It's been decades in the making for many abuse survivors, but now the nation's largest evangelical denomination is in a season of reckoning as it deals with the fallout out from the explosive independent investigation of 2022 into mishandled sex abuse allegations among Southern Baptist leaders. Will there be courage among denominational leadership to face these failures and do the hard work of reform? In this limited series podcast, advocate and attorney Rachael Denhollander and investigative reporter Robert Downen join filmmaker and host Carolyn McCulley to discuss this critical moment.
It's been decades in the making for many abuse survivors, but now the nation's largest evangelical denomination is in a season of reckoning as it deals with the fallout out from the explosive independent investigation of 2022 into mishandled sex abuse allegations among Southern Baptist leaders. Will there be courage among denominational leadership to face these failures and do the hard work of reform? In this limited series podcast, advocate and attorney Rachael Denhollander and investigative reporter Robert Downen join filmmaker and host Carolyn McCulley to discuss this critical moment.
Reeling from the bombshell investigation of its leadership, the Southern Baptist Convention of churches gathered in mid-June, 2022 for their annual meeting to hear the SBC's Sexual Abuse Task Force give a report and a rebuke. Though the convention did overwhelmingly vote for the recommended reforms, the vocal opposition from a conservative faction of the denomination was significant.
Now there is outside pressure, too. After this episode was recorded, the SBC announced the US Department of Justice is investigating all of its entities regarding sexual abuse.
In this episode, journalists Robert Downen (@RobDownenChron), Kate Shellnutt (@kateshellnutt), and Bob Smietana (@bobsmietana) join host Carolyn McCulley to discuss the progress so far and the hurdles to real reform in the SBC.
This podcast is a production of Citygate Films. It was produced and edited by Carolyn McCulley. Music is by Kevin Graham.