The board of Cornerstone Church is defending pastor David Wigington after allegations emerged that he was purchasing prostitutes and escorts for erotic massages, telling congregants that they believe he is innocent.
During their September service, which was not broadcast, board member Gregory Lamar decried the claims as “false allegations” and insisted that they believe their pastor did no wrong.
We speak to you today about Pastor David and Shana, and about a matter that we know will raise questions and concerns.
False allegations that are unrelated to his work here at Cornerstone have been brought forward concerning Pastor David. From the very beginning, David brought this matter to our district leadership and voluntarily submitted himself to the district’s process and to the accountability of this board. He has cooperated fully throughout this process, which is now continued for more than four months, and as of today, we are still awaiting its conclusion. While we continue to wait, we want our church family to know a few things clearly.
First, we believe Pastor David. We believe in his innocence.
And David and Shana have this board’s full confidence, love, and support. We have walked closely with them throughout these past four months. We have watched David willingly submit himself to accountability and cooperate with everything that has been asked of him.
Supporting David does not mean the allegations should not be taken seriously; they should be. This is precisely why David submitted himself to the district process from the beginning. We believe accountability matters. We believe fairness matters. And we remain hopeful that the process will soon reach its conclusion.
At the same time. These past four months have taken a significant personal and emotional toll on David and Shana. They have continued leading, serving, and loving this church, and carrying the normal responsibilities of ministry, while living under the weight and uncertainty of this situation. As their board. We care about them not simply as our pastor and his wife, but as people we deeply love.
For that reason, the board has asked David and Shana to take some vacation time away from Cornerstone to rest, to spend time together, and begin to heal from the toll these past several months have taken on them.
We want to be very clear about what this means. This is not a suspension or discipline, and it does not represent any change in this board’s confidence in David. Quite the opposite. This is their board saying to them, “You have carried enough for a while. Let us carry some of this for you.”
While David and Shana are away, Cornerstone will continue to be well cared for. Our staff, board, ministry leaders, and preaching team will continue serving and leading our church. We ask our church family to help us give David and Shana the freedom to genuinely step away, let them rest, give them space, and pray for them and their family.
Pray that these days bring rest and healing. Pray for wisdom for everyone involved, and pray for the continued unity, health, and mission of Cornerstone. When the district process concludes, we will communicate appropriately with our church family. Until then, we want there to be no uncertainty about where this board stands.
We believe David. We stand with David and Shana. We love them with all our hearts.
Right now, one of the most important ways we can show that love is by giving them permission to step away for a little while, rest, heal, and simply be David and Shana rather than Pastor David and Shana. Cornerstone will continue its ministry. We will continue
Wigington is the lead pastor of Cornerstone Christian Fellowship in Bloomington, Indiana. According to his church bio, he has “traveled worldwide to engage, encourage, and equip missionary workers and pastors in more than 60 countries.”
He’s also the Director of Church Relations1 for Project Rescue. Founded in 1997 and growing to $10M in annual revenue, they are a “global, faith-based network that rescues and restores women and children who are survivors of sexual slavery and human exploitation.” Wigington has been heavily involved with them and has helped raise millions of dollars to stop sex trafficking.
Four months ago, Jo Fipps, a longtime congregant and church volunteer, discovered Wigington’s purported secret life after receiving one of the pastor’s old computers. The laptop wasn’t properly wiped and still gave access to his iCloud account, texts, messages, and calendar, dating back to 2020. He told the Roys Report:
“I was not remotely suspecting or expecting to find the depth of what I found: conversations with dozens of people that appeared to be sex workers talking about sexual services and meeting up all over the country,”
Some examples, which were all provided to the Roys Report in the attached trove, include:
and
Wigington has denied the allegations.
