Tag: ravi

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Church Conspiracy Critical Race Theory Featured

Hypocrite! Cowardly ERLC Head Uninvited Ravi Zacharias from MLK 50

In an act of cowardice and pure hypocrisy, the head of the Southern Baptist Convention’s (SBC) Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), Russell Moore, recounts how in 2018 he uninvited Ravi Zacharias from speaking at MLK 50 on account of concerns that the late apologist had acted inappropriately in 2017 with Lori Anne Thompson after allegations emerged.

Moore explains that he initially invited him to speak on the implications of racial injustice for Christian apologetics, but when allegations against Zacharias emerged, he rescinded his offer.

When the first reports of the allegations about correspondence between Zacharias and a woman in Canada surfaced, I was alarmed not just by the allegations but by Zacharias’ response to them. He told me that he was falsely accused, and that these allegations were false—in general terms. 

But I said to him and to his team that I failed to see how, if that were so, he could not definitively state that he had not had any sexual conversations in this way with a woman not his wife, and that he had never, as reports suggested, pleaded with her not to tell her husband or that he would kill himself. We canceled Zacharias from speaking at the event. 

He was angered by that and made that very clear. He then had mutual friends call to seek to get me to change my mind. I said no. They assured me that time would show that Ravi was innocent of these charges—and I said that certainly could be true, and that I hoped it would be, but that I would not share a stage with him with what seemed to me to be evasive responses to very serious allegations. 

Unsurprisingly, Moore and the ERLC don’t see the irony that the conference they uninvited him from was in support and celebration of Martin Luther King Jr., a notorious sex pervert, sex trafficker, and serial sexual abuser.

But in typical Russell Moore style, the man who wrote the book Courage to Stand doesn’t care about any of that. Instead, he leverages the recent revelations to say, “Look how awesome we were, when we uninvited him in secret and didn’t tell anyone about it. Aren’t we brave and courageous?”

We are a little surprised he hasn’t broken his hand already, for how often and how hard he’s patting himself on the back over this one.

Russell Moore had the courage to uninvite him privately and not tell anyone about it, but not the courage to stand with the victim and tell the world about it publicly. This would have given it more scrutiny and attention, and stop Ravi’s sexual predations far sooner, as he was sexting women and soliciting right up to his death. Moore writes:

It’s a bit surreal to be angry at a dead man, but many of us are—as well as at those who empowered him. We have seen so often this pattern, with lives destroyed all along the way. But it’s not enough to be angry. We should ask why this continues to happen.

Moore and the ERLC did in fact empower and enable him. They could have used their clout to expose him and bring it all to the forefront while he was still alive. These things “continue to happen” because people in power like Moore do nothing to stop it when given the opportunity.

In many ways, he is like the Levite in Luke 10. He believed the Canadian woman on the side of the road was beaten, that there was credible evidence of the injuries, and he even had the opportunity to directly question the “thieves” about it. He noticed the blood on their knuckles and the extra weight of their coin purses. But he chose to leave her and her reputation for dead and resolve not to associate further with the thieves.

If they had any true leadership and intestinal fortitude, they could have made a statement back in 2018 which said:

Given the very serious allegations against Ravi, we have uninvited him from MLK 50. It is very clear to us that his recounting of events do not make sense and are not internally consistent.

Furthermore, when we questioned him about it, he ‘gave evasive responses to our questions’ and ‘could not definitively state that he had not had any sexual conversations in this way with a woman not his wife.’

For these reasons and others, such as the ‘suicide email,’ everything about the story indicates the allegations have weight and merit, and are worth pursuing. We call upon RZIM to do a full, independent investigation to respond to what are very serious charges, and until they do so, we encourage all Southern Baptist churches to refuse to work with or partner with him or his ministry.

But that would have been too much, and may have highlighted the record of the sexual deviancy of one Martin Luther King Jr., which they do not want to talk about. One cannot be seen taking a stand and going hard on Ravi and not King himself, especially at a conference honoring the latter.

Instead, we get multiple articles and Moore high-fiving himself for doing the bare minimum.

Actually, no. The bare minimum would have been reaching out to Lori Anne Thompson.

Moore did the bare minimum to protect himself and the reputation of his conference.

Truly, the hero the SBC deserves.


Categories
Church Featured Scandal

RZIM Associate on Ravi Allegations ‘I knew about the Rumors…’

A longtime RZIM partner and associate has commented on the allegations of sexual molestation and perverse behavior by famed apologist Ravi Zacharias, revealing that he heard about the rumors for years and that he’s embarrassed that he so easily believed the explanations that were given to him by RZIM.

In an article for Eternity News, John Sandeman quotes a statement by John Dickson, an Australian author and historian with close ties to RZIM who has taught at many of their conferences and has been featured on their website and social media for years. Referencing the Baker-Hytch letter, whereby another famed apologist and co-laborer with Zacharias called into question RZIM’s response to the claims, he writes:

“I am devastated…I knew about the rumors, but it was always explained to me by RZIM officials as scurrilous gossip intended to bring down a good organization. Plausible explanations were offered, and I am embarrassed to say that I too easily trusted what I was told. But it is clear to me from this leaked letter – at least reading between the lines – that one of the most important intellectuals in the RZIM team (Max Baker-Hytch) fears the very worst about all of the allegations concerning Ravi.

He (Max Baker-Hytch) also seems to have experienced obfuscation and a lack of sincerity from the very top of the organization. That is not the organization I have known and loved for more than 20 years, but I also know that Max is about as trustworthy and mild-mannered a human being as you will ever meet. Apart from anything else, someone in leadership at RZIM – one of the recipients of the letter presumably – seems to have leaked this letter. I am sure Max is not alone in feeling that there is a very real possibility that RZIM has betrayed the public trust, numerous women, and the Lord himself.”

Dickson also spoke to Julie Roy, who informed her that he had severed ties with RZIM

Do you intend to continue speaking occasionally at RZIM events? Why or why not?

A: No. I had a Zoom meeting with RZIM leaders in October, in which they kindly allowed me to ask all the questions I wanted. I wrote to them a few days later advising that I could not in good conscience continue any connection with RZIM, including some academic teaching I was due to offer next month. Without going into detail—I hope you don’t mind—I basically explained to RZIM leadership that I did not have confidence the allegations were being taken seriously enough by the US leadership, nor that the path they had chosen was designed to bring everything into the light.

Q: What would RZIM need to do to restore trust with you (if it in fact, is broken)?

A: I believe RZIM is in grave peril. I cannot see how the organisation can survive. I count many of the people in the organisation my friends. Some of them are, to my mind, the most important Christian communicators in the world. But I can only see myself working with them, assuming they’ll still have me, if the Zacharias family releases Lori Anne Thompson from the non-disclosure agreement, if the RZIM board opens itself up to genuine scrutiny, if the Zacharias name is removed from the organisation, and, above all, if they somehow become the gold standard in transparency and grace toward alleged victims, wherever they are found.


We eagerly await the results of the investigation that is allegedly taking place at RZIM, though we have serious doubts about what it will find, given that it’s not an independent investigation. So far RZIM has not demonstrated any transparency or godly sorry but rather obfuscation and distraction.

If they want to show they are taking this seriously, the first thing they can do is release Lori Anne Thompson from her NDA which was enforced by RZIM under bad faith and an effort to conceal Zacharia’s sin.

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Evangelical Stuff Featured News

We Demand Transparency from RZIM: Release Lori Thompson from her NDA

As the world comes crashing around Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM) and the myth of the morality of their once-great leader unravels across the world, there is something that the Christian community must demand after decades of promoting his ministry and giving sacrificially to the cause of Christ: give us utter and complete transparency.

We want to know who’s on their board, other than his wife and immediate family, and why have they been repeatedly ignoring these requests and evidence presented for years? While we understand that some of these relations against their beloved leader may be shocking and unexpected, it’s not like they haven’t had the accusations for months now. They received these accusations and proof a long time ago but refused to acknowledge it.

In fact, when we told RZIM about it before everything broke, they said investigating it was “virtually impossible.” Yet given that his accusers are still alive, including his business partner who has made the accusation, and in fact still lives in the same city as RZIM headquarters, it seemed that the ability to investigate is not ‘virtually impossible’ but rather ‘imminently doable.’ RZIM has since changed their tune and is now offering to investigate only after they couldn’t ignore it and were exposed, but this sort of unbiblical behavior is damning to their credibility, and it needs to stop.

Most importantly, however, is that we want RZIM to release Lori Thompson from her Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) which she never should have had to sign in the first place.

We broke the story last week (and so far seem the only people who have written about it) about how RZIM is in the process of laying off 10% of its staff members and forcing all outgoing employees to sign their favored NDAs, which are designed to force the silence under the threat of punitive monetary damages and legal threats of any exiting employees. That was before this story broke wide open.

RZIM has nearly 50 employees and brings in $37,000,000 a year in donations, and we can expect that with the news that Zacharias was molesting and sexually abusing his employees, that they will be cutting more than 10% of their payroll.

As it applied to Thomson specifically, we covered back in May 2020 that she wrote an open letter to RZIM, pleading with the organization to release her from her legally binding non-disclosure agreement that prevents her from sharing her side of the story – an NDA that Ravi Zacharias himself did not hold to when he revealed details to Christianity today back in 2018.

The emotional video by Thompson was live-streamed on Periscope and has been embedded below and the full statement by Thompson can be seen at this link here.

I say this as one who has been stricken and as one whose words have been stolen. Under excruciating circumstances, I signed a non-disclosure agreement that does not permit me to defend myself, leaving me once again defenseless. To take the capacity to speak a person’s word may be the final blow. Freedom of speech is not only the First Amendment Right, it is also part of what it means to be fully human. After extensive trauma-informed care, I am taking this moment to ask the ‘heirs’ of that NDA for a full release from its terms and agreements — as my husband and I now have nothing that we do not wish disclosed.

Yet in a statement from just a few days ago, RZIM has repeatedly rejected calls for Thompson to be released from her NDA. Instead, they have proffered that they have no intentions to do that, despite the clarity and truthfulness this would bring to bear on the situation.

As is widely known, Ravi Zacharias died May 19, 2020. Subsequently, some have called on his family and/or ministry to release the Thompsons from the confidentiality agreement they entered into with Ravi some two-and-a-half years prior to his death. Since RZIM was not a party to the agreement, it is unable to alter it, and his family does not feel it proper to alter it without Ravi’s knowledge or consent. Before he died, however, Ravi addressed allegations that he solicited inappropriate photos from Lori Anne Thompson or otherwise engaged in communications of a sexual nature with her in an 800-word public statement in December 2017. In that statement, he denied any sexually or romantically inappropriate conduct. He stood by that statement until his death. His denial is consistent with the character of the man we knew and worked alongside for years.

Given that Ravi Zacharias has seemingly been for years an expert on “doing things without one’s consent, there ought to be no impetus to honor his request,” particularly since its purpose was to cover and conceal his sin.

While news of Zacharias’ unsaintly behavior brings a measure of a degree of vindication to Lori Thompson, who for years had to endure scurrilous slaps and cruel attacks from RZIM defenders, supporters, and even casual observers calling her a liar and opportunist for dare suggesting that Zacharias is not beyond reproach, her vindication is not complete, only partial.

Though her credibility may have been given a massive boost, it is incumbent upon RZIM to follow the threads where that credibility leads. The late RZIM magistrate is dead. We pray he meets his maker on good terms, but we have no assurance of that. But the living are still among us, and their story deserves to be told. We will not tolerate further coverup or cloak and dagger malfeasance from an organization that so far has obfuscated at every turn.

RZIM:

Let Lori Thompson speak!