Messengers to the 2021 Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting overwhelmingly approved a motion calling for a task force to oversee a third-party investigation into allegations of mishandling abuse claims at the SBC Executive Committee.
The motion, offered by Grant Gaines, pastor of Belle Aire Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, Tenn., was among 32 motions made by messengers June 15 in Nashville, the most in a decade. Gaines’ motion said the task force, which will be appointed within 30 days by new SBC President Ed Litton, should be composed of members of Southern Baptist churches and “experts in sexual abuse and the handling of sexual abuse-related dynamics.”
The task force can opt to oversee the independent review already initiated by the Executive Committee or begin a separate third-party review, and it must ensure that an investigation includes “any allegations of abuse, mishandling of abuse, mistreatment of victims, a pattern of intimidation of victims or advocates, and resistance to sexual abuse reform initiatives.”
SBC Executive Committee President and CEO Ronnie Floyd had announced on June 11 that the EC had secured Guidepost Solutions for an independent review of its handling of sexual abuse issues. The review had been called for amid controversy over allegations made by former Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission President Russell Moore that various Southern Baptist leaders “stonewall[ed]” calls to address sexual abuse in the SBC. The move was seen as insufficient by some, including Gaines, who said the Executive Committee should not oversee an investigation of itself.