“I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” ― Elie Wiesel.

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A lot is going on out there, and I have so much to share with you. It appears we are in a busy time at the moment. In the meantime, Todd helped me purchase the 9Marx Toolkit, which is their formula for making a church more biblical™. I think I will learn a great deal about how to create a church in the image of Mark Dever. I will have a lot of fun reading it, and I am willing to wager that I will find loads to discuss. To make it more interesting, a particularly famous SBC pastor here in Raleigh attempted to take over a church. It did not go well. In the meantime…

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Things are heating up on the Eastminster situation. On 6/9/25, I wrote Update: Eastminster Presbyterian Church’s (EPC) Investigation Found at least 23 Victims of Past Sexual Abuse and Is Offering Help and a Service of Lament. Some Thoughts About the Victims and the Church’s Response. The church leadership today was not leading during that time and claimed not to be aware of the Bodie Weiss abuse situation. However, it appears that things were more complicated than I imagined. They usually are in these situations. Here’s the update, along with a plea.

Internal investigation called student reports “not credible.”

KAKE.com wrote Eastminster Presbyterian admits to investigating and dismissing abuse allegations three separate times before 2024. Uh oh! Here is the video.

The letter from the church admits to more of the story.

Eastminster sent a letter to the congregation this past weekend. Here are some highlights with my responses. However, I encourage readers to review the complete letter.

• We are doing our best to seek the truth and be as transparent as possible in light of these findings and allegations.

Dee: Transparency is not easy, but as followers of the One Who is the Truth, it is necessary.

• December 2000, a former student in Eastminster’s senior high youth group, known as Real Life, alleged that in the early 1990s, Weiss had engaged in inappropriate physical contact and had sexually harassed the student….Following an investigation, including interviews with both Weiss and the former student, a determination was made that the allegations being made by the student were not credible.

What investigation? Did a third-party independent group do it, or was it one of those “pastor” investigations? It now seems like these reports were credible, and the one who did the “investigation” was not credible or informed. I can imagine Bodie having a good laugh at how easy it was to deceive the leadership. Where was the Holy Spirit in all of this?

• May 2005, two men in Pennsylvania alleged in telephone conversations with an Eastminster pastor that Weiss had engaged in inappropriate sexual activity with them at a church in Pennsylvania in 1980 when they were approximately 16 years old and Weiss was approximately 18 years old. Following an investigation, including interviews with Weiss and with the pastors atthe Pennsylvania church, a determination was made that the allegations could not be substantiated.

How does one “substantiate” sexual abuse? The abuse is usually carried out in private. It would seem to me that the church should have been on high alert since a report was made in 2000.

• After Weiss had left his position at Eastminster and was no longer employed in any ministry capacity, an attorney representing a former student sent a demand letter to Eastminster. In thatletter, which was sent in July 2008, the attorney alleged that the student had been sexually abused by Weiss during the time the student had participated in Eastminster’s senior high youth group. Following an investigation, Eastminster’s insurance carrier agreed in September 2009 to pay a monetary settlement to the student and his family. At the request of the student’s family,the settlement included a non-disclosure agreement (NDA).

When this happened, did the “investigators” of the previous complaints go back and try to figure out what was going on? The church claims to be interested in transparency, so why does it have a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) in place? I would venture to guess that the student who got the NDA is willing to speak of what happened. NDAs usually protect the church, but so be it. The church could respond by offering to release him from the non-disclosure agreement (NDA). 

• Looking back, the current Eastminster Session recognizes that the apparent success of Eastminster’s student ministries during Weiss’s tenure at Eastminster likely caused past Eastminster leadership to place too much trust in Weiss and to allow Weiss to lead those student ministry programs with too much autonomy and not enough accountability.

This is an insightful statement. I have found churches more than willing to protect pastors and leaders from complaints of sexual abuse by students. It happened in my former church, and that is why I blog. It saddens me to know that the previous leadership would be so willing to throw victims under the bus while protecting one of their own.

NDAs have no place in the church.

In 2021, I posted Is the Use of NDAs in Christian Churches and Organizations Ethically Sound? No, Says #NDAfree.

#NDAfree link to the rescue

This incredible group of people has started an organization aimed at stopping NDAs from being used in the church.

We are a global movement with a vision to see individuals, Christian organizations and local churches free from the misuse of Non-Disclosure Agreements. #NDAfree contributes to this by raising awareness of the issues and providing some tools for change.

Their story

At #NDAfree we dream of seeing individuals and organizations break free of the pervasive culture of NDAs. Too often, these tools are used to silence people following abuse or whistleblowing.
We’re a community of survivors, whistleblowers and activists, brought together by a shared belief in this justice issue.

As followers of Jesus, we long to see our communities press into the hard work of pursuing truth, promoting transparency and, where possible, seeking reconciliation.

Stories of those who were silenced by an NDA link

Currently, there are four stories on this page that will help to demonstrate to the reader that NDAs are a problem. Here is one such story: Global evangelical leader silences those he abuses​

A most helpful FAQ page link

Here are two questions and answers.

Do NDAs have a legitimate purpose?

Yes. Their original purpose was the protection of intellectual property and we believe this is the proper use for NDAs. Another legitimate purpose is the protection of personal data in scenarios not covered by data protection regulation. For example, a confidentiality agreement may be appropriate when hiring an external contractor such as an independent bookkeeper or IT support who might have access to confidential data.

Is there an alternative to an NDA for ensuring confidential information about vulnerable people is not disclosed?

Relying on an NDA to protect confidential information about vulnerable people is an admission of failure in earlier processes such as recruitment, supervision, protection of confidential information, ongoing professional training and adherence to policies and procedures. Within your church/organization, there is a responsibility to ensure that only appropriately trained and trustworthy staff have access to confidential information about vulnerable people. In relevant jurisdictions, this will include adherence to General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which makes provision for the protection of stored data.

…Julie Roys’ website documented some organizations that have used NDAs in #NDAfree Launches to End Christian Community’s Use of Non-Disclosure Agreements

• Lori Anne Thompson, the first of Ravi Zacharias’s victims to speak out, had been bound by an NDA. She wrote it felt “dehumanizing.”
• Former staff with the Acts 29 church network recounted being fired and forced to sign non-disclosure agreements after alerting leaders in 2015 to bullying and abuse of power.
• Survivors of abuse at Camp Kanakuk, one of the country’s largest Christian camps, suggested that NDAs “concealed the truth in order to preserve a ministry brand and economic engine.”
• And the new church founded by Mark Driscoll requires volunteers to sign an NDA, a former security director said.
• Even Classical Conversations, which produces homeschool educational materials, has required contractors to sign NDAs. Whistleblowers said the company amounted to a multilevel marketing scheme exploiting parents and low-level contractors.

NDAs are rapidly becoming unenforceable in sexual abuse cases.

Here is one state that has already passed a law. Missouri Governor Signs Law Making NDAs Unenforceable. A Texas bill is still waiting for the governor’s signature.

Trey’s Law, so titled for Trey Carlock who died by suicide after suffering sexual abuse at the hands of Peter Newman at Kanakuk Kamps, makes NDAs signed after August 28, 2025, unenforceable in childhood sexual abuse claims, the Springfield News-Leader reported.

The law was passed as an amendment to House Bill 737 in April.

Until now, Tennessee had been the only state to have passed a law — in 2018 — specifically prohibiting NDAs in civil child sexual abuse settlements, rendering them “void and unenforceable.”

NDAs should never be used in child sex abuse settlements. Wouldn’t it be great if Eastminster released the one victim from his Eastminster settlement?

There is more to come on this story. If it gets up by 8 PM EST, I will add it here. If not, I will write a new post.