Lawsuit against SBC takes aim at historic abuse report and response

• Former seminary professor denies allegations of abuse in lawsuit and takes aim at the SBC and outside firm Guidepost Solutions for supporting those allegations.
• Lawsuit follows public opposition to Guidepost and its historic report on abuse in the SBC, which was the basis for policy recommendations and a resolution apologizing to survivors.
• The SBC is facing three total lawsuits that reference Guidepost’s report. The third and newest one is from an alleged perpetrator of abuse, while the other two are from alleged abuse victims.

A former seminary professor alleges in a new defamation lawsuit he was the target of a conspiracy by the Southern Baptist Convention to improve its image amid reports of a sexual abuse coverup, saying SBC leaders made him “a bona fide scapegoat.”

The lawsuit, filed in an Alabama circuit court, illustrates not just the ongoing challenges but a new type of test on abuse reform for the Nashville-based denomination. It comes as the SBC, along with state Southern Baptist groups, launch new initiatives in the wake of a historic report from an outside firm, Guidepost Solutions, on SBC leaders repeatedly failing to address abuse and care ffor survivors.