Falls Church Anglican releases addendum to sexual abuse investigatory report; result is underwhelming

The Falls Church Anglican (TFCA) has released an addendum to its investigatory report on sexual abuse within the church’s Cornerstone Program. Unsurprisingly, the result is every bit as underwhelming as the original report.

Defining sexual abuse

A significant issue with the report is the author’s game of duck, bob, and weave around covert sexual abuse.

For example, in one section, the report shares details of an adult volunteer who routinely had boys over to his apartment, even while running around in his underwear.

In that context, church members predictably enough remember making excuses for the perpetrator, including that he was former military, so he must be used to doing things of this sort.

Excuse us, but church and military are not one and the same. That’s like saying if it’s okay at the og-gyn, it’s okay at church. Obviously the logic doesn’t work — but it does show the extent to which church members, in the throes of clericalism and under the thrall of multiple narcissists, will go to make excuses for bad actors.

Meanwhile, the author goes on to foolishly assert that, absent objective evidence that the purpose of this behavior was for sexual gratification, no conclusion can be reached about whether the abuser’s behavior was sexual in nature.

That approach fails both the sniff test and the laugh test.

Indeed, the author, Edward Isler, is an attorney. As such, he knows that mens rea, or a “culpable mind” is determined in the American legal system not by analysis of the defendant’s thinking, but by their actions.

So what are these actions? Well, they include groping, touching the private areas of boys, wedgies, discussions of the male sex organ, and ongoing discussions of masturbation. Nor were these infrequent occurrences, but rather a routine part of the offender’s so-called ministry.

That begs the question: What more does the author need in order to infer sexual gratification? Videos of sexual intercourse? I mean, holy Toledo—just about every other antic imaginable is described in this and the earlier investigatory report, and it is all textbook grooming and sexual abuse.

To be clear: Intercourse is not required for conduct to be sexual, or for the purpose of sexual gratification. One can infer that sexual gratification is the goal when there is a pattern and practice.

The role of purity culture

Then we come to the purity culture of the late twentieth century. Indeed, the author of the investigatory report correctly notes that standards were different. But most children and adults instinctively know if something doesn’t feel right, and the pattern of behavior identified in the two reports is beyond cringeworthy.

As to the bit about being a one-on-one relational ministry, spare us. Common sense suggests that, even for pastoral care, doors be open and an unrelated adult be nearby. And frankly, we have to question how things got so sadly out of whack at TFCA that parents didn’t make a beeline to law enforcement when they found out that church staff were groping their boys.

In other words, if you have to ask the question, you already know the answer.

Failure to understand dynamics of abuse

We also note an alarming lack of understanding of the dynamics of abuse. Persons with antisocial aspects to their personalities, including narcissists and sociopaths, invariably display the patterns of boundary violations, excess charm, manipulation, and other disturbing behavior that we see in the investigatory reports.

Despite the myriad indicia of ongoing abuse, Isler appears determined to give the benefit of the doubt, avoid saying anything that might constitute defamation, and more—as evinced by the weasel-wording around whether abuse identified in the report is sexual in nature.

Moreover, at some point, the distinction doesn’t matter. Abuse is abuse, and non-sexual abuse can be every bit as traumatic as sexual abuse.

That raises a related issue: While the report is all about sexual abuse, we guarantee that the sexual aspect, egregious though it is, is but the tip of the spear.

In other words, the issue is a toxic culture in which people were afraid to come forward; where abuse was denied, explained away, or shoved under the rug; and where bad behavior was so common that boundary violations were not seen to be boundary violations. Indeed, one butthead has contacted us repeatedly to tell us how we have mischaracterized the Cornerstone program, how it was wonderful, and more.

Folks, in case we haven’t been clear: Any program in which boys are groped, threatened, masturbation is a common topic, and youth are traveling alone with so-called leaders is abusive, full stop. It doesn’t matter how friendly people are, how much you enjoyed being in the program, or how much spiritual growth you think you got. Again, the Cornerstone program was abusive.

The irony of same-sex misconduct

One of the great ironies in the addendum is the report’s discussion of the fact that TFCA, which fairly foamed at the mouth over the issue of same-sex marriage, and supported conversion therapy, gave little credence to male-on-male sexual abuse:

In addition, as Dr. Allender affirmed in our recent conversation, the world’s perception of these matters has changed dramatically (and for the better) over the past 30 years.

Incidents such as the 1993 conversation or the 2004 conversation would likely in today’s world be seen as potential early warning signs, worthy of further review. But, while not seeking to use the observation as an excuse, the world had a different perspective even three decades ago. (I could also note that, to the extent there was awareness in the Christian ministry setting about potential abuse and rules designed to protect students, almost all of that focus was on cross-sex situations, especially male leaders not being alone with female students. There was very little focus on or concern about same-sex situations).

Again, it is true that standards have changed. But at some point, common sense kicks in. As in, clergy should not be talking with children about their sex lives. Or hanging out one-one-one with clergy, regardless of gender. Or touching the private areas of boys.

In that context, another problem with the report is its attempt to assuage feelings of guilt via discussions of scripture. While those are conversations that need to happen, they should be part of a separate pastoral response, not an investigatory report.

We also note that Yates was quick to send letters barring anyone who professed to be LGBTQ from the TFCA campus. Yet he was okay with adults groping boys? Discussing masturbation? Running around with boys while wearing only underwear?

It sounds to us like Yates needed to worry about the log in his own eye on these topics.

We also note that ACNA talks out both sides of its mouth when it comes to the LGBTQ+ community. It’s opposed to same-sex marriage, but it did damned little when a priest at Truro was running around paying homeless men for sex via the Lamb Center. So help us understand—same-sex marriage is wrong, but a TFCA cruising for sex warrants quips at his own funeral? How does that work?

And for the record, we contacted both the Truro vestry and the priest in question’s son, to offer them the opportunity to refute our coverage. Dead silence.

Lack of a bishop

As we stated previously, the lack of a bishop is a red herring.

In that regard, John Yates at one point was understood to have said he didn’t know how to proceed, as he didn’t have a bishop.

While the addendum goes to great pains to correct previous inaccurate information on this topic, at the end of the day, whether there was a bishop or not is irrelevant.

First, that would have been the only time that Yates cared what the bishop said. Indeed, we believe that, by that time, TFCA vestry members were taking an oath of office to ACNA, not the Episcopal Church.

Second, if someone is abusing a child, you go to the police. You don’t investigate, you don’t tell people it’s all in their imagination, or buy airplane tickets so that the alleged perpetrator can meet with you. And you don’t clutch your pearls while murmuring, “If only I had a bishop to tell me what to do.”

Third, the purported lack of a bishop is BS on John Yates’ part. This is not his first time at that rodeo, and we have identified multiple situations in which he ignored abuse or blamed the victim. So he can stop the narcissistic fabrications and excuses — he has zero credibility.

Positive aspects of the report and TFCA’s handling of the allegations

As we noted previously, the handling of this situation is not entirely bad. Indeed, TFCA is paying for counseling for victims, seeking out additional victims (we know of several who have yet to come forward), and encouraging people to contact the FBI with information.

In that sense, TFCA is doing better than the Episcopal Church (TEC). Indeed, much of the conduct in question occurred prior to the split with the mainline denomination, so one has to admire TFCA’s willingness to address the issue.

Moreover, as we seen repeatedly, Episcopal bishops routinely ignore criminal conduct by clergy. Whether it’s perjuring priest Bob Malm, Glenda Curry’s fabrications to protect child rapist Richard Losch (which include falsely telling law enforcement officials that Losch was not serving a church and did not have access to children), George Sumner endorsing sexual harassment of adult women by retaliating against a priest in who complained about the sexual misconduct, Glenda Curry’s refusal to address allegations of child molestation involving Stephen McWhorter, and so many more.

So, while ACNA’s record is far from perfect, TFCE seems to be making an effort, despite the egregious flaws in how it has handled this sordid mess.

Let’s hope that ACNA cleans up its act, and that TEC learns from TFCA’s handling of this abuse.

Finally, TFCA fan boys, don’t bother to contact us to tell us how wonderful the Cornerstone program is. It’s not something of which anyone should be proud and you make yourselves look foolish and corrupt by trying to convince us otherwise.