|
Texas megachuch Pastor Robert Morris admits 'inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady' after he's accused of abusing 12-year-old girl
[NYPOST] A Texas megachurch pastor has admitted previously having "inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady" after being accused of repeatedly molesting a family friend starting when she was just 12.A holy man debauching a young girl? Unheard of! Robert Morris, the founder of Gateway Church in Southlake and a one-time spiritual adviser for Donald Trump  ...His ancestors didn't own any slaves..., confessed after Cindy Clemishire told the Wartburg Watch that she was allegedly groomed for abuse that continued for four years until she was 16. If I lived in Wartburg I think I'd move someplace else with a classier name, maybe Jackson's Hole. "When I was in my early twenties, I was involved in inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady in a home where I was staying," he told the Christian Post, a dismissive description that "appalled" his accuser. If he's 62 that was forty years ago. If the abuse stopped when she was sixteen she's in her fifties now. "It was kissing and petting and not intercourse, but it was wrong," said the pastor, whose church attracts an estimated 100,000 worshippers each week. "This behavior happened on several occasions over the next few years." I kissed a girl while I was married once. So sue me. She was of age, so was I. We'd been friends for several years. No tongues were employed. I kiss my nieces (17, 16, and 8) on the infrequent occasion I get to see them. I don't feel them up, but I'm not a holy man or a politician, either. So I'm kinda conflicted here. Forty years ago, (discovered?), confessed, repented ("I'm sorry! Do I get to keep the job?") I'm not sure how you make up groping a 12-year-old to her, but has he figured something and done it? He said the abuse "came to light" in 1987 and "it was confessed and repented of." "And as my penance...?" Morris claims he “submitted” to church elders and Clemishire’s dad — who was head of the church he belonged to at the time — who all “asked me to step out of ministry and receive counseling and freedom ministry, which I did. Sounds penitential. Protected other 12-year-old and younger girls. “Since that time, I have walked in purity and accountability in this area,” he claimed. Take a lie detector test. Clemishire said she was “appalled” by his description of her as a “young lady.” Whyzzat? She was certainly young. The presumption would be that she was a lady until proven different. Was she a young wench? I remain conflicted. “I was 12 years old. I was a little girl. A very innocent little girl. And he was brought into our home,” the now 54-year-old grandmother told the Christian Post of abuse that took her “decades to wrap my brain around as an adult.” She's a little slow then. Either that or a case of fondling was built up in her mind to something more than it was. “I was an innocent 12-year-old little girl who knew nothing about sexual behavior,” she said. Age twelve is about the time the gonads kick and, bringing with it all sorts of curiosity. Clemishire was also outraged at the suggestion her dad had given Morris his blessing to return to ministry. “My father never ever gave his blessing on Robert returning to ministry!” she said. “My father told him he’s lucky he didn’t kill him. I am mortified that he is telling the world my dad gave his blessing!” At first, I'm sure not. If my daughter had been groped at age 12 a punch in the nose would be the least I'd want to do. But we're talking about holy men, within a structured church. The initial murderous impulse subsides with the adrenaline, followed by hours of tedious discussion. Compromises get reached, scriptures and precedents get searched, and (reluctant) agreements get reached. So we're left with a sordid tale from forty years ago, uncomfortable memories for all concerned. I remain conflicted. Posted by: Fred 2024-06-18 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=701715 |