Former Tenth Presbyterian pastor Liam Goligher has been defrocked and barred from taking communion by the PCA’s Philadelphia Presbytery after pleading guilty to adult sex abuse, lying, abuse of power, and more.
Anglican Watch first began investigating Tenth Presbyterian and Liam Goligher after church officials committed perjury in civil lawsuits intended to silence church whistleblower Phil Snyder, who had alerted church officials to various credible claims of sexual abuse. Tenth responded by falsely claiming that Snyder had threatened church members and pursuing an injunction against Snyder based on these fabrications.
A subsequent investigation by the non-profit anti-abuse organization GRACE revealed more than a dozen cases of sexual abuse within the church, as well as multiple instances of ignoring or covering up the allegations. Several of the persons identified in the report remain involved in the church.
As part of Anglican Watch’s ongoing investigation, we discovered that Goligher had pleaded guilty to criminal charges involving having sex in a Lancaster public park. A co-defendant, Tenth Presbyterian deacon Susan Elzey, also pled guilty in the case.
Elzey also had provided perjurious testimony in the civil action against Snyder and appears to have contacted this publication with similar fabrications in an effort to shut down our coverage of the story.
The Philadelphia Presbytery’s announced its decision to defrock Goligher following its Jan. 18 meeting:
“In the case of the Presbyterian Church in America v Liam Goligher, Liam Goligher pleaded guilty to the charges of Lying, Conduct Unbecoming of a Pastor and Elder, Harsh and Uncharitable Treatment of Colleagues and Subordinates and Spiritual Abuse and Adult Clergy Sexual Abuse. After considering the nature of Liam Goligher’s confession and indications of repentance, the Ad Hoc Judicial Commission ruling on this case inflicted the censures of deposition from office and indefinite suspension from the Lord’s Supper,” the presbytery said, according to Advocacy from the Presbyterian Pew.
“The Presbytery appointed a pastoral care team to guide Liam Goligher in seeking full repentance and restoration to the Lord’s Supper.”
Meanwhile, Tenth Presbyterian has experienced a sharp decline in attendance and financial support, which sources close to the matter tell Anglican Watch is due to the church’s ongoing refusal to address abuse in the church and an ongoing lack of transparency.
We also note that Goligher repeatedly lied about the Lancaster incident, which shows that he is thoroughly unrepentant.
Unfinished business
What’s our take on the news that Liam Goligher is history?
The answer is twofold.
On the one hand, we’re glad to see Goligher gone. The Presbytery’s decision to defrock him is long overdue, and Tenth has been playing games over these issues for years.
On the other hand, Tenth is like an apple tree with rot at its core; it still bears fruit, yet the tree itself is dying. Yes, it’s doing better than the Episcopal Church by holding Goligher accountable, but that’s not saying much.
Specifically, while the church has appointed a committee to help Liam Goligher, we see no such care for victims hurt by Goligher and the church’s corrupt relationship with him. Is there a committee to help them? Apologies? Counseling?
And why is perjurer George McFarland still involved? Any church is only as strong as its elected leadership, and we see nothing but corruption from McFarland. We will revisit that conclusion when we see a written retraction and apology from McFarland for the false statements he made in court about Snyder.
Speaking of Snyder, we have yet to see an apology from Tenth for its criminal conduct towards him. Any such apology must:
- Be in writing.
- Publicly available.
- Specify the wrongful actions and criminal conduct by the church.
- Offer to restore Snyder’s membership in the church, but only if he is interested in doing so.
- Include reimbursement for Snyder’s legal fees.
- Provide counseling and other support to Snyder for the trauma the church has caused him.
Oh, and while we’re on the topic, Liam’s welcome to contact us via email to retract his false and defamatory cease and desist letter. When, as here, the allegations are true, a letter of this sort is nothing but an additional layer of lies.
To be clear, the true hero in this matter is the person not named in any media coverage, and that is Snyder.
As to Susan Elzey, we recognize that her relationship with Goligher constitutes abuse on Goligher’s part. But we will not give her a pass on her perjurious statements and lies involving Phil Snyder. Until she apologizes in writing and retracts her fabrications, she remains culpable.
So, until we see true repentance by Tenth and Goligher’s minions, our recommendation to Christians everywhere remains the same:
Avoid Tenth Presbyterian like the Ten Plagues of Egypt. Indeed, swarms of locusts and boils on the backside sound infinitely preferable to dealing with this church.
Thank you for following up on this. (I was interested because I have close friends who were once, but no longer, active members of 10th.) I wonder if Phil Ryken, President of Wheaton College and former pastor of 10th, sleeps well at night?
Bob Emery