The church in Australia across the board faces a massive credibility crisis thanks to sexual abuse.  When I say sexual abuse I mean perpetrated by clergy on children and teenagers.

Given this climate and the bitter legacy that ‘men of God’ have left the church facing, you would imagine that the Baptist church would be super vigilant to protect against more headlines that hammer home the stereotype.  Not Queensland Baptists.

The Courier Mail reported on the weekend that a Baptist minister convicted in 2004 and given a suspended sentence for intentionally destroying evidence of child sexual abuse, has been reinstated as a Baptist minister by Queensland Baptists.

He shredded a teenagers diary containing details of sexual abuse by a member of the church he was pastoring.  You can check out the details at the newspapers story here.

Just what we don’t need – the perception that we are weak on the issue of abuse and misconduct by pastors.