DOJ Opens Probe Into Southern Baptists

The Department of Justice is going after everybody except Hunter Biden…

The Southern Baptist Convention has just informed the general public they are currently being investigated by the Department of Justice.

According to a statement by the SBC, multiple entities under leadership by the SBC are being probed by the DOJ and it’s suspected the probe is stemming from a sex scandal that reportedly occurred in the church.

As of right now, the SBC has completely cooperated with the DOJ’s commands and has stated they have nothing to hide.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Southern Baptist Convention says it is under investigation by Department of Justice.

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) August 12, 2022

The Baptist Press had more details to share:

The Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee has been informed that the United States Department of Justice has initiated an investigation into the SBC that will include “multiple SBC entities,” according to an Aug. 12 statement from all SBC entity leaders and SBC President Bart Barber.

“Individually and collectively, each SBC entity is resolved to fully and completely cooperate with the investigation,” the statement said.

The announcement comes two months after messengers to the SBC Annual Meeting in Anaheim passed a resolution On Lament and Repentance for Sexual Abuse. Southern Baptists also voted overwhelmingly to adopt a report that approved recommendations toward addressing and preventing sexual abuse in the Convention.

The SBC spent nearly $2 million on an independent investigation conducted by Guidepost Solutions, which submitted its report in May. Send Relief, the compassion ministry of the SBC, has committed $4 million for the implementation of messenger-approved actions and to support survivors of sexual abuse.

Requests for comment from Guidepost Solutions and the DOJ were not returned by the time of publication. This story will be updated to include information as it becomes available.

Leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention say that several of their denomination’s major entities are under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice. The statement gave few details, but indicated the investigation dealt with sexual abuse. https://t.co/pLp5qdkgjI

— The Associated Press (@AP) August 12, 2022

The Associated Press dropped these details:

Leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention said Friday that several of the denomination’s major entities are under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice in the wake of its multiple problems related to clergy sex abuse.

The SBC’s Executive Committee has received a subpoena, but no individuals have been subpoenaed at this point, according to the committee’s lawyers.

“This is an ongoing investigation and we are not commenting on our discussions with DOJ,” they said.

The statement from SBC leaders — including Executive Committee members, seminary presidents and heads of mission organizations — gave few details about the investigation, but indicated it dealt with widespread sexual abuse problems that have rocked the largest Protestant denomination in the U.S.

“Individually and collectively each SBC entity is resolved to fully and completely cooperate with the investigation,” the statement said. “While we continue to grieve and lament past mistakes related to sexual abuse, current leaders across the SBC have demonstrated a firm conviction to address those issues of the past and are implementing measures to ensure they are never repeated in the future.”