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“Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession…. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate. Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Update 9/19/24: Today, I received word from the attorney of Pastor Macdonald, who claims that this post contains falsehoods and that he did not molest Melissa Hobson. I believe Melissa’s story and did not knowingly say anything false. I have asked for documentation.

Dear Pastor Hodges,

Although we might differ on some theological matters, I am sure that we both agree that sexual abuse of children is horrendous. When I wrote {Update: 06.14.24}, I Was 12 Years Old and Wearing My Pink Pajamas When Robert Morris, Now of Gateway Church, Began to Molest Me. The Alleged Abuse Lasted for 4 1/2 Years. #Churchtoo #ARCtoo. I was gratified that Robert Morris stepped down from Gateway and his leadership position in the ARC. The Roys Report posted about his resignation in Robert Morris Resigns as Overseer at Alabama Megachurch, Following Sex Abuse Allegations.

In a statement released to former Baptist leader Wade Burleson, which was shared with TRR, COTH’s trustees, who are non-staff elders, stated that they were unaware of “this part of (Morris’) past.”

They added, “After being made aware of the disturbing media reports, Highlands trustees and overseers immediately initiated a due diligence process that included reaching out to Gateway’s elders. Before the scheduled follow-up meeting to determine changes in our governance structure, Pastor Morris resigned as an overseer of Church of the Highlands.”

Thank you for ensuring the public understood that the ARC would have responded swiftly and biblically.

The Restoration of Morally Fallen Pastors

As you know, there has been controversy regarding the purpose of The Lodge, located at the Church of the Highlands (COTH). Due to previous remarks attributed to you, it was thought that this retreat center was to offer rest and support for pastors who had failed morally.

The Lodge, funded by the church’s Legacy donations, is a $4.5 million retreat center where pastors, leaders, and their families will be, according to an original pamphlet, “mentored, counseled, refreshed, and restored.” The program is the vision of Highlands Senior Pastors Chris Hodges and Dino Rizzo. Both are co-founders of the Association of Related Churches (ARC).

The project sparked concern over how Highlands and ARC reinstate morally-fallen pastors to the pulpit with seemingly minimal consequences. Some questioned whether the goal to extend forgiveness and redemption to fallen leaders would result in The Lodge becoming a “safe place” to harbor and enable unrepentant sin.

In July, you denied that the purpose of The Lodge was for morally failed pastors in Church of the Highlands’ Chris Hodges says no clergy accused of sexual misconduct will stay at The Lodge.

Church of the Highlands Pastor Chris Hodges said that no clergy accused of sexual misconduct will ever stay at The Lodge, a retreat center that opened this year primarily for the “restoration” of pastors suffering from burnout.

Due to previous comments, some observers, like myself, were confused.

In a 2021 church conference sermon about pastors suffering from depression and at risk of suicide, Hodges said he was involved in “about 20 pastoral moral failures or restorations. I love doing that. I want to be known for that.”

That sermon did not mention The Lodge, nor was it intended to describe the future mission of The Lodge, Hodges said.

“I’m not talking about the ones that are in sin,” Hodges said in an interview. “I’m talking about the ones that are ready to quit. All this came out of the pandemic.”

When I saw the ARC’s response to the Robert Morris scandal, I began to accept that the purpose of the Lodge was not to restore immoral pastors. I also hoped that you knew, as I do, that child sexual abuse is horrific, a sin, a crime, and evidence of a serious psychiatric disorder. Such a person has no place in guiding a church where many children and teens are present.

Pastor Martin MacDonald City Church Batavia: Credible Allegations of the Six-Year Abuse of 12-Year-Old Melissa Hobson

On September 13, 2024, I posted a story about another woman who was molested by a pastor starting at the age of 12. Melissa Was 12 and Molested for 6 Years by Pastor Martin MacDonald. She Was Told She Seduced Him and Her Family Was Told by Pastors to Forgive Him. I believe her story. A number of the people in Batavia are aware of the allegations. Sadly, some have accused her of “seducing” this pastor and of being “promiscuous” and that this relationship was her fault. Many of these claims came from those who confessed to the Christian faith.

His son, Ryan, allegedly told the victim that she had seduced his father. Ryan is the lead pastor, and MacDonald is the senior pastor.

In researching the church that this pastor, Martin MacDonald, started, City Church, Batavia, I found that it is a member of the ARC.

Like Robert Morris, MacDonald’s City Church is tied to the ARC, the Association of Related Churches. As many readers know, the ARC appears to have a history of fallen pastors, and it looks like one more will be added. They have also restored some. This is a screenshot from the ARC’s church directory. Ryan is MacDonald’s son. Marty is the Senior Pastor.

I am sure that you know it is abnormal for an adult male to have a sexual interest in a 12-year-old girl.

I have been writing about child victims of sexual abuse for 15 years. Much research by the government and psychological/psychiatric organizations has been conducted into abusers of children. It is more prevalent than many suspect. Most, if not all, have a form of paraphilia, which is often pedophilia. Even with massive interventions, psychological, pharmacological, and even spiritual, many reoffend.

There allegedly has been no expression of repentance to the victim not admission of the victim being 12 years old when this started.

Pastor Hodges, I’m sure you are a fan of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who has much to say about “cheap grace.” This was one of the first books I read as a new convert many years ago.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote the enduring and convicting The Cost of Discipleship. He is known for defining cheap and costly grace.

Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.

It is wrong to demand forgiveness until a man owns the depth and breadth of his sin. “I’m sorry” is not repentance. Repentance is prolonged sorrow, so profound and noticeable that it is sensed by the abused and the community surrounding the wounded. Forgiveness is never demanded, and it is rarely immediate. It is a process. The abuser must seek to repair the damage in any way possible. Anything less is like the little child told to say he is sorry for stealing the cookie. His quick “I’m sorry” said with a mouthful of his treat is childish. Yet it appears some pastors are demanding such cheap forgiveness. They tie it into cheap grace and pretend all is well. Grace is costly. As Bonhoeffer said:

Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: “ye were bought at a price,” and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us.

In the end, Pastor Hodges, there is someone whose life was forever changed by this abuse. Her name is Melissa Hobson. She was twelve when MacDonald allegedly decided to indulge his aberrant sexual appetite. She has borne the scorn of those who say she was “promiscuous.”  She was a sweet, 12-year-old girl babysitting his two sons, and he took advantage of her. Is this who you want in the pulpit of an ARC-related church? Is this who wyou eant to pastor children and teens?

Seeking justice for Melissa,

Dee Parsons
dee@thewatburgwatch.com

(I will both email and snail mail this letter.)