Woman crying in church. cotonbro@pexels
“They are all innocent until proven guilty. But not me. I am a liar until I am proven honest.” ― Louise O’Neill, Asking For It.
This is a most distressing case of the sexual abuse of a 13-year-old girl in a school affiliated with St John’s Church in Denver. Here is a video from CBS News that outlines this sad story.
St John’s Church, with its affiliated school, is part of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. The senior pastor, Andrew Farhat, is central to this disturbing story. CBS News reported this story in a Former Denver church, school worker charged with raping 13-year-old girl in church: “I couldn’t believe this was happening to me.” The female student was in the school when Diego Marroquin allegedly raped her. He was the music director for both the church and school.
She said on May 17, 2022, Marroquin asked her to help him with some work on the balcony of the church sanctuary.
…: “… he pulled his jeans down then my jeans and started having sex with me.”
The church leaders and Farhat accused her of lying, slander, and gossip and did not want the police to be involved.
Jessica and Aaron Vandam said after their daughter came forward in mid-August, three months after the alleged incident, church and school leaders said the teen was lying, the accusations amounted to slander and gossip and the parents say administrators warned them not to discuss the accusations with anyone.
How could Pastor Farhat accuse a 13-year-old student of such things? It causes me to suspect that he is unacquainted with the #churchtoo movement. It further compels me to wonder if he is uneducated about how. to handle sex abuse in his church and school. The parents were wise and saved the recordings of his phone class to the family. Here is one of the most outrageous calls.
“Nothing bad happened,” Farhat said in one of the messages. “I knew it was a lie so I wanted to squash it right away so that no one would think that the police need to be involved. Now we’re protecting victims of slander, don’t want that at our school.”
Unbelievably, Marroquin was allowed to remain at the school after they knew of the allegations, so the parents went to the police.
This was a smart move on the part of the parents and a foolish and ignorant reaction on the part of St John’s Church and School.
The Vandams say when Marroquin was allowed to remain at the school and church after church administrators knew of the alleged incident, they went to Denver police.
Christopher Yvars, an attorney for St. John’s School and church, told CBS News Colorado they have fully cooperated with the investigation and will continue to. He declined further comment.
Marroquin was charged with a felony in November, but he left town.
So why did he leave town? Did he know an indictment was coming? Did the church ask him to leave at that point? Indeed he was an embarrassment to Farhat by this point.
The victim’s wise family tracked him down on social media.
The Vandams began tracking him through social media, eventually using that tracking to get him arrested.
Jessica Vandam said she knew that Marroquin might join his brother, who was connected to a church in Texas, and she was determined to find him.
“And so I began watching live feeds on Facebook of their churches,” she said.
The victim’s mom got him arrested!
On Christmas Eve, as she was watching a live Facebook feed of a service from a church in McKinney, Texas, she said she spotted the suspect playing guitar with the church ensemble.
She called local police, even sending them screenshots of the service so officers would know how Marroquin was dressed.
“And about an hour and a half, two hours later, we got a call he was arrested at the church,” said Jessica Vandam.
The family made a sad statement. Pastor Farhat should pay attention to this.
Where was the church during this process? Were they also tracking him down? Was Farhat supporting the family? Apparently not. The family removed their daughters from the school, which was a wise decision since the church and school appear to be safe places for sexual abusers.
Aaron Vandam said, “she was the one who got him arrested. I’m proud of my wife but sad she had to do it because nobody else was going to.”
All of this led to the inevitable-the parents are suing St John’s Church and School.
Need I say that I support this move by the victim’s brave and tenacious parents? Unfortunately, this victim will suffer lifelong effects from this trauma.
- First, she was raped.
- Then she was called a liar and a gossip.
Does Pastor Farhat understand how he failed in his role as a pastor?
daughter has difficulty sleeping and has anxiety
I predict a significant settlement with a standard NDA, which means we may never know the particulars.
Warning to parents and students of St John’s Church and School.
Unless there has been a change of heart on the part of Pastor Farhat, I believe that children and teens are unsafe in either the church or school. I hope the parents will demand a change in Farhat’s policy in dealing with kids who have been abused.
Suggestions for Pastor Farhat.
He should be ashamed of this response to the teen and her family.
- He is unable to make a judgment when an outcry has been made. He must call the police and let them investigate and sort it out. They are the experts.
- He must immediately support the victim and the parents of the victim. In addition, he should offer to pay for outside counseling since it is clear that he is not a trauma-informed counselor.
- He should hire GRACE to investigate the policy and procedures of the church and school. It is clear to me that outside help is warranted if the church and school want to prevent these things from occurring.
- He should apologize to the teen, her family, church, and school.
- He should repent publically?
In this day and age of rampant reports of sex abuse in the broader Protestant and evangelical churches, an incident such as this should never have occurred. Will the church ever change?
To the victim and her parents
You are my heroes for doing what others refused to do. My prayers and the prayers of all who read this go with you.
Oh, geez. Will it never end?
My in-laws went to a Missouri Synod church.
My mother-in-law was irritated by the fact that they not only didn’t allow women in leadership, they also didn’t allow them to vote.
Is it safe, now, to say that we are reaping the harvest of male-only leadership and the fruit is rotten?
Or am I jumping the gun?
Mara R,
You may not know this, but I am LCMS and have been for eight years. The LCMS has changed quite a bit; like all churches, it depends on the local leadership. In my church, women vote. Not only that but the two elders, both pastors, receive the counsel of the leadership team, which is made up of leaders of the various church ministries. Women are on that team, and one of my friends is part of that. As churches go, this is the first conservative church where I see women participating in leadership activities.
True, they cannot be pastors. But the lead DCE is a woman and is a well-respected leader in the church.
The fault in the situation lies at the feet of the lead pastor, Andrew Farhat. I assume that he slept through the classes that teach them how to deal with sexual abuse. IMO, he has much to answer for. He failed as a pastor and a Christian who should have empathy and compassion for the young victim of abuse.
I hope this helps. I am at the end of my Italy trip and will be home for Easter. If you have any questions about how my LCMS church functions, please let me know.
To the victim and her parents
You are my heroes for doing what others refused to do. My prayers and the prayers of all who read this go with you.
Mine, as well.
I hope the pastor is visited by investigators, charged by the DA for not reporting, that his actions are viewed as aggravating circumstances, that he gets to spend some time behind bars, and that he is banned from being part of any organization that takes care of kids in any fashion ever again.
Apparently jail time and being banned from ministry is what it will take for pastors and elders to get the message and finally start doing the right thing.
Ban that pastor from ministry. What does it take to get that done? I guess he can always surround him with his magical 4 friends that will “reinstate” him (a la Johnny Hunt). This pastor should be shamed and humbled by this. His true repentance might provide some healing. But he will probably go the way of MacArthur and no, no sorry forgive me for you.
And, as Attorney Jeff Anderson of law firm Anderson Associates (who have handled a number of cases in the Catholic Church, even while Jeff himself is Catholic) says, This will not stop until churches are hit where it really hurts – in the pocketbook. Churches by-and-large (unfortunately, IMHO) run on money. So, sue them always, and with great consequences. Financial consequences. Save lives. Stop predators and their supporters from violating even more victims.
dee,
Thanks for covering this case with this post. What a travesty! What a horrible experience for this girl and her family. God bless them!
Here’s a website with links to other LCMS sexual abuses.
https://www.lcmschildren.org/lcms-sexual-abuses-history
Nice to see you covering something on your own denomination. A break from the usual Acts29 or SBC related scandals. Speaking of that here is another: https://julieroys.com/california-student-minister-acts-29-church-arrested-child-sex-assault-charges/
Afterburne, I couldn’t agree with you more. It will take serious legal action and jail time for any of the men in the SBC and elsewhere to get the message that any kind of sexual abuse is completely wrong. It has always baffled me that church leaders get away with actions that would get them fired (and worse) in the secular workplace.
Sooner or later, the you-know-what is really gonna’ hit the fan in a landmark case that will rock the Protestant world.
One way to end it:
“Now if your right eye is causing you to sin, tear it out and throw it away from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand is causing you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.” – from Matthew 5
Sounds like a guy needs to deal with some of his parts.
‘Christopher Yvars, an attorney for St. John’s School and church, told CBS News Colorado they have fully cooperated with the investigation and will continue to.’
Translation: Yvars knows full well this is a shambles and so is now saying the right things and basically throwing the church and school on the mercy of the court.
Honestly? I’ve been hoping that and wondering when for a long time but now don’t think it will happen. My reasons:
If it would happen anywhere it would likely be the US because of your punitive damages. *But* because punitive damages are expected institutions will be prepared for them as a business expense.
The country which has got closest is Canada where the government (rather than individual litigation) has legally forced the RC church to sell off assets, even a cathedral, to pay damages to survivors. Again, honestly, I don’t think the damages were high enough to be that much of a shock, but being forced to sell assets hurt them.
If you look at the RC situation where they’re a couple of decades ahead here, they’ve moved into defensively declaring bankruptcy and ring fencing funds in separate charities so that they’re safe from litigation. This last is the most cynical and despicable thing you could do, and far from putting yourself out in any way to help survivors. As the flood of claims increases I think other churches will start to do this. If you have no assets on the books or are bankrupt, there’s no point suing you.
I think what will make a difference is if governments start getting more assertive about this. The current UK government have announced that it will be a crime not to report child abuse: unsurprisingly from the concentration camp party this legislation is useless because it only applies to those working with children. It would not apply to parents, for example.
I just don’t know where we go from here, but I’m very positive about the youngsters: generation X are pretty pissed off about all sorts of things which can only be good.
As an LCMS member, it pains me to learn of this episode. I also believe that the senior church leader involved, Pastor Farhat, shows incredible obtuseness and insensitivity and needs to resign from his ministry. He is not qualified to serve in a ministerial role and no process of “repentance” or “restoration” will change this demonstrated fact.
Tears; just tears.
Kudos to Mama-Bear (Jessica) for her persistent detective work, and offering prayers for her daughter and all the family.
And yes, Charge the rotten pastor – hope it is a crime to not report in CO!
Stephen Ringlee,
Thank you for your response. I had hoped for some support from a fellow LCMS member for this post.
Update: I fly home tomorrow night and should be back in the saddle on Monday. I have learned much and plan to tell a couple of stories about women in the early church. Special thanks to Todd for keeping things rolling.
https://co4kids.org/mandatory-reporters
According to this website, clergy are mandatory reporters in Colorado and there are consequences for not reporting:
“Yes, there are legal consequences for not reporting. You could be charged with a class 3 misdemeanor, receive a fine of $750 and/or imprisonment up to six months, and be liable for what the law terms “damages approximately caused” if you fail to report a suspicion of child abuse or neglect.”
SBC, Catholic, Lutheran ……. It appears that in all religions, churches are perfect places for predators to seek and find people to prey on…….. children adolescents, women….
It’s sickening, disgusting, revolting….. especially when the men in power sacrifice the victims and cover for and protect the predators.
Though nothing will fix the damage done to the girl, I hope the parents sue and win. Pastor Farhat deserves six moths in jail. I wonder how he would have reacted, what he would have said, if someone told him that someone was stealing money from the church coffers???
Exactly.
Remember telling children, “Never talk to strangers?”
Update:
Never, ever be alone with any guy in church or associated with a church. Never take a “ride home” with a youth pastor. Never go into a room or space in church alone with a guy, for any reason.
The so-called Billy Graham Rule has it backwards. In regard to churches and religion, protect children, youth, and women from men. Not the other way around.
Sorry to offend the “good guys” but unfortunately even the good guys, in this Colorado case, made the girl victim out to be a liar while making the predator monster the victim.
So reverse the Billy Graham Rule.
John Berry,
I have confidence that here in the States, they’ll eventually find ways to beat the shell-game that big religion uses to hide their money.
They did it with organized crime and it worked.
Right now, my guess is that they’re still a bit squeamish to go after big religion like they went after John Gotti because of the blow-back from Evangelicals.
Only money has the power to make the muses sing and preachers cuss.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JDWJzKYfdc
and kiss … for 30 pieces of silver?
When the church’s bottom line is money, when it all runs on money, it’s not the church.
The lack of empathy displayed by Pastor Farhat is unbelievable, especially considering he has 2 daughters about the same age as the victim of this post was when she was raped. If you go to the top of this post you will see Dee has a link to Pastor Farhat’s bio. Check it out. If he takes it down here is the Wayback Machine link:
https://web.archive.org/web/20230318190200/https://sjdenver.org/about/about-our-pastors
Not surprisingly, Pastor Farhat fancies himself a pastor athlete type of guy, ala CJ Mahaney. He loves to hike and bike, he plays fantasy football, he played quarterback in high school, if he wasn’t a pastor he would be a sports commentator, he won the “faster pastor” car race. Yada, yada, yada.
IMO Pastor Farhat is unfit to be a pastor. He should look into that sports commentator gig.
Todd Wilhelm,
Oooooooooo, a real macho man! (Snort, followed by snicker.)
That pastor’s bio must speak volumes….… on the church website???
Have recently noticed in examining the bios of some in prominent positions in this sphere of things a sizable amount of athletes. For some reason, I recalled the Cedarville president being some level of black belt:
https://www.cedarville.edu/academic-schools-and-departments/biblical-and-theological-studies/faculty-staff/white-thomas
“As the son and grandson of Baptist ministers, White grew up with a firm spiritual foundation and was saved in September 1993. Little time passed before he felt a call to vocational Christian ministry. While White attended a Christian university, he also opened four karate schools and began to fight competitively, having been involved in the sport through high school. These competitions led to him being inducted into the World Martial Arts Hall of Fame and winning the Black Belt Middle Weight World Amateur Championship.
“Still pursuing a call to ministry, White used his karate schools as his mission field, seeing students come to Christ and watching them go into ministry. After selling the karate schools and beginning seminary, White was ordained jointly by Chiquola Baptist Church in Honea Path and Riverside Baptist Church in Greer, South Carolina.”
It may be appealing for many people with that experience to be able to get right to the top of the food chain into leadership, especially if they might not have set themselves up for financial security and positions of power in other ways. It also may provide a level of attention and a chance to bring in their experiences on an ongoing basis. And if there’s very little going on as far as sufficiently vetting, you can bring the worst sorts from that right through the front door.
I wondered. Epic fail on the pastor’s end on multiple counts.
I used to work for a secular community college in a state where teachers are mandated reporters. Even though there are very few minors at that level of educational institution, administration took mandated reporting so seriously that they required ALL staff, from custodians to cafeteria workers to tenured professors to administrators, to undergo training and consider themselves mandated reporters.
The prevailing wisdom was that if you weren’t sure what you were seeing should be reported, go ahead and report it and let law enforcement and the other professionals investigate from there.
Wishing Mr. Farhat had taken the protection of the vulnerable so seriously.
It seems that wherever the position of ultimate authority is given to men, regardless of other subsidiary roles being fulfilled by women, the danger of the lust for power or dominance which sometimes manifest itself in spiritual or sexual abuse arises. This can happen in SBC, LCMS, Catholic or Orthodox churches, and also in more liberal churches. In large mega churches the “CEO” holds sway over his elders and the membership have only a secondary say in what happens. In conservative Lutheran, Catholic and Orthodox Churches the priest or pastor has the teaching role and is the dispenser of the sacraments. This is for men only. Not the safest for the women in the church nor for the men themselves.
We attend Bent Tree in Dallas and are happy that there are women pastors and elders. Obviously nowhere on earth is perfect but the dangers are lessened when men and women submit to each other in the Lord , and do not either seek the pre-eminence nor have it conferred upon them.
1 value-laden
2 optimistic soteriology, devaluing assurance
3 but the church wasn’t founded till 1995 (or by some counts 2008)
4 the only way to be beckoned up higher, isn’t it
5 Any Belt that begins with B
6 truly dazzling ducky!
7 danger of insufficient critique. Note they are too nervous to put “the”
8 elitism
9 lack of primary purpose
10 elitism by proxy: how flattered they must all be that it accrues to them cascade-wise
If you go near that man (and the people who write him up) you get the “chop”. On the chopping-block. I’d be less suspicious of someone that helped his proteges AVOID “ministry”.
I remember back when real evangelicals in the Martyn LLoyd-Jones, David Pawson (genuine Baptist), R T Kendall (in his later guise) mould still prized “assurance”. Even in one of my movements we used to chant:
For I know Whom I have believ-ed
And am persuad-ed that He is able
To keep that which I’ve committ-ed
Unto Him against (i.e in view of) that day.
What was left of St Paul when he wrote was definitely NOT “saved” as the unholy ghost writers call it. His expression “are saved” explains the theory.
In her 2021 book Citadels of Pride Martha C Nussbaum deals with sexual assault in colleges, sports, arts and business. Nussbaum is a lifelong top notch cultural anthropologist and legal critic deeply grounded in numerous fields.
pretend modest!
still further to 472023 / 031
quote watching them unquote
the power of New Thought !!!
Not while the LCMS St. John’s Church rank-and-file supports the leaders (LCMS Pastor Farhat) who support the rapists (LCMS Youth Pastor Music Leader Diego Marroquin) who rape little girls right in the rank-and-file’s own church facility.
Question for the church:
How does it feel to sit in that balcony in your very own LCMS St. John’s Church where your very own LCMS St. John’s Church Youth Music Leader Diego Marroquin raped a little girl and then your very own LCMS St. John’s Church Pastor Farhat branded the little girl victim as a liar and your Youth Music Leader Diego Marroquin as the victim?
LCMS St. John’s Church people need to own this. Their money pays for their rapist, their rapist wingman Pastor Farhat, and their rapist out-of-view opportunity balcony venue. Their rape machine runs on their money. In part, raping a little girl is what they pay for.
When will it end? When they, the church people, stop funding and paying for rape.
Note how then rapist Diego Marroquin skipped town only to land in his next gig, his next rape venue, another church in another state. So easy to be a rapist on the dole in another church, then another … new rape venues and victims endlessly, all funded and paid for by church people. No, it doesn’t end.
Increasing levels of power result in decreasing levels of empathy but increasing levels of narcissism. It’s a fact. Studies.
Who’s that guy leader that just left the Piper seminary? The place where they all came up with: empathy is not even Christian, it’s ungodly. Apparently they have so much power, they no longer read the Gospels: “Jesus wept.” And then Jesus went on to call the religious leaders of His day, snakes and whitewashed tombs. It must be difficult for a religious leader to actually go to Heaven, it seems, after noting what Jesus had to say about religious leaders.
Correction: LCMS St. John’s Church DOES own this.
Will LCMS St. John’s Church continue to support the rapist supporter Pastor Farhat who also branded the little girl victim a liar? This is your Christian leadership? You can’t do better than to bankroll rapist and rapist support pastors?
The church in Texas where the rapist landed on stage, also owns this:
For the church in Texas that hired the rapist (of a minor girl) musician who skipped town from Colorado, is your Texas church a magnet for rapists? You can’t do better than having a rapist musician on your worship stage leading worship?
Because empathy is not THEOLOGY THEOLOGY THEOLOGY THEOLOGY THEOLOGY.
Purity of Ideology, Comrades.
Just like High School, where the Football Jocks are The Master Race and all the rest of us are Subhumans.
Remember that Chuckles Mahaney and his clique were heavily into Fantasy Football Leagues (i.e. “NFL Team Manger: The Role Playing Game”) and Pious Piper bragged how “we broke someone’s neck” in FLAG Football.
Again from a D&Der who survived The Satanic Panic:
Fantasy Football = NFL Team Manager: The Role-Playing Game
And remember the Fortysomthing Loser from Married with Children?
“I WAS A FOOTBALL STAR IN HIGH SCHOOL —
ONCE I SCORED THREE TOUCHDOWNS IN ONE GAME!”
Pinned Tweet
Julie Roys
@reachjulieroys
“Whenever I’m tempted to think Christianity is a fraud because of fraudulent pastors, I’m reminded it was the religious establishment that had Jesus arrested and crucified. Wherever there is money & power gained through religious position, there will be self-interest & hypocrisy.”
Julie Roys
@reachjulieroys
“Michael Sasser, former student ministry pastor at @RedeemerModesto in CA, has been arrested on charges of child sexual assault.
“The church is affiliate of @Acts29, a prominent church planting network that has recently made headlines w/ multiple controversies.”
Note how church leaders go after minors in the church. They want to get paid (the church supports these guys), they want to stand up front on stage (attention, allegiance, voice), and then in their paid positions of power they go after our very own children. Power, money, vice.
I found this interesting: https://julieroys.com/podcast/why-do-people-like-harsh-leaders/
Grainne Mcdonald,
“It seems that wherever the position of ultimate authority is given to men, …the danger of the lust for power or dominance which sometimes manifest itself in spiritual or sexual abuse arises.
+++++++++++++++++++++
foolhardy,…
well, i was going to go on a stream of consciousness, but it really just stopped there.
women have keen powers of awareness of observation, on multiple levels at the same time.
exclude them from 100% at your own peril & that of your ‘mission’, organization, endeavor, whatever.
Or the Uncle in Napolean Dynamite!
There’s nothing “nice” about this. If one feels justified because the story didn’t happen in “their” denomination, then one should just go ahead and state that clearly.
One should feel horror that this happened in any church, not a casual, “See, at least it wasn’t in my denomination.”
Jesus doesn’t have a preferred denomination.
Ava Aaronson,
“Who’s that guy leader that just left the Piper seminary? The place where they all came up with: empathy is not even Christian, it’s ungodly.”
++++++++++++++++++++++
Joe Rigney, I believe.
who found a loophole in his theological tyranny (aka, the acquisition and preservation of power for his demographic) (aka, either narcissism or arrested development circa age 12):
empathy unravels the whole thing
he has enough brain cells to know he can’t declare Jesus of Nazareth as unchristian and ungodly. so he abstracts the threat concept out and away from Jesus’ obituary.
(the things people who knew him said about him after he was gone)
i marvel at how christianity (which is what people make of it) seems to be getting further and further away from Jesus himself.
Jesus is simply too inconvenient.
elastigirl,
https://thewartburgwatch.com/2021/07/23/dr-joe-rigney-new-president-of-john-pipers-bethlehem-seminary-and-doug-wilson-believe-that-empathy-is-a-sin/
Fly on one wing. Or try to. Doesn’t work. Grounded by choice. An uninformed decision. To never take off, never go anywhere.
Too inconvenient for big egos, stage personas, grand megas, and elaborate dynasties with pastor planes and such.
A ride on a loaned donkey was more the lifestyle of our King Jesus who arose in triumph over death, sin, satan, and religous leaders of the palatial type.
So this Triduum weekend, featured are megas with eggstravagansas including visiting Easter Bunnies. Lots of press for these entertaining events.
Meanwhile, we are doing the Stations of the Cross, reflecting on the life, sacrifice, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus. How do we then serve Him? Whatever we do for the least of the least, we do for Jesus, our Lord. The truly needy come to mind.
Nancy2(aka Kevlar),
Thx. That’s it.
And the predator Diego Marroquin just moves on to another church, “a church in McKinney, Texas”. On stage, playing in the music ministry. Child rapist. Allegedly.
Church is a predator’s haven. Apparently. Does this happen in institutions other than churches? Pass the trash? Endless supply of victims as families naively trust church as safe for children?
“… she knew that Marroquin might join his brother, who was connected to a church in Texas, and she was determined to find him.
“‘And so I began watching live feeds on Facebook of their churches,’ she said.
“She went on to say that she had a hunch that Marroquin would be playing in church services around Christmas, so she began watching closely. On Christmas Eve, as she was watching a live Facebook feed of a service from a church in McKinney, Texas, she said she spotted the suspect playing guitar with the church ensemble.”
https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/denver-church-school-worker-charged-raping-13-year-old-girl/
The original Colorado church/school protected Diego Marroquin and called the girl a liar. The next church in Texas took in the alleged rapist Diego Marroquin and put him on stage in music ministry, Marroquin’s brother’s church. The alleged rapist’s family, his brother, protected him from law enforcement.
Lots of support for an alleged rapist of a child in the church balcony. When it all goes to Court, where will the dear church people and their Dear Leader, as well as the alleged rapist’s family be sitting? Which side of the Courtroom? With the Defense or the Prosecution?
Nor do I. You have misjudged me badly. I dislike them all about as equal. And I currently attend exactly none of them. It is a fact as I said that many of the articles here are written about the denomination Dee came out of. Easy to throw rocks at your last bus. Takes more guts to throw them at the one you are inside of. These scandals are everywhere. No org has clean hands. I find no logical reason to trust any of them.
It used to happen a lot in schools. I haven’t read about it lately.
Yes they do, and it scares the poo-poo out of those ‘Biblically grounded’ men who want to keep their women in ‘Scripturally’ grounded roles only.
I’ve said both here and elsewhere that only fools would not recognize the power of women and use it as a powerful ally.
Do a rape-kit swab test IMMEDIATELY!, and go from there.
That way, the ones that want to cover it up can howl liar, tease, or any other epithet they want and it won’t carry any weight in a court of law.
Was any effort made to hear Pastor Farhat’s side? From his communication to the church on February 8:
“As you may be aware, CBS4 recently ran a story about St John’s Church and School and the arrest of one of our former employees. Due to the seriousness of the allegations, and our desire to be respectful of the privacy of those involved, we declined CBS4’s request for an interview and we believe that was the appropriate decision.
“We are deeply saddened by the story on CBS4. Please know, when the allegations of sexual assault first surfaced, we took the matter very seriously and immediately started an internal investigation. Although the student initially denied the event happened, I reported the matter to the State of Colorado Child Protective Services and the Denver Police Department.
“For a time, the parents of the student and her friends claimed that other students were fabricating the story. In fact, the student’s father even indicated that his daughter and the employee were ‘victims of slander’ — to that I responded. My audio message was unfortunately taken out of context and inserted in CBS4’s report.
“Once the student bravely came forward, we treated her account as truthful and immediately escorted the employee from the property terminating his employment. We have fully cooperated with the authorities, giving them full access to our personnel and campus.”
Eyewitness, yes, schools still pass the trash. As awful as that sounds, however, the schools are far ahead of churches in terms of training all staff with regards to dealing with sexual abuse or questionable behavior. Can’t say it enough: Call 911. Police where I used to work pleaded with us to call them if we got that “funny feeling” about a situation. They would be perfectly happy with a false alarm rather than having someone get hurt or abused.
I don’t. The IRS got their butts handed to them by Scientology in the nineties. The government has no stomach to go after religion. Any religion.
So the parasitism will continue.
Kenneth Copeland – your tax dollars at work for you.
Really? You won’t allow a comment giving Pastor Farhat’s response to these accusations?
Jonathan Miles,
Jonathan,
I just returned from a trip to Italy late last night. Let’s go through your comments.
Do you not understand how comments usually work? Had you read, you would discover that any new commenter is held until we release the initial comment. You will find that further comments by you will go right through. This blog has a 14-year history of allowing negative comments, even ugly ones. So, calm down. You waited all of 3 hours to be approved. Patience, brother, patience. We do not sit here, breathlessly waiting for you to comment and immediately press the button.
Let’s go through your other comment.
I am so glad that your pastor commented to the congregation in February. Unfortunately, he has not commented to CBS or others, most likely due to a pending lawsuit. At this point, it’s in the hands of the lawyers.
The following statement, “We took the matter very seriously and immediately started an internal investigation.” is deeply concerning. A church should never conduct an internal investigation about accusations of sexual abuse. A church is not capable of doing so. Therefore, before anything else, the first move is to call the police.
Since you seem to understand what is happening, can you tell me when Marroquin (his name should be used) was terminated? That would be helpful to me. Now that lawyers are involved, I imagine details like that might not be shared.
CBS played the calls. Are you saying that CBS deliberately altered the phone calls in this matter? If so, the church should proceed with legal action.
The rest of the comment about who is slandering who is irrelevant at this point. It raises more questions than can be answered by you or the church until the lawsuit is dealt with. I guess the case will be settled out of court with an NDA, which means we will never learn what happened.
If you are speaking with your pastor, perhaps you could suggest something. He should post his explanation on the website of the church.
Secondly, he should remove CJ Mahaney’s book Humility from his resources for life group leaders. Mahaney’s ministry imploded due to severe accusations of sex abuse coverup. The fact it is included causes me to worry a bit about the seriousness with which a church takes sexual abuse.
https://www.washingtonian.com/2016/02/14/the-sex-abuse-scandal-that-devastated-a-suburban-megachurch-sovereign-grace-ministries/
Jonathan Miles,
I read that statement as the church putting all the burden on a 13-year-old girl, and discrediting local journalism.
Let’s not cast the pastor as victim here. The institution wanted to handle the situation quietly. It’s right there in the statement.
My own situation as a teen was far less serious, but I was sexually assaulted in a church building by a youth ministry leader. The handling was so silent that I had no idea what was done: nobody told me. He was suddenly no longer in the youth ministry, but he remained at the church, staring silently and hatefully at me during various coffee hours. He continued to socialize with other youth.
Silence is not always golden, and victimized kids don’t have any power at all.
Jonathan Miles,
An internal investigation? What are the qualifications of the investigators? Are they completely unbiased?
‘ “Nothing bad happened,” Farhat said in one of the messages. “I knew it was a lie so I wanted to squash it right away so that no one would think that the police need to be involved. Now we’re protecting victims of slander, don’t want that at our school.” ‘
“ …….. I wanted to quash it right away………”
This isn’t Twitter or TikTok, with Instantaneous Comebacks.
i.e. Barefoot, Pregnant, and servicing every Urrrge in the Biblical Manly-Man’s Arrreas.
That is the church I attended for seven years while I was in Dallas. I am still friendly with Joanne Hummel.
Friend,
I am so sorry to hear about your molestation and current abuse at the hands of your former youth leader and silent church leaders.
dee,
Apologies that my comment was not clear enough. I left that church a long time ago. TWW has helped me to develop my understanding of what happened, to find more resolution, and to realize that I was probably not the only victim. It’s a bad way of not feeling alone anymore.
Thank you for all you do. <3
Rape, allegedly? When is an alleged rape termed an “event happened”?
Internal investigation? Instead of reporting to the police immediately? Is there something sacred about an alleged rape attack in St. John’s Church by Music Director Diego Marroquin so Denver Law Enforcement is not appropriate to handle the investigation of the alleged rape crime in this church?
Pastor Farhat’s own words as he recorded himself on voicemail:
“Nothing bad happened.”
“I knew it was a lie.”
“So, I wanted to squash it right away.”
“So that no one would think that the police would need to get involved.”
“Now, it’s, we’re protecting victims of slander.”
“And that’s what we don’t want at our school.”
From the CBS report: “School administrators told them [the parents] not to discuss the accusation. But when administrators here [at St. John’s Church and School] allowed Marroquin to keep working, the Vandams [the parents] went to the Denver Police Department, and they investigated, and came up with a different conclusion than St. John’s administrators. Denver Police charged Marroquin with Sexual Assault On A Child By A Person In A Position of Trust. The Vandams say they were ostracized by the church and school community.”
Who is lying?
The girl?
Her parents?
The alleged rapist?
The pastor?
Denver Law Enforcement?
The news reporters?
DOJ, charging the alleged rapist with Sexual Assault On A Child By A Person In A Position of Trust?
The two sides to this story are:
1. The girl, her parents, Denver Law Enforcement, the news reporters, DOJ that is charging the alleged rapist.
2. The rapist, the pastor, the St. John’s Church and School community ostracizers, Jonathan Miles.
Ava Aaronson,
It’s rather striking that churches don’t have complete and total trust in law enforcement. If nothing happened, surely the church would want the local police to come right over and clear things up, as would happen on “Mayberry, R.F.D.”
Yes, I’m very familiar with Thomas White. He used to do karate demonstrations in Chapel. He would karate chop a board and break it in two. I haven’t seen that for quite some time.
Then there was the screenshot I have of him doing some powerlifting in the men’s dorm, being cheered on by a bunch of shirtless students. (Going shirtless was against the rules!)
He’s a manly man, no doubt.
When Thomas White is gone is when I can support my alma mater again. Something is very ‘off’ about him.
My guess is that churches completely trust LE when money is missing.
There was a pastor in our area who put checks in his bank account instead of the church’s account. Full LE investigation, DOJ process, and he’s in jail. No questions asked; the process was never questioned by anyone. Full trust in LE and the DOJ. Yet this very same church was/is a big fan club of Bill Hybels and preached compassion, understanding, and loyalty for good old Hybels when his shenanigans were exposed.
Money is far more important than the violation of a child or a woman, apparently, in churches. Family values? Not so much. Material values – all in, full-court press and all that.
Which response?
The voicemails he left with his very own voice, thus, his very own quotes?
What he later published on the website that you have quoted in your comment.
These do not match.
James 3:1-18 has a few things to say about teachers and their words:
“Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire!”
Ava Aaronson,
Love your comments.
Hoping you all have a blessed Resurrection Sunday! We will celebrate it by a drive through the beautiful dogwoods and redbuds in all their glory at the moment. We will thank Him for dying for us, for defeating all the forces of evil and death by rising again, and look forward to the resurrection and restoration of all things to come!
Victory truly is in Jesus. Not a church. Not rites and rituals. In Jesus!
We’re looking forward to your stories about women in the early church. This was on my mind during your trip.
(My personal fav is sainte Jeanne-Françoise de Chantal who founded l’ordre de la Visitation de Sainte-Marie with saint François de Sales, in Annecy, France. However, her work came much later than the “early church”, 1572-1741.)
dee,
Thanks for your encouragement.
This case. I can’t imagine how you feel, after starting your work 12 years ago, and even now, a case like this exposes what still goes on in churches and church institutions.
The girl’s mother was in the parking lot waiting for her daughter, for goodness sakes!!! The brazenness of the alleged attacker, the brazenness of the alleged attacker’s supporting pastor, the brazenness of the alleged attacker’s supporting community ostracizing the family – horrific!
Apparently the devil doesn’t need dark corners and dark masks. He’s got our church people, our pastors, and our music ministers right in his corner doing and supporting his evil assault on children in broad daylight middle of a school day in our church balconies.
Our very own church people fund this – the alleged assailant and his supporting pastor are both on the payroll of the donors and tithers. Then the alleged assailant just hops to another gig, funded by church donors and tithers in another church venue, under another supporting pastor.
Playbook: How to be a child rapist and get paid for it, allegedly. All the child rapists are taking note.
Magnet Community: trusting-the-alleged-rapist-but-not-the-alleged-victim, covering-up and not investigating alleged crimes, denying with pastor’s “Nothing bad happened”, ostracizing the victim and her family, supporting/funding the alleged child rapist, and not-reporting-to-law-enforcement CHURCH LEADERSHIP & COMMUNITIES.
This is the “gospel” that LCMS St. John’s Church and School are spreading. Actions speak louder than words. Predators read this well. Even if the funders, tithers, and supporting pastor are oblivious or in denial – predators see the gig for what it is. Opportunity.
Muff Potter,
I hope it is sooner than later. The good ole boys club has got to be dismantled. They seem to not acknowledge abuse. I question the motives every defender of abuse.
Again I pose the question and it’s a fair one.
Why do secular venues, schools and such do a much better job of protecting kids and teens from sex-predators?
Ava Aaronson,
St. John’s and Pastor Farhat…….. a textbook example of DARVO!
DARVO as evidenced with Pastor Farhat’s actual recording in his voice, his very own voicemails. Doesn’t get more spot-on.
With Pastor Farhat’s contradictory statements posted on the church website, fortunately, the Vandams had the forethought to record the voicemails. Just as the alleged rapist denies his crime, the alleged rapist’s pastor denies the truth of his own voicemail statements, and the church members support these two leaders but ostracize the alleged victim and her family. Lots of lies and denials going on with the tithe-funded leadership of this church, as well as their supporting tithing church members. Birds of a feather that create a predator’s haven/heaven and call it “church”.
Fortunately, we celebrate Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection today. Luke 3.8, Acts 3.8, and Luke 19.1-10 (Zacchaeus returning x4 what he had collected unlawfully) give the key to repentance, which has nothing to do with hollow “I’m so sorry” “It was a mistake” “There was momentary misjudgment” words, but has everything to do with full confessional honesty accompanied by reparational actions. Jesus died for our opportunity to fully confess, clean house, correct, and pay reparation. The criminal aspects of these alleged crimes should also be investigated and if found valid, prosecuted by the DOJ.
There is nothing sacred about a church-funded leader allegedly raping a minor in the church balcony.
Jesus cleared money changers out of the Temple. Would Jesus do less with alleged rapists, alleged rapist-supporting pastors, and alleged rapist-funding tithers/supporters (ostracizing the victim and her family) in our churches?
Was there a public service notice about alleged attacker Diego Marroquin, all the places where he has worked, to see if there are other victims that need to come forward? Just in case this was not his first rodeo, in St. John’s Church balcony and in St. John’s School and elsewhere? Is there a trail? Have there been other crimes in the St. John’s balcony since he seems well-informed of the camera situation? Who is working on that to find out? Where was the public service notice placed?
Is the church in McKinney, Texas where law enforcement found Diego Marroquin on stage, cooperating and also informing their church people about the possible dangers here regarding an alleged rapist serving in their music ministry on stage during worship?
The Vandam family told CBS that they are ostracized by St. John’s Church and School community. Is this to scare away other possible victims from coming forward?
Pastor Farhat’s phone call voicemails tell the Vandams that the girl is a liar, spreading lies, and slander. Is the pastor scaring away other victims from coming forward?
The alleged rapist, in the victim’s account, held her down as a bully with his hand over her mouth to silence her cries for help. Is the pastor also silencing possible victims with bully tactics by calling the one that came forward a liar from the get-go? Are the ostracizing church members also using bully tactics to silence possible victims by ostracizing the victim and her family?
only thirteen years old ?
My God!
Ava Aaronson,
Note:
Coming clean about an alleged rapist hired by a church means doing due diligence regarding the alleged criminal’s possible alleged criminal activities in what are supposed to be a communities of trust (churches and church schools) in safe environments for families and children.
How a Christian school discovering alleged abuse by a teacher publicizes so everyone victimized can report:
A Christian school that is investigating sexual abuse by a teacher publishes a Public Service Announcement for all who experienced abuse by this teacher to report, with contact information below.
“Greater Atlanta Christian School investigating allegations of sexual misconduct against former teacher”
“A prominent Christian school in Gwinnett County has hired an outside investigator to look into allegations of sexual misconduct against a former teacher, asking any alumni who suffered sexual abuse while they attended the school to come forward.”
“The alleged misconduct occurred during the 1980s and involved an unnamed faculty member who left the school ‘nearly two decades ago’.”
“To report GACS sexual abuse allegations:
“Greater Atlanta Christian School is asking anyone who experienced abuse or has knowledge of past sexual misconduct by any school employees to contact its independent investigator, attorney Laura Kirschstein, at 646-445-7591 or GreaterAtlantaChristianSchool@tmusallc.com”
https://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/local/greater-atlanta-christian-investigating-sexual-misconduct-allegations-against-former-teacher/article_b6fa6a0c-d022-11ed-bc63-4fe56c1668e0.html
So, that’s how it’s done.
Luke 17: “Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to stumble are bound to come, but woe to anyone through whom they come. It would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble. So watch yourselves. If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them.”
Notice that JESUS CHRIST, THE RISEN ONE, said “rebuke them” first. IF THEY REPENT, then forgive them. This is not how the white-washed, septic tank, sons of the Devil like Farhat handle such things. They do not accept rebuke. They tell everyone to forgive without any actual repentance.
Muff Potter,
“Why do secular venues, schools and such do a much better job of protecting kids and teens from sex-predators?”
+++++++++++++++++++++++
bible as functional deity? sacrificing all cognitive senses & skills on the altar of faith in a literal reading?
Point very much taken but, more widely, as between one passing style of churchianity and the next, in practice the parameters of respectability are rather cafeteria.
Some churches have supralegal channels to selectively employ (having demonstrated of course that they don’t) and some charities regulators are erratic in applying models.
What God has joined, let no man sunder.
Mr. Jesperson,
I’m uneasy with how people who are either blinkered or craven, whitewash a very big kind of religion that has intergovernmental support, that in 2022 demanded our consciences and denigrated our baptisms and conversion, if we won’t personally organisationally hyperfocus. Rulebook (as if different from doctrine) changes have been described objectively as ineffectual and cynical by some of the few relatively honest insiders.
I’m 100 % in agreement – and so are boys as boys. Innocence doesn’t mean ignorance, it means thirst for justice. Embodiment isn’t only mammalian, it supports souls. When I last looked, children’s souls were observing other children’s souls. The first thing the many men with bad consciences do is warp boys to divert and divest guilt.
“This is what we do”. The war against women is the same war as the war against boys, as I witnessed at age 14 from teachers (which made me non Pelvic (TM), the exact opposite from how HU Guy accused me). Entire religious AND secular systems rubbish boys’ and girls’ intuition. This is why background prayers may do untold good despite the ups and downs of this world in times like those of Stott or Savile.
“When did we see Thee ‘naked’ and clothed Thee?” It was when you reinforced the boys’ view of the integrity of girls as their fellows – perhaps without phrasing those words, perhaps by meditating on Scripture or reciting set prayers. We can start on the quiet to reverse the abolishing (by religion) of repenting by proxy like Daniel did in ch 9 vv 3-21.
I am NOT intending this to be twisted into a comment on dress sense – as Jesus didn’t intend EITHER
Yes. Taking notice.
Since the Theobros neither teach nor preach this, THANK YOU for doing this essential teaching and preaching here at TWW.
Forgiveness does NOT mean a sexual predator goes back into ministry, has contact with minors, does not have to serve jailtime, is not investigated by LE, or is not reported to LE, or not is charged and processed by the DOJ, etc. Justice is served, which is justice, not retaliation.
There is nothing sacred about a sexual predator in a church balcony violating a child, a church predator playing his guitar in the church music ministry, a predator’s supporting pastor preaching from the pulpit, and the predator’s tithing financial supporters ostracizing a victim and her family. Off limits to LE? No. Report to LE and process by the DOJ.
No words:
https://www.npr.org/2023/04/10/1168962589/dalai-lama-apologizes-tongue-kiss
“The Dalai Lama has apologized for kissing a young boy on the lips and asking him to “suck my tongue” after a video of the incident sparked outrage on social media.“
Off topic:
Boarding School Alumni Push for a New Kind of Abuse Investigation
(Internet Archive link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230410175650/https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2023/march/christian-academy-japan-boarding-school-abuse-response.html )
The opening paragraph From the article:
The whole article is excellent, and well worth reading.
JDV,
Not surprising.
There are spinster librarians and bachelor farmers, and unmarried career military leaders (General John Mattis, recently on our President’s Cabinet, comes to mind). There’s even an elderly Christian Brother, bachelor dedicated to service, who runs support groups for men, over decades. They are unmarried and unfamilied but completely engrossed with their call to service.
But to have power and wealth and access but also have thin daily obligations and accountability, it’s an obvious liability. King David. Even worse to not have accountability and personal loyalty to your partner and children. (David had family but still fell to his vices.)
Having met some idle monks and priests who are well-provided-for and well-regarded, but have been caught in vices in their idleness and privilege, it’s not surprising.
Many pedophiles are married with children. Josh Duggar. And some pedophiles are not married with children. They’re all criminals. Hubris.
Nothing sacred about the Dalai Lama’s tongue.
Nothing sacred about the Dalai Lama asking a boy to suck his tongue.
Stop the reverence right there. Just stop. Protect kids from wolves.
A pedophile is a pedophile no matter their title, their following, their supporters, or their robes.
Fortunately, the Vandams record their voicemail and the Media recorded the Dalai Lama.
Pedophiles, allegedly, and an alleged pedophile supporter pastor, went on record. Then the records are shared online, for the safety of all. Facts.
Parents can protect their kids and kids can protect themselves. In these cases, from religious leaders and their supporters.
Jesus did not fare well, in general, with the religious leaders of his day.
Good one, Michael!
Indeed there is.
JDV,
Here’s a tweet about this:
LIZ CROKIN
@LizCrokin
“A video of the Dalai Lama is circulating of him sexually assaulting a young boy. In the video, he demands the child to ‘suck my tongue’. Sadly, this comes as no surprise to me.
” – The Dalai Lama endorsed the NXIVM sex trafficking cult. [NXIVM is the name commonly used to describe the personality cult of imprisoned racketeer and sex offender Keith Raniere.]
” – Just like Jeffrey Epstein, he has ties to the CIA. Declassified documents show that the CIA paid the Dalai Lama $180,000 a year for much of the 1960’s.
“Authorities should charge this child predator with sexual assault of a minor.”
The Bible suffers from two great ills (my opinion).
Not giving it the credence it deserves at one extreme, and making way too much of it at the other.
Isn’t that a paraphrase of a one-liner in Preface to Screwtape Letters?
Couldn’t tell ya’, I’ve never read Screwtape Letters.
Yes and in some varieties simply slot out “bible” and slot in “sacrament”.
elastigirl,
Elastigirl, you always comment as the individual we mostly forget to be and with thirst for justice (plainness) (your phenomenology is awesome). Yours were the first comments I noticed at TWW and you are my top commenter.
Sounds familiar. Same tactics, same style of abusing the victim just a different church. This angers me immensely.