public notice: STEVE MORGAN, PASTOR AND NETWORK PRESIDENT, WAS ARRESTED FOR AGGRAVATED CRIMINAL SODOMY AGAINST A MINOR

Date Posted: July 08, 2022

JUMP TO SECTION:

1. BACKGROUND
2. DETAILS OF ARREST FOR AGGRAVATED CRIMINAL SODOMY
   • Court Documents
   • Self Disclosure
   • Letter to Network Leaders
   • Steve Morgan's Written Response
   • Local Investigation
   • Vineyard Officials Did Not Know about Steve Morgan's Arrest
   • Action Has Not Been Taken
3. WHY IS THIS INFORMATION IMPORTANT?
   • Sex Offenders Should Not Be Allowed to Serve as Pastors or Church Leaders
4. WHAT DO EXPERTS RECOMMEND?
   • What do experts recommend should occur when a sex offender is in the church?
5. TIMELINE
   • How the information about Steve Morgan's arrest for aggravated criminal sodomy became known to board members and other pastors within Steve Morgan's accountability structure

BACKGROUND

Steve Morgan is the Lead Pastor at Joshua Church in Austin, Texas and also the Network Leader/President of a 26 church network with churches throughout the United States, United Kingdom, and Taiwan.

Steve Morgan was arrested in 1987 for allegedly commiting aggravated criminal sodomy against a minor in 1986 while a youth pastor in Johnson County, Kansas (greater Kansas City Metro area). Steve was 22 at the time of the alleged assault. He subsequently disclosed that he committed this alleged sexual assault to a number of people indicated in the sections below. An arrest record was also located to support this disclosure. A person close to the situation has reported that the alleged victim was a 15-year-old male.

WHY IS THIS INFORMATION IMPORTANT FOR NETWORK CHURCHES?

The alleged sex assault occurred in the context of a church in which Steve was serving as a leader over teenagers. Steve is a current public figure in a church leadership position as Lead Pastor of Joshua Church and also serves as Network Leader/Board President. He currently has responsibility over 26 local churches, hundreds of pastors—including youth group leaders—and oversees thousands of church members across the United States and in two other countries. Steve is in a position of church leadership at the highest possible level and church leaders are held to higher standards (1 Tim 3:1-7) than the laypeople in their care.

The purpose of disclosing this information is to engage in a public attempt to encourage Network leaders to ensure responsible, appropriate actions have been taken for the safety of all Network pastors, staff, church members and attenders. This public notice is meant to inform and protect the church and its people. Parents and church members have a right to know when a disclosed alleged sex offender is in their midst.

Sexual assault is differentiated from other sins because they are abuses of power.^[2] Such abuses are relevant because Steve is currently leading thousands of people within a system of his own making in which power is consolidated with him and a small group of people he appointed. Scripture singles out some sins, particularly those involving abuse, as sin that is an abomination or is particularly hated by God (Matthew 18:6-7, Ps 5:6; 11:5; Prov 6:16-19). This is largely based on the graver consequences of certain sins, especially abuse, on individuals and on the community. Sexual assault is a most serious sin in God’s eyes. It is terribly destructive, often causing lifelong consequences. For the abuser, their behavior demonstrates severe hard-heartedness with frightening, devastating consequences to those under the abusers' influence.

This particular case occurred in the context of a church youth group in which Steve was an older leader with power and influence over an alleged, vulnerable minor victim. Current power of authority laws in many states make it a crime for a school teacher or any adult leader to engage in sex with a person under 18 years old. Teen boys who are sexually assaulted by an adult male may also experience specific damaging effects including increased depression, anxiety, questions of sexual orientation, a sense of blame, and fear of judgement.^[3]

Recent summaries of research on recidivism or reoffense rates show that between 16-75% of sexual offenders reoffend depending on the study design (followup surveys, re-arrest rates, followup length, etc.).^[4] Even with rates between 16-75%, nearly all experts agree that reoffending is a real possibility and must be considered, even if the offender claims they have not committed more assaults. We have no knowledge of other alleged offenses by Steve, either before or after the one incident which he disclosed. But Steve cannot be the final authority over his own vindication.

Already we have observed that the alleged crime to which Steve "confessed" was significantly altered from the alleged crime which has now come to our attention. Is this the same instance about which Steve obfuscated and concealed key, damaging details? Or were there two alleged offenses: one which Steve disclosed and one he did not? We do not know the answers to these questions.

According to most current state laws, being convicted of sexual assault may result in a lifetime listing on sexual offender registries along with lifetime electronic monitoring.^[5] At the time of Steve’s alleged assault, there were no sex offender registries in existence.

God can and does forgive all sins upon repentance, and these include even the most grievous sins like sexual assault. We should all be willing to confess our sins to the people with whom we are accountable. Pastors and church leaders are not above confession and should confess to other leaders who do not have a conflict of interest.

Sexual sins involving assault need careful consideration, intentional structures, and oversight to ensure public safety. If we are truly forgiven, then all previous sins should be in the light. And we know that God wonderfully regenerates and sanctifies believers. We don't discount the role of the Holy Spirit in changing believers.

Nonetheless, given Steve Morgan's inadequate disclosure about an arrest for a serious alleged sexual crime and the secrecy he appears to have employed in hiding and obfuscating key details about this alleged assault for many years, combined with what is known about the troubling psychological profile of those who sexually assault victims over whom they have spiritual authority, it cannot be said with any credible certainty that the Network has protections in place to address all potential abuses that have been disclosed to—or perpetuated by—its leadership.

SEX OFFENDERS SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO SERVE AS A PASTOR OR CHURCH LEADER

Even though the self-disclosed alleged assault occurred many years ago, and Steve can be forgiven, several key questions remain. Should someone arrested for sexual assault of a minor serve in a vocational leadership role per the requirements of elder as outlined in the Bible? Is a leader with this background above reproach and do they have a good reputation in the community (I Timothy 3:2, Titus 1:6)? How does having this background affect a person’s ministry? Is it healthy for Steve’s long-term wellbeing to serve in church leadership capacities? Are church members safe? Should a person with this background supervise subordinates who lead church youth groups? Most churches would not hire a church youth leader with this alleged criminal background. These are questions we believe that the Network leadership and pastors should address and publicly communicate to church members.

The issue of sex abuse by clergy has been at the forefront of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) the past few years since a Houston Chronicle investigative report revealed hundreds of convicted sex abusers were still serving in church leadership positions.^[6] Partially in response to these cases the SBC Messengers overwhelmingly passed a resolution in the summer of 2021 stating the following:

“WHEREAS, Scripture says that pastors, elders, and overseers are to be ‘above reproach’ (1 Timothy 3:2) and ‘blameless’ (Titus 1:6); and

WHEREAS, The Baptist Faith and Message says that pastors should be ‘qualified by Scripture’; and

WHEREAS, Sexual abuse is an action repugnant to the teachings of Scripture and reprehensible even to those who are not believers; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention, meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, June 15-16, 2021, believe that any person who has committed sexual abuse is permanently disqualified from holding the office of pastor; and be it finally

RESOLVED, That we recommend that all of our affiliated churches apply this standard to all positions of church leadership.”^[7]

At the recent 2022 Southern Baptist Convention, the messengers approved two new resolutions on pastoral sexual abuse and a lament/repentance for sexual abuse in churches.^[8]

The Network churches are not affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. However, the SBC is the largest protestant denomination in the United States and has a large influence on protestant church practices. The way the SBC has begun to address sexual abuse by its leadership can be informative for any church system.

Spiritual leaders have a unique position of power over the church members they lead. This power dynamic is similar to other professions like medical professionals, licensed counselors, and school educators. This is why many churches' policies explicitly state that sexual assault by a leader against anyone under their care, whether an adult or minor, is considered immoral. This view is expressed in the 2022 SBC resolutions. In 2021, the Roman Catholic Church made it impermissible for church workers to abuse their authority against both minors and adults. According to a recent article, “The [canon] law recognizes that adults, not only children, can be victimized by priests who abuse their authority. The revisions also say that lay people holding church positions, such as school principals or parish economists, can be punished for abusing minors as well as adults.”^[9]

A comment made during the March 4, 2021 Ask NT Wright Anything podcast, draws attention to this very issue. Dr. Wright stated,

“Sexual behavior and misbehavior goes very, very deeply into the personality. Somebody who is accustomed to be a seducer of vulnerable people is simply not likely to get over that just because they repented and the church has said God gives you absolution. Therefore they should not be put in that position. It’s like someone who has come off alcohol. They can be brought back into the community but they should not be given a job running a pub. Somebody who’s been convicted of financial mismanagement, maybe they can be given a position but not as a church treasurer.”^[10]

Other similar cases emerged in recent years. Andy Savage, as a 22-year-old youth pastor in Texas sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl who was a member of his youth group. The assault was not reported and was hidden for twenty years. Savage resigned from his lead pastor position of a large church in Memphis after the victim’s story became public and was published in the New York Times.^[11] Charles Lyons was a longtime pastor of a church in the Chicago area. He confessed to a sex assault on a minor which occurred over forty years earlier. Lyons resigned after the victim went public with details.^[12] And just recently, a 22-year-old church youth group leader in Ohio was criminally charged with having sex with a teen member of his youth group and was fired from his position in the church immediately.^[13] Unfortunately, such cases are not uncommon.

WHAT DO EXPERTS RECOMMEND SHOULD OCCUR WHEN A SEX OFFENDER IS IN THE CHURCH?

Mr. Boz Tchividjian set forth a set of recommendations for how churches should address having a sex offender within the church.^{[14] [15]} Other church risk management groups also list a set of recommendations.^{[16] [17] [18] [19]} Combined, such recommendations include, but are not limited to the following:

• The needs of victims and survivors should always come first. Restitution and support may need to be considered for victims of sexual assault.
• Churches should work with a group like GRACE to investigate to ensure that there are no additional victims and to develop protective policies and systems. 
• Careful grace should be extended to the offender but with an understanding of what underlying typologies and behaviors may drive their actions.
• Offenders can participate in local church activities but only with clear safeguards in place. 
• Church leaders and workers need to be trained in protection strategies, safeguarding policies, and reporting procedures. 
• Churches should implement a signed written contract between the church and an offender that articulates clear boundaries and consequences. Contracts should be indefinite and be reviewed regularly. 
• Offenders should not be allowed to be alone on church property or in areas with youth and children. 
• A professional risk assessment should be part of any contract with an offender. 
• Church contracts should severely limit sex offenders’ participation in any form of public ministry in the church. A church should not ask a sex offender to be part of the public platform.
• An offender must never be placed in a position of trust or responsibility that in any manner communicates to children and youth that they are safe.
• Accountability partners should be assigned to the offender. 
• Ongoing, professional counseling by an expert in sex abuse should be offered for the offender. 
• Information about the assault should be communicated with church members. Public information should be provided and secrecy codes removed.
• Church leaders with responsibility who fail to act may be complicit in hiding information from the public and should be held accountable.