By Marv Knox

A parable describes two people walking along a river when they notice babies floating downstream. One starts pulling babies out of the river; the other runs upstream to stop whoever is throwing babies into the river. 

The parable describes the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s response to sexual misconduct, both organizationally and in its churches. While CBF compassionately responds to victims, it exerts consistent and substantial effort into preventing misconduct, noted Jay Kieve, CBF’s abuse prevention and response advocate. 

“Talking about preventing clergy sexual abuse and abuse of children is daunting, unpleasant and potentially triggers trauma in survivors,” Kieve acknowledged. “But the CBF approach to prevention is, ultimately, hope-filled. Following Jesus and being committed to caring for one another and our neighbors means we join God in protecting the vulnerable and mending the brokenhearted. Each of us has a role to play.” 

Statistics support the need for abuse prevention and response, he said. Studies show about 12 percent of ministers have had sexual intercourse with congregants. A survey indicated 14 percent of Southern Baptist senior pastors had engaged in “sexual behavior inappropriate for a minister.” And another national study found 17 percent of pastors admitted having sexual contact with a counselee. 

Documenting abuse statistics for children is difficult, he said, but added: “In the United States, one in four girls and one in seven boys will experience child sexual abuse. Many of those children go to church. So, even if they aren’t harmed by people at church, we need to be talking about and preventing abuse as a way to care for and protect them.” 

In 2016, CBF partnered with Baptist Women in Ministry to create the Clergy Sexual Misconduct Task Force to “focus on the prevention of abuse in our churches.” 

At the time, Pam Durso, executive director of BWIM, and Stephen Reeves, CBF’s associate coordinator for advocacy, co-chaired the task force, and Kieve was a member. CBF bolstered its effort to prevent abuse in 2021, when it hired Kieve, then coordinator of CBF of South Carolina, to fill the new post. He also is CBF’s director of ministerial transitions. 

“My role grew out of the task force, which realized having a staff person focused on abuse could lend consistent support to churches,” Kieve said. “The task force focused on clergy sexual abuse of adults and created resources for education and guiding response. I support the use of those resources and help churches respond well to allegations of clergy abuse of adults.  

“Prevention of sexual abuse of children and helping churches with training and policy is work I started in South Carolina. When I was hired for my role at CBF, I brought all the abuse prevention and response under one umbrella.” 

Both theological and practical considerations propelled CBF and BWIM to address abuse, Kieve explained. 

“Throughout scripture, God is on the side of vulnerable and marginalized,” he said. “The Psalms are filled with references to God as a stronghold, a refuge against those with power who would impose their will. And Jesus is often seen advocating for those whose illness or circumstance put them at risk from powerful forces. Following Jesus includes holding the powerful accountable for their behavior toward vulnerable children and adults.” 

Practically, “people and their faith only thrive in safety,” he added. “CBF and partner churches invest time, money and energy in pursuit of thriving congregations, clergy, communities and congregants. Part of establishing the foundation for thriving is cultivating physical, psychological and spiritual safety, all of which follows as we pay attention to power in relationships, leadership and church structures.  

“Elevating abuse prevention raises the baseline of safety that enables people to explore their faith in relationship with God and others without exposure to the harm that comes from abuse.”   

Those beliefs about abuse result in policy, Kieve stressed. For example, all CBF employees, interns and volunteers receive abuse-prevention training. Similarly, a prevention policy that sets guidelines for interaction with children directs field personnel activities and CBF events. 

“We take abuse prevention and response seriously by believing adults when they say they have been harmed by someone associated with CBF and grounding our response from a victim-centered, trauma-informed perspective,” he added. “We take abuse prevention and response seriously by honoring our commitment to report suspected or alleged abuse of children to the proper authorities and offering support along the way.” 

CBF partners with GRACE — Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment — to provide abuse prevention training for congregations, Kieve said. It offers resources from Stewards of Children and from Safe Church. And Kieve provides training customized for participating congregations. Those resources result in policies that make churches safer. 

CBF’s abuse response varies according to the situation, providing “a victim-centered approach that considers the age of the victim and the desire of the victim for response,” he said.  

“If someone suspects a child is being abused by a minister or volunteer, we report to law enforcement and work with investigators to the extent we have knowledge,” he noted. “We also support the church in working with the investigators and responding to the victim if the victim or family desire follow up and care.” 

“For adults who report clergy sexual abuse, the response is guided by the victim’s needs,” he added. That ranges from providing a listening ear from “someone who believes them and will help secure support” to seeking “corrective action against the offending minister.” 

“CBF honors the victim’s burden by engaging an independent, third-party investigator who will examine the facts and evidence in order to establish that abuse occurred,” he said. “The church of the accused clergy will be notified, and that person will be invited by the investigator to respond to the allegation. CBF will receive the report from the investigator and share it with the victim, minister and church. Because of Baptist polity, CBF neither hires nor fires church ministers, but CBF can help a church understand the allegation, investigation and possible courses of action.” 

CBF provides due process, he added. “Accused ministers will have opportunity to tell their story to investigators. When informing a church that an investigation has begun, we remind them investigating doesn’t mean abuse definitely has occurred, so take measures to insulate the minister and care for their family through the process. When an investigation is complete, then the church may choose to act toward the minister.” 

Beyond that, CBF removes people who are credibly accused of abuse from its reference and referral systems, Kieve said.  

First Baptist Church in Jefferson City, Mo., reached out to CBF because the possibility of sexual abuse was “one of the things that kept me up at night,” explained Melissa Hatfield, lead pastor since March 2023.  

“Headlines bring to the surface how churches have handled this poorly,” said Hatfield, who has been on the church’s staff 24 years. “I would be heartbroken if we ever were part of that kind of system.” 

A team led by Mike Sloan, GRACE’s director of safeguarding, and Kieve conducted training for First Baptist’s leaders, and Kieve and Sloan went back for churchwide training. A church team has been developing sexual abuse policies, which will be presented to the congregation. Then a set of procedures will follow. 

“Mike and Jay raised our awareness about the potential for abuse,” Hatfield said. “It’s the obligation of the entire church to be responsible about how we want to behave together. This is something we want to get right—a foundational piece for us.”   

Across 23 years as youth pastor, Hatfield worked with parents to create a safe environment for students, which established a level of comfort. “But we can get sloppy when we get comfortable,” she said. “We want to be intentional about what we do, because you just never know.” 

“You never know” resonates at First Baptist Church in Wilson, N.C., where a previous youth pastor was arrested in 2019 for soliciting a minor online.  

Kelsey Lewis Vincent, associate pastor for students and connections, and Taylor Edwards, associate pastor for families and faith formation, contacted Kieve out of need. “We want to build back trust in the children and youth ministries and start strong with good child-protection policies,” Vincent said. 

Kieve led a customized training session with staff and lay leaders. “Jay said it’s hard to tell when someone is a predator or not; some are very good at hiding,” Vincent noted. “Hearing that helped folks release the heaviness you feel in the wake of something like this.” 

Kieve emphasized the importance of preparedness, she added. “If you have strict policies and prevention measures, it is not up to you to tell who is a predator or not. You treat everyone the same. You are not giving them the opportunity (to abuse), because you are minimizing the opportunity for a predator to be alone with a child.” 

Beyond CBF’s efforts, senior pastors provide the key for making their churches safe from abuse, Kieve said. “Churches love their youth ministers and children’s ministers—who often raise the issue of abuse—but they are easier to dismiss, limit or ignore,” he observed. “But when the senior pastor cares about something, talks about it from the pulpit and insists committees address it, the church is much more likely to engage. So, the first thing to do is get the senior pastor talking about preventing abuse in the church.” 

To engage CBF’s abuse prevention and response program, contact Kieve at jkieve@cbf.net.