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Texas megachurch faces exodus of worshippers after a sex abuse scandal set off a summer of turmoil

Robert Morris, who founded and led Gateway Church for nearly 25 years in the affluent Dallas-Fort Worth suburb of Southlake, Texas, resigned after the scandal came to light in June. His exit sent thousands of evangelicals into a season of struggle that has lasted months.

Last week, a pastor who oversaw all of Gateway’s campuses departed amid an undisclosed “moral issue,” becoming the latest in a series of changes for the church: The cancellation of its annual conference. The departure of Morris’ successor. The renaming of its Houston campus and an exodus of worshippers.

At each weekend service, worshippers continue to face reminders of the scandal, with interim or guest pastors kicking off their sermons saying “I’m sorry,” talking about grief or finding hope in difficult times. They’ve noticed people who have sat and prayed around them for years are once again not showing up for service.

The church has seen a decrease of 17% to 19% in weekend services attendance, a church spokesperson told CNN.

xmunk ,

Honestly, I’m always in favor of people leaving religious institutions… I’m cool with people having faith but supporting these large organizations is fucking awful.

garpujol ,

Under 19% though, that means over 81% didn’t care. 😳

Apytele ,

Christian esotericism has been a really relaxing segue into a healthy spirituality for me. There’s no people demanding I pray the “correct” way or give them money they won’t tell me what they’re doing with or telling me that saying a dead guy’s name will keep me from going to an eternity no one can prove exists. Just me and the dead guy’s words that tell me to party hard and chase rich people with whips. And tarot cards; I’ve honestly gotten more out of them than therapy lately because I’m a lot more honest with myself but I still get something similar to a third party opinion on things by sort of bouncing the thoughts outward then back in.

captainlezbian ,

As a pagan I can relate. I get a lot of good out of my religion and a lot of that comes from it being my religion. I’d love some communal Beltane and Samhain bonfires with friends, but my Mabon and Oestara walks to meditate on balance and the flow of the natural world and my internal world are valuable to me partly because they’re just for me. Celebrating the solar holidays has done wonders for me.

It’s interesting how my Catholic background split into a few different elements of my life, with my love of ritual in paganism and my comfort with polytheism to my politics being very close to the Catholic workers.

Apytele ,

I’m never sure if my difficulty integrating with those communities is because they are by nature diffuse or because after having to go to FCA camps as a kid and sing hymns off projector screens that were just re-written country songs about Jesus instead of ford pickup trucks I not only can’t take any religion seriously but specifically and actively refuse to. My higher power commands that I shitpost. I actually got into an argument online with someone insisting that I was doing it wrong (also they were accusing me of being transphobic which is another community I don’t get on with because the surgery is and forever will be the only part of my gender I have ever taken seriously).

Fedizen ,

Weird how many christian pastors see their church as their personal dating service.

some_guy ,

Gateway Church draws an estimated 100,000 people to its weekend services and has more than 560 employees at nine locations in Texas, and two others in Missouri and Wyoming, according to the church.

Imagine how much money they’re raking in.

Religion should be private. Better yet, wake up from that long-con and give it up altogether.

TimLovesTech ,
@TimLovesTech@badatbeing.social avatar

With numbers like that it sounds more like a cult with tax exemptions. And why do they have so employees, shouldn’t people be happy to do “the work of God” for free as volunteers?

Snowclone ,

If you do a single thing of value for a MEGAchurch, fucking bill them out the nose. That’s not a religion it’s GOOP with a significantly more exploitative and evil business model.

captainlezbian ,

Yeah, a megachurch provides only one real source of societal value: a great setting for urban fantasy demons and vampires. Everything else they provide society is a pitiful product at a premium price

dylanmorgan ,

The case that came to light started in 1982. I feel like there’s approximately 0% chance she’s his only victim.

ConHoliousDonFrankle ,

Ah, the thing they’re famous for. Come to my church, I’ll “handle your family right”. Classic shitstains on humanity.

Wrench ,

And I doubt many of those who left are reevaluating the ethos imparted by the leaders they now are distancing themselves from.

tilefan ,

being paid millions to act like a good person it can’t be that hard

Davel23 ,

being paid millions
act like a good person

Choose one.

tilefan ,

act like

mosiacmango , (edited )

He was consistently sexually assaulting the 12-17yr old victim before the millions rolled in.

He has 100% been acting like a good person when he made millions by pretending that his repeated pedophilia was just an “moral failing” that had been “restored.” He even lied about getting her father’s blessing to resume being a pastor.

The man has been lying to himself and everyone around him for nearly four decades.

tilefan ,

oof

mozz ,
@mozz@mbin.grits.dev avatar

Not covered in this story: The church leadership says hey he told us about it but we thought it was with a “young lady” and whatevs it was all cool, we’re as shocked as you are it is horrible

The victim says what the fuck I have been telling them about it FOR YEARS NOW

InverseParallax ,

Church: “Curses! And I would have gotten away with it to, if it weren’t for you meddling reporters and the fact that the victim wasn’t a girl!”

mozz ,
@mozz@mbin.grits.dev avatar

?

I think you may be thinking of a different scandal; this one’s victim was a girl named Cindy.

InverseParallax ,

My bad, I’m used to “alive boy or dead girl” being the standard.

BigMacHole ,

This is just the WOKE MIND VIRUS Waging a WAR on RELIGION! WHO CARES if a Priest touches a couple hundred kids in their penises and vaginas when DRAG QUEENS EXIST!

Treczoks ,

The less potential victims they have, the better.

Sgt_choke_n_stroke ,

Not a trans person always a priest

aramis87 ,

Not a drag queen, either :(

DogPeePoo ,

Jesus Christ— did someone drop water on Trump and feed him after midnight? He’s multiplying

braindefragger ,

https://lemmy.world/pictrs/image/d654bf53-886a-4363-b9eb-65b7a5c6ac0c.png

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