The pastor of one of the country’s largest churches—and who Donald Trump once named as a spiritual adviser—has admitted to “inappropriate sexual behavior” with a woman who says he sexually abused her when she was just 12 years old.
On Friday, Cindy Clemishire told The Wartburg Watch, a religious watchdog blog, that Robert Morris, the pastor of Texas’ Gateway Church, asked her to come into his room when he stayed with her family for Christmas in 1982. She was 12 and he was 20 at the time. She said Morris molested her and then ordered her not to say anything about his behavior “because it will ruin everything.” The abuse continued for years before Clemishire confided in a close friend, prompting Morris’ wife to find out and Morris to step down from the ministry, according to the report.
He eventually returned to the church and founded Gateway Church in 2000, turning it into one of the country’s largest megachurches with an estimated weekly attendance of 100,000, according to the church. He serves as its senior pastor, prompting Trump to name him to a spiritual advisory board in 2016.
After Clemishire came forward, Morris acknowledged the claims in a statement to The Christian Post, admitting he engaged in “inappropriate sexual behavior” with a “young lady,” refusing to acknowledge Clemishire’s age at the time.
“It was kissing and petting and not intercourse, but it was wrong,” he said.
He claimed that, with the blessing of the girl’s father and church elders, he returned to ministry two years after the abuse was reported. “I asked their forgiveness, and they graciously forgave me,” Morris said.
She was 12.
Clemishire told the Dallas Morning News that her family never condoned Morris’ return to the ministry, despite Morris’ claim to the contrary.
“We don’t believe anyone that’s done anything like this should be an overseer to anyone in any industry, but especially in the church,” Clemishire said.
As for whether she found Morris’ public apology to be earnest, Clemishire struck it down.
“I don’t think that it’s repentant when someone calls a 12-year-old a young lady and tries to just dismiss what happened as just some heavy petting,” Clemishire said. “I don’t believe that’s repentance. There’s no child on earth that any person should ever do that to. It’s just unacceptable. There’s zero excuse.”
I guess we can understand why all the alleged Christians are so willing to believe that Hillary Clinton is running a pedophile ring out of a pizza parlor. It’s the kind of thing their conservative “spiritual advisers” do all the time. Why wouldn’t politicians?
Herman Paul Pressler III of Houston died June 7, four days before the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting, where nothing was said about his passing.
Pressler, who had just turned 94, was the co-architect of the so-called “conservative resurgence” in the SBC.
He was a leading figure in the denomination for five decades. However, he has been credibly accused of sexual abuse of boys and young men over a period of years. Those allegations put his previous status as a champion of conservatism in a new light.
Ya think?
No wonder they don’t think Trump is any big deal. So he grabs women by the pussy and rapes one from time to time. And yeah, he’s been a philandering, married playboy his whole life and proud of it. But what powerful leader doesn’t have such peccadillos in his life, amirite? That’s just how they roll.
BTW, here’s mask-free Trump at Gateway Church in June of 2020:
It’s an honor to be at Gateway Church with the Attorney General — our great Attorney General, William Barr. Thank you. (Applause.) And my friend, Ben Carson, who’s done a fantastic job at HUD. Secretary. (Applause.) And a young star, Jerome Adams, General. Where is Jerome? Jerome? (Applause.) Along with a lot of my friends out in the audience. In fact, a lot of the great political leaders from Texas, I see. Some great, great friends.
And I want to thank you all for being here: faith leaders; members of law enforcement, so important. We want law and order. We have to have a lot of good things, but we have to have law and order. (Applause.)
Got to have some strength. You have to have strength. You have to do what you have to do. And you look at a Seattle — we just came in; we just see over the screen, and we’ve been hearing about it. Bill and I were talking about it: the law and order. Look at what happened in Seattle: They took over a city. A city. A big city — Seattle. Took a chunk of it — a big chunk. Can’t happen. That couldn’t happen here, I don’t think, in the state of Texas, could it? (Laughter.) I don’t think so. (Applause.) I don’t think so.
So I want to thank Pastors Robert Morris and Steve Dulin. They’re great people. (Applause.) Great people with a great reputation. I have to say that. Great reputation. And Gateway Church — the team has been incredible in hosting us.
Actually, as the article says, it was well known at the time that Morris was a child molester.
