SBC Committee Waives Privilege After Bitter Debate, Moving Abuse Investigation Forward

Bob Smietana of Religion News Service reports, “Ending weeks of debate, the Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee voted Tuesday (Oct. 5) to waive attorney-client privilege as part of an investigation of how Southern Baptist leaders have handled issues of sexual abuse in recent decades.” The vote came after four lengthy and heated sessions of debate within the executive committee. Smietana writes, “Baptist pastors and other leaders have warned that refusing to follow the messengers’ will expressed at the annual meeting risked upending the trust that keeps the nation’s largest denomination together. For many, Tuesday’s decision restored that trust.”

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