this would have been a nice apology

this would have been a nice apology if they had just left out that bullshit about homosexuality.

C h r i s t i a n s
W h o C a r e Out of a sense of corporate responsibility for the spiritual welfare of our city, and with great sobriety over the depth of the very credible and legitimate allegations brought against Bishop Earl Paulk, certain members of his family, presbytery, and staff of the Cathedral at Chapel Hill in Decatur, Georgia, as well as other ministerial leaders associated with this ministry, we, the undersigned, offer the following statement to provide a Biblical response to the Church, and to the citizens of our city, state, and nation.

As has been made public knowledge through documented testimonies, affidavits, depositions, as well as from various venues of the news media, and other non-specified venues, the charges of serious illicit behaviors and heretical teachings necessitate a public response from leaders within the Church of Jesus Christ, including pastors and ministry leaders from various denominations, congregations, ministries and networks.

On behalf of church leaders and followers of Jesus Christ, we offer the following statements of confession and repentance:

• To all females of different ages and backgrounds who courageously stepped forward in the past to bear witness against Earl Paulk and certain members of his family and presbytery of the Cathedral, specifically around 1992, and who found very little if any support from church leadership, or even from people within the church who would believe your testimonies, we ask your forgiveness and we repent for our insensitivity and lack of courage to stand with you during a dreadfully difficult time.
• To all who have been betrayed, victimized, abused, and wounded by sexually inappropriate actions of Earl Paulk, or others, we repent for looking the other way, for tolerating such depravity among one set apart as a minister of the Gospel of Christ. We repent for being afraid to get involved in helping bring the truth of what has been happening for a long time into the light while the media exposed and mocked what we should have seen and handled by the authority of Christ in the Church.
• We also repent for not providing a safe place for you as victims to share your story, your pain, or your struggles and for not assisting you in finding healing, restoration, and wholeness through Jesus Christ. We failed to rightly represent the nature and strength of Jesus Christ to you, and in some ways, may have caused a stumbling block to be placed in your path that has kept you from continuing in a growing relationship with Christ or the Church.
• We also desire to repent to those who are not of the Christian faith for continuing to be a people who point judgmentally at your behaviors, while failing to deal appropriately and Biblically with the sin that exists among our own.

Furthermore, we issue the following statements expressing our Biblical position in response to the allegations against Earl Paulk and others who may be guilty of similar sin:

• We clearly and boldly state that ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ have never been given Scriptural license to have any type of extra-marital sexual relationship nor do these ministers have any license to use the confidences grained during spiritual counseling to exploit women in a sexual way. No sexual relationship outside of marriage is ever Biblically permitted or endorsed. There are no special exceptions for ministers to be governed by standard different than what is clearly stated in the Bible. In fact, the Biblical standard for ministers of the Gospel is higher.
• We stand firmly to defend the sanctity of marriage as the union between one man and one woman and declare as sin all expressions of immorality, including all forms of fornication, adultery, incest, child abuse, homosexuality, and pornography.
• We declare as heresy all teachings that state, either blatantly or by implication - in private or in public, that it is acceptable for anyone to satisfy the sexual needs of a 'minister' of the gospel of Jesus Christ, or that it would be pleasing to God for a person to participate in such sinful behavior. This includes all teachings that introduce and/or propagate relationships known to be called such terms as 'spiritual connections,' 'spiritual marriages,' or 'kingdom unions' and are clearly outside the boundaries of Biblical Christianity and are not to be tolerated.
• We judge as completely counter to the teachings of Scripture all expressions of manipulation, control, and coercion used to gain power and fulfill selfish, sexual, and sinful desires of leaders within the Christian community, such as have been propagated by Earl Paulk, certain members of his family and presbytery, as well as some of his associates.

Furthermore, we issue the following statements of exhortation in light of the aforementioned allegations:

• To anyone who has been wounded, abused, victimized, or trapped in situations of manipulative, predatory, immoral relationships with someone in ministry or church leadership, including, but not limited to, Earl Paulk, or any of his family or associates, or other unidentified ministers, please seek help immediately and avoid all association with those given to such practices. Healing and restoration are available for you through Jesus Christ. Help from understanding, compassionate, and trained individuals is available, contact information is provided below.
• To any minister that has fallen into any expression of sexual immorality or heretical teaching, as mentioned above, to immediately take steps of repentance, including confession and pursuit of serious help. You may contact caring, knowledgeable, trained people through the contact information provided below.
• In closing, we offer a deep felt statement of apology to the citizens of Atlanta, the state of Georgia, all other affected areas 'Äì near and far, and to the Church worldwide. We, as Christian leaders, apologize for tolerating this type of behavior and heretical teaching among those who say they represent God. We plainly state that we are ashamed by all that has occurred and for the discrediting it has brought against the Church, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the city of Atlanta.
• We acknowledge that we are all frail human beings and utterly dependant upon the grace and mercy of the Lord. Christianity affords pathways of restoration, reconciliation, and redemption to all who confess their sin, turning from the ways of wickedness and to the Lord in faith. Even so, natural consequences for sin are not negated and often carry a severe penalty, which may include preclusion from all future positions of church leadership. We pray for all who have been touched by this atrocity, whether personally or from a distance, that you will know the abounding love, mercy, and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

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