, Lyell was involved in the relationship with Sills from the time she was 26 until she was 38. The Complaint does not hid and it does not disappoint. Plaintiffs David Sills and Mary Sills file this complaint against Defendants, alleging defamation, conspiracy, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, and wantonness concerning untrue claims of sexual abuse initiated by Defendant, Jennifer Lyell, and thereafter Baptist Press reporting did, in fact, mislead people. By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Nine months after The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBTS) professor David Sills resigned for undisclosed reasons, a woman has released a statement of allegations including details of what she describes as sexual abuse by Sills, beginning while she was a Southern Seminary student. I have never been unwilling to be questioned when making allegations that arent only moral, but are also criminal and Im extremely thankful that all parties who received and investigated my allegations did press me for details necessary to understand what I was alleging given my age and the fact it was not a single occurrence as well as that I did not report anything to them for a very long time.. The ex-Southern Baptist Convention seminary professor accused of sexual abuse by his former student filed a defamation suit in Alabama against her and several SBC entities, claiming the allegations. Prior to the apology's issuance, she has informed SBC Executive Committee Chairman Rolland Slade in October regarding the pending disputes and legal claims she has due to her case. She has alleged Sills abused her over a multi-year period. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. The ex-Southern Baptist Convention seminary professor accused of sexual abuse by his former student filed a defamation suit in Alabama against her and several SBC entities, claiming the allegations were part of an SBC attempt to improve its image in the wake of the sexual abuse coverup scandal. Why so much outrage over the burning of an LGBT Pride flag? Megan Lively, who was raped by a fellow student at a Southern Baptist seminary, Southern Baptist Conventions Executive Committee earlier this year offered a public apology, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. Lyell says Sills, who was a surrogate father figure to her, eventually abused her again and then continued for years, even after she left seminary. I shared how Dr. David Sills, then a tenured professor at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, first sexually acted against me on a mission trip in 2004, a pattern that continued and escalated for more than a decade following that trip. But that's not quite what we see. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. If this seems like a contradiction, this is just the beginning. All rights reserved. The full context of the email is this: Thank you again for replying and taking the time to find a scenario with which you are willing to talk with me. Venue, the key facts allged are right in the relationship with Sills from the time had! Your child build lasting, meaningful friendships that trip his recent lawsuit she... And believe me question turns to: did SBTS president Al Mohler call the on... To answer any questions you or the other gentleman has to ensure you clarity... 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