Anglican Watch files church disciplinary complaint against Tenth Presbyterian pastor Liam Goligher for perjury

For over two years, staff at Anglican Watch have watched with dismay as Tenth Presbyterian of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) in Philadelphia has run roughshod over former member and deacon Phil Snyder. 

Specifically, pastor Liam Goligher and the church elders took Phil to court seeking a protective order, claiming Phil was threatening, violent, and a potential active shooter. 

And, thanks to the church’s wealth and high-power lawyers, the church won, despite myriad fabrications and perjury by Goligher and other church leaders.

So, since we don’t see PCA members stepping up to defend Phil, Anglican Watch has filed a formal complaint against Liam Goligher with the Philadelphia Presbytery of the PCA.

In the complaint, we outlined why we believe Goligher is a perjurer and a liar. 

And, since PCA’s Book of Order requires that witnesses in a church proceeding believe in God, heaven, and hell, we included the requisite recitation. (Of course, hell might well be listening to old Milli-Vanilli recordings for 48 hours non-stop, but no need to get too far into the weeds.)

For the record, we know Phil personally.

Like us, he is stubborn but that is not a crime.

And he’s an exemplary guy in every way. Any church would be lucky to have him. (To paraphrase Amanda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada, “You’re an idiot if you don’t welcome Phil.”)

We’ve read EVERY. LAST. WORD. of the pleadings. On both sides.

And, since Phil wisely wore a body cam while protesting peacefully outside the church, we’ve watched every inch of available footage. (Talk about a yawner.)

And one of our staff has extensive active shooter training as a law enforcement officer, including the psychology of active shooters, warning signs and other indicia, and more. Nothing we have seen even hints of any reason for concern about Phil.

Moreover, since we often advocate for victims of church abuse, we would never support someone if there were even a hint that they were indeed a threat.

We’ve also interviewed numerous people connected with Tenth Presbyterian in conjunction with this matter, often anonymously, via third parties. We have come up empty-handed in every instance, with no evidence that Phil is a threat. 

And, we’d point out that we have yet to identify a situation involving a potential active shooter in which a piece of paper from a court made a difference.

In fact, the psychology of active shooters is such that a court order likely would incite the shooter, not disincentivize them. Protective orders are useful in the case of jackasses who think it’s okay to hit their wife or significant other, things of that nature. They do not prevent acts of terror.

In other words, this is an antic straight out of perjuring priest Bob Malm’s playbook. (One of Bob’s few accomplishments during his 71 years of life was the creation of this publication, thanks to his myriad lies and abuse of the legal system. Good going, Bob!)

In other words, Tenth Presbyterian’s perjury is an attempt to shut down valid criticism, nothing more. And Goligher’s conduct in this matter underscores that the criticism is valid.

So, we are formally declaring BS on Liam Goligher and his claims that Phil fits the profile of an active shooter. And we:

• Believe Goligher and several key people at Tenth Presbyterian are perjurers.
• Call upon Tenth Presbyterian’s elders and members to repent publicly. Whistleblowers and truthtellers deserve protection and acclaim, not bullying. And Phil’s concerns extended to potential sexual misconduct.
• Call upon Tenth Presbyterians’s attorneys to investigate the facts behind their allegations and correct any false statements of law and fact to the tribunal, under their ethical obligation according to Rule 3.3 of the rules, which requires candor to the tribunal and correction of any testimony or evidence that they subsequently learn to be false.
• Call for Liam Goligher to be defrocked for bearing false witness, directly and through others.

Our complaint now is in the hands of stated clerk Greg Hobaugh, who happens to be a member of Tenth Presbyterian. He’s also, not unexpectedly, deeply entrenched in the local presbytery.  

Hmmm.

As a reminder to the inevitable lawyers:

• These are all allegations, and nothing has been proven in a court of law.
• There is a qualified privilege for church disciplinary complaints.
• Truth is a (near) absolute defense.

We also point out a practical matter: PCA is already wallowing in goo after its dismal failure to take action at its recent annual meeting to implement basic protections against sexual abuse in the church. Attempts to threaten folks exposing PCA’s toxic behavior will likely backfire in a big way.

Just sayin’.