A pastor at a megachurch in Texas lost his job and his board of directors also came to his defense after allegations emerged that he sexually abused a 12-year-old girl over a period of years.
Robert Morris, founder of Gateway Church in Southlake and one-time spiritual adviser to former President Donald Trump, has resigned and been sharply rebuked by the church’s elders, who had passionately defended him as a Reformed believer just days earlier.
The elders claimed that this sudden change of policy came after they learned the full extent of the allegations from the accuser, Cindy Klemischer.
“Unfortunately, prior to Friday, June 14, the elders did not know all the facts regarding the inappropriate relationship between Morris and the victim, including her age at the time and the length of the abuse,” the Gateway Church board of directors said in a statement.
“The Elders’ previous understanding was that the extramarital affairs that Reverend Morris spoke of many times throughout his ministry were with ‘younger women’ and were not the abuse of a 12-year-old child.
“This happened years before Gateway was founded, and as church leaders we regret not having the information we have today.”
Board members of one of the largest megachurches in the United States, with 100,000 members, said they were “heartbroken and appalled” by the allegations and apologized and offered their sympathy to Klemischer and her family.
Klemischer says she was abused by the priest from the age of 12 until she was 16 in the 1980s.
She also slammed Morris for his disparaging account of events when he said he had a brief affair with a “younger woman.”
“It was kissing and petting, not intercourse, but it was wrong,” Morris said. He told The Christian Post..
The resignation came after Mr Cremischer called on Mr Morris to step down, saying he had proven he was yet to truly repent for his actions.
“I don’t know whether someone who has committed crimes against children deserves to have their status restored.” Klemischer told NBC News on Monday..
“I believe that when people are caught doing something, if they are truly repentant, they can recover. But if they lie, I don’t think that’s true repentance.”
Ms Cremischer, now 54 and a grandmother, added: “I was an innocent 12-year-old girl who knew nothing about sex.”
Mr Cremisher was also outraged that Mr Morris had suggested his father had given him his blessing to return to the pastorate.
“My father never gave his blessing to Robert to return to the pastorate!” she said. “He told Robert he was glad he didn’t have to kill him. I’m embarrassed that he’s telling the world that my father gave his blessing!”
Pastor Cremischer has tried for decades to hold Pastor Morris accountable, but the pastor left the church for two years after the incident before rejoining.
She tried to file a lawsuit against Morris in 2005, but Morris’ lawyers claimed the abuse occurred because she was “frivolous.”
He eventually offered her $25,000 if she signed a non-disclosure agreement, but she refused.
