'Fostering a culture of systemic abuse': 4 Christian leaders react to SBC sex abuse report

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Monday, February 11, 2019

Boz Tchividjian

Basyle ‘Boz’ Tchividjian, executive director of Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment and a Liberty University professor, took to Twitter on Monday morning regarding the report.

“Southern Baptist leaders must honestly examine how they have contributed (directly or indirectly) to fostering a culture of systematic abuse and one that all too often ignores, marginalizes, and demonizes God’s children who bravely step forward to disclose it,” tweeted Tchividjian.

In a 2017 interview with Vice News, Tchividjian argued that it was very likely that sexual abuse was a greater problem among Protestant churches than within the Roman Catholic Church.

“A few years ago, data was gathered from some of the top insurance providers for Protestant churches. It was found that they received 260 reports a year of minors being sexually abused by church leaders or church members. Similarly, the John Jay Report on the Catholic Church came up with 228 credible accusations by priests,” said Tchividjian at the time.

“But for me, it's important to share that statistic when speaking with Protestant audiences so that they stop pointing their fingers at the Catholic Church and engage more with their own church.”