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Reporting the Truth.
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Ben Courson Returns to Ministry Despite Alleged Sexual Misconduct & Abuse

By Rebecca Hopkins
ben courson returrns abuse
Despite allegations of sexual misconduct, Ben Courson, former pastor of Applegate Christian Fellowship in Jacksonville, Oregon, has recently resumed posting motivational videos through his Hope Generation ministry. (Video screengrab) 

Despite resigning from his Oregon megachurch last summer amid numerous allegations of sexual misconduct and abuse, Ben Courson has returned to ministry.

The former pastor and author is posting again for his more than 150,000 followers on social media—and recently preached at a youth ministry venue. Today, he announced five new speaking engagements around the country.

Courson also has gone on the offensive against his accusers.

“I’ve had people say lies about me that are so ridiculous, if they weren’t so hurtful, it would’ve been laughable,” Courson said in a recent YouTube video. He added, “If we quarrel and argue and fight and sling mud, we become part of the darkness rather than the answer of light.”

Last August, Courson resigned as head pastor at Applegate Christian Fellowship in Jacksonville, Oregon after Instagram influencer Lorin Lynch publicly called Courson out over alleged sexual misconduct.

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In a video statement posted online at the time, Courson apologized for “mistakes” in his dating relationships and said he was taking six months off to “reflect.”

Four of Courson’s alleged victims previously told their stories to The Roys Report (TRR). One of the victims also filed a police report, which TRR recently obtained, alleging Courson committed two felony sexual assaults against her and one misdemeanor sexual assault.

The debacle last summer prompted two elders at Applegate to resign and to call for an independent investigation. One of them, Paul Sandu, wrote in a letter that Courson had admitted to “inappropriate sex activity with multiple women” and was “disqualified from ministry.”

Applegate never commissioned any investigation.

And for months, Courson has remained silent.

In late February 2022, Jackson County District Attorney Beth Heckert decided not to prosecute Courson’s criminal case. Heckert told TRR that her office declined Courson’s case “for insufficient evidence.”

Police aren’t commenting on the case. But Medford police Detective Diane Sandler told Paul Sandu in a recorded police interview obtained by TRR that exposing people in power “are the hardest cases to work” because of the public’s desire to trust and believe them.

Sandler told former elder James Meyers in a police recording that the district attorney’s office would not be “making a determination of ‘Did something actually happen?’ They’re saying, ‘Can I prove it?’”

About a week after the district attorney’s decision, Courson began posting messages about God, faith, overcoming panic attacks, and not letting people “rewrite your story” to his 154,000 followers on Instagram.

One of those who liked an Instagram post of Courson’s was megachurch pastor Greg Laurie. Laurie did not respond to a request for comment and the like has since been removed.

ben courson abuse
This March 2 post by Ben Courson generated more than 1,800 likes from his followers, including evangelist Greg Laurie. (Screenshot)

Courson also has reactivated his Hope Generation website with links to his YouTube videos, podcast, and books.

Courson recently posted on Instagram that he had preached at a site of Oregon youth ministry Youth 71:Five Ministries, a ministry for at-risk youth.

When contacted, Youth 71:Five Executive Director Bud Amundsen said the event was for a different ministry, which had used Youth 71’s building. Amundsen declined to name the other ministry but said Courson was chosen at the “last minute” and that ministry’s staff didn’t have prior knowledge of his misconduct.

Courson’s post was removed after The Roys Report reached out to Youth 71:Five, but TRR saved a screenshot.

Ben Courson abuse returns
In an Instagram post since deleted, Ben Courson mentioned his recent speaking engagement at a facility run by Youth 71:Five Ministries (Screenshot)

The woman who filed the police report against Courson told TRR that she stands by her story and is disappointed by the outcome of her case. TRR agreed to keep the woman’s identity confidential due to the nature of the alleged crime, but has confirmed her identity with Sandu and Ashlie Moore, a friend of the woman.

The woman, who grew up attending Applegate, said she felt “violated” by Courson, and as a result of his abuse, has suffered panic attacks and is in therapy to cope.

“I was pushing against him the whole time with all of my strength,” she told TRR. “It’s disappointing, considering he doesn’t have any consequences for what he did, and I have consequences for what he did—mental and emotional consequences.”

Courson has not spoken publicly about the police report since it was filed last August and hasn’t responded to requests from TRR for comment. However, in a written statement to police, Courson denied the woman’s claims.

Police report details alleged sexual assault

In a police report filed on August 13, 2021, and obtained by TRR, a former Applegate congregant alleges Courson sexually assaulted her three times from November 2019 through July 2020.

At the beginning of the incidents, Courson was serving as a pastor of Applegate under his father and Applegate founder, Jon Courson. In May 2020, Jon Courson retired and appointed Ben as head pastor.

The first alleged assault occurred in November 2019, when the woman went to Ben Courson’s house for the first time, the report states. Courson reportedly asked to kiss her, and she said no. Then he allegedly started kissing her anyway.

The woman says she told Courson to stop. Three times, he reached down the front of her pants, but she removed his hand until he wouldn’t let her remove it anymore, touching her vagina, the report states.

The woman said Courson removed her clothes and his. She said she felt uncomfortable, but also trusted Courson since he’s a pastor. So, she relented and followed him into the bedroom, where he ejaculated on top of her, according to the report.

At the time, the two were in a dating relationship. The woman told TRR that Courson urged her not to tell anyone about their relationship and to lie if someone asked about them.

The police report includes a text from Courson on November 14, 2020, in which he asks the woman to keep their relationship a secret because he’s “super private.”

Police Report Excerpt

P003073_Medford police report_Redacted_Ben's text

The woman says she broke off the relationship in December 2019, but the two continued to be friends.

Then, in May 2020, the woman reportedly visited Courson at his house. Courson “suddenly climbed on top of her” and kissed her, the report states. The woman allegedly told him no “multiple times,” but he “ignored” her. She kept telling him to stop and eventually, he did, according to the report.

The woman said Courson later asked her if she’d told anyone what had happened, and she said she’d told her counselor. Courson then “lost his temper,” and accused her of “potentially exposing him and ruining him,” the report states. The woman told TRR that Courson made her cry and in response, he then tried to hug and kiss her.

The police report includes an audio message from Courson to the woman on May 14, 2020. In it, he apologizes for losing his temper and for trying to “hug you and stuff.”

A few weeks later, the woman reached out to Courson because he posted on Instagram, alluding to being “suicidal,” the report states.

The two reportedly watched a movie at his house. Courson then invited the woman into a sauna at his house, but she objected, the report states. It adds that he “pleaded” with her and told her he’d “be good” and stay on his side, so she relented, changing into a towel. 

A few minutes later, Courson grabbed her by her hips and kissed her, the report states. She reportedly told him no, left the sauna, and went to the bathroom.

She told TRR that Courson “aggressively” pursued her despite her trying to get away from him. In the bathroom, he started kissing her again, grabbed her breasts, thigh, and bottom, and tried to pull her towel off her, the report states.

The woman finally said, “What word other than ‘no’ do I need to say to get you to stop?” according to the report. Courson then allegedly stopped, and the woman left.

The woman told TRR that Courson later apologized to her for “overstepping boundaries.” They remained in contact for a few months because she was working on a project with him. In addition to their personal relationship, the woman also worked for Courson as a photographer, model, and influencer for the videos he posted for Hope Generation. The woman said she eventually ended all contact.

The woman said she filed the police report in 2021, after learning that what happened to her constituted criminal abuse. “Penetration” didn’t happen, she said, adding that she was “in denial” about Courson’s treatment of her and “making excuses” for him.

Oregon law has a category of “sexual abuse in the third degree” in which the victim “does not consent to sexual contact.”  It has separate categories that involve unwanted penetration.

Consent needs to be given every time a sexual activity happens, said Erinn Robinson, press secretary for Rape Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN). “Consenting to one activity, one time, does not mean someone gives consent for other activities or for the same activity on other occasions,” Robinson said.

In a statement to police, Courson said that he and the woman who accused him of assault dated in the spring of 2020 and had “multiple intimate encounters.” In May 2020, during one of those encounters, the woman told him to stop and “I did so immediately,” Courson wrote.  After that, “we remained friendly for over a year.”

Alleged assaults follow pattern

The accounts of assault in the police report closely resemble accounts by three other women who accused Courson of sexual misconduct against them.

Ben Courson Applegate
Ben Courson (Source: Facebook)

The women talked about having an undefined relationship with Courson and trusting him because he was their pastor. The women also relayed that Courson “used” or took “advantage of” them and that Courson required that they keep their relationship secret.

The women also alleged that Courson initiated a sexual encounter with them during the first or second time they were alone with him in his house. Two of the women said Courson initiated kissing, took their clothes off, then ejaculated on them without penetration.

Two women said they didn’t protest Courson’s sexual initiation. However, one woman told TRR that she went to Courson’s house thinking other young adults would be there, too. Then he “straight up forced himself on me . . . attempting to have a sexual encounter . . . trying to put his hands in places I wasn’t comfortable with.”

She said she “yanked away from him” and “got outta there” and didn’t speak to him again.

None of the other women filed police reports against Courson.

Ben is back

Though no longer pastoring, Courson maintains a following through his Hope Generation ministry online.

Applegate had supported Hope Generation at $20,000 a month, TRR previously reported, but it’s unclear where the funding comes from now. Applegate Lead Pastor Alex Heater didn’t return attempts for comment.

Courson’s ministry website is set up to take bookings for speaking engagements. The site is also promoting his books, “Optimisfits” and “Flirting with Darkness.”

However, Harvest House, the publisher of Courson’s books, ended its contract with him last year.

“In consideration of the public disclosures and serious allegations made against Ben Courson, combined with his video admission with regard to incidents of misconduct with women, Harvest House decided in early September of 2021 to terminate his two authored contracts and immediately destroy all their remaining inventory for the books, ‘Optimisfits’ and ‘Flirting with Darkness,’” Bob Hawkins, president of Harvest House, said in a statement.

Courson recently posted a video on Instagram, saying that Jesus collected the tears of a woman who had been “used, abused, (and) objectified by others.”

“I want to tell you that your tears are not lost on God,” Ben Courson said. “They are caught by God as the bride of Christ.”

Courson also recently posted a video of him and his dad, Jon Courson, discussing revelation.

Jon Courson has also been accused of sexual misconduct and spiritual abuse.

Ben Courson’s recent posts have been met with criticism.

“I totally have a heart for the girls that have been hurt,” said Instagram influencer Lorin Lynch in a March 5 Instagram post. “When we hear about (Courson’s) message about ‘collecting tears’ . . . it reminds me . . . how do people get away without confessing?”

Chas Smith, Courson’s cousin, told TRR that he wished Courson would address the criminal allegations directly and publicly.

“The lack of direct addressing is the part that I’m like, ‘What are you doing?’” Smith said. “Come on, that seems lame to me. . . .Either cop to it and apologize or deny it if it wasn’t true.”

Smith released a book this month that includes a history of the Coursons, including a bank-robbing cousin, Danny Courson, called “Blessed are the Bank Robbers: The True Adventures of an Evangelical Outlaw.” At the last minute, Smith added a postscript about TRR’s coverage of Ben and Jon Courson.

“It was a nasty, yet all-too-familiar story of excess, of power abuse, of tawdry, unfortunate ugliness,” he wrote.

The woman who filed the police report against Courson told TRR that she used to consider Ben Courson her favorite pastor. Not anymore, she said.

“I trusted Ben because I’ve known him since he started preaching,” she told TRR. “I really enjoyed the way he interprets the Bible and speaks about Jesus but obviously that’s caused a lot of confusion. . . . It’s just really shocking. You think you know somebody and then you don’t at all. This is the façade he put on.”

This article has been updated to provide a link to the full police report with allegations against Courson.

Rebecca Hopkins is a journalist based in Colorado.

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43 Responses

  1. I really enjoyed Jon Coursen for many years. Sad that his son was “handed the helm of a mega church”. That position should have been earned and valued and not corrupted by this sex addict.

  2. Herein lies the root problem – the leaders of God’s people have largely failed to train church members on how (and why) they must become wise as serpents (Matt 10:16). It’s NOT optional.

    This portion from your above report clearly demonstrates that lack of instruction: “The woman said Courson removed her clothes and his. She said she felt uncomfortable, but also trusted Courson since he’s a pastor.”

    Wolves wearing wool in the church has been a big problem ever since Paul first warned about it in Acts 20:29. Please educate yourselves about the ways evil shows up inside the church!

    https://unholycharade.com/recommended-sermon-series/

    – Steve Nelson

    1. It’s so much worse than that Steve. It’s all about family the Mega Courson church and family blood lines versus God’s House and God’s Family blood bought sheep and His church!

      It’s a Fsmily business that it’s altars are filled with perverted corruption and it’s pulpits of the blood of the sheep and practices that institute the “SILENCING OF THE LAMBS”

    2. That’s an almost impossible task. For many young people, they have only known one church, one pastor, and the more likely a pastor is to commit assault, the less likely they are to be warning people about wolves in sheep’s clothing within the church (for obvious reasons).

      Even where people are more wary, the fact is that being the pastor of a megachurch comes with the assurance that this is a Godly person in whom you can fully trust to care for you and your loved ones.

      Courson is young, charismatic, good looking, charming, and no fool, no doubt. Successful sexual predators will take their time to choose their prey, and someone in Courson’s position would be spoilt for choice. All he needs to do is identify someone who is more vulnerable than average, and use flattery and his attention until be believes they will go along with his advances.

      The only way to avoid this is to stop ignoring the warning signs and stop appointing predators to positions of power in the first place, but as we have see, that’s no easy task given the typical power structure in these institutions. There’s seldom any effective oversight.

      1. As a young woman there was a pastor who pretended to council me. Lol I was at the time using drugs. Actually when he came on to me I was appauled and very strongly rejected him. However my sister was taken advantage of also as a teen by a youth director!!! To sisters in one family. This is a serious problem . And worse now!!! Shame on Applegate and the Courson for minimizing!!!!!! I question their beliefs!!! Oddly tho I still get a lot out of Jon’s messages. But I don’t think eyof them should be in a leadership roll.

      2. Lol , no he is just a playboy ! That’s it dude !

        He never grew up and was never reared into maturity .

        He grew up seeing his dad worshipped by blind sheep and simply grew up with self entitlement!

        Nothing has changed now that God has cut him loose from accountability!

        He is free to roam knowing he dodged a bullet that could have had him in jail and listed as a sexual predator

        Seem’s to me escaping accountability is the worst of judgments

        As Roman’s teaches and God gave them up to their passions !

  3. It’s all about the Courson family the Mega Courson church and family blood lines versus God’s House and God’s Family blood bought sheep and His church!

    It’s a Family business that it’s altars are filled with perverted corruption and it’s pulpits of the blood of the sheep and practices that institute the “SILENCING OF THE LAMBS”

    The vile sins in the mega pulpit win again! Destroying the flock as Paul warned would happen ! Ravenous wolves over taking the flock!

    Rich shepherds with superior attitudes over the sheep dominate the mega pulpits in the world !

    What a judgment coming to these wolves in SHEEPS clothing !!

  4. Commenting in general, are we saying that a minister who has to resign due to sexual misconduct or other misconduct charges can never ever ministry against? Even if they are truly repentant?

      1. Fair point. So how do we discern when a person is truly penitent and is no longer bound to the particular sin that disqualified them? Or do we continue to hold their sins against them until the day they die?

        1. It’s not “holding his sins against him” to acknowledge he is wholly incapable of handling the temptations that come with fame and authority. It would be unloving to anyone under his care, but also to him, to put him back in such positions.

          If his church really loved him, they’d send him to rehab and then trade school.

          1. Ohhhhhh mark gunderson you’re my hero. Exactly. One and done. And as a father of a daughter, I’m more concerned for all the daughters out there then the feelings of a person who already struck out when he was actually in a position to hit home runs.

        2. Mark, I am in the law business. If a lawyer gets disbarred for stealing money from a client, it will be at least five years before he is allowed to even apply for readmission. At that point, the bar will launch a thorough, under the microscope investigation of every aspect of that person’s life since disbarment, and the burden of proof will be on the disbarred lawyer to show that he is rehabilitated. It sometimes does happen that disbarred lawyers are readmitted, but not without a lengthy and well documented showing that they are not the same person they were when they got disbarred.

          I would think that spiritual leadership should require at least as much. I would require him to demonstrate, over an extended period of time, the fruits of repentance. No, you don’t hold it against him for life, but you do require him to make a showing that it’s not likely to happen again.

          1. Seems a sensible and proper way of doing things. A lot of secular employers are not so fussy about the some of things that disqualify a minister, so time away from ministry in more secular employment might give the ‘defendant’ time to reflect on whether ministry really is their right calling.

          2. Kathleen, I heartily disagree with your analogy between theft and rape. In this case, a minister who has raped women must not ever be restored to the ministry. The Ben Coursen case is more analogous to those of physicians who rape patients than to lawyers who steal cash. Again, the circumstances must dictate the consequences and public trust, once lost in this particular manner, can never be restored. This is backed up by research as well. Ben has shown features of sociopathy, and the treatment for sociopathy involves keeping those individuals away from their victim group. By definition, intelligent sociopaths are excellent at projecting the appearance of repentance.

            As a commenter above has astutely asked: would you let him date your daughter?

          3. PS: Mar, most high-trust professions have governing bodies that investigate and disqualify offending members for this type of conduct. You reveal your ignorance of the strict rules to which most people in the helping professions are bound. Sadly, there are no similarly reliable standards for clergy.

        3. Yeah based on repeat offenders. For the safety of other woman. Till he’s dead. Talk to the families of a three time rapist in South Carolina that just got probation. One of the victims committed suicide. Yeah one strike and you’re now in the cheap seats at any church and if you want to serve, churches can always use maintenance people. Or does the malignant narcissist in them not allow themselves from being on the pulpit.

          1. “Or does the malignant narcissist in them not allow themselves from being on the pulpit.”

            This, exactly. The idea of just being a follower of Jesus, going to a church, doing something to be useful – clean something, help change the decor, help in the parking lot – isn’t even on the radar.

          2. I listened to a podcast with him from 2019 wherein he stated he was on staff as a pastor from the age of 18, while still in high school.

            His identity is so ingrained with being a PK following in his dad’s footsteps, there would be significant work to help him rewire.

    1. They can be involved in ministry, but they have disqualified themselves from pastoral ministry. See pastoral ministry qualifications from from 1 Timothy 3 & Titus 1. Six months is hardly enough time to reenter any kind of ministry. In fact, failure to submit to accountability group demonstrates lack of repentance. I know a young man who embezzled money from a bank. He is prohibited from working with any financial institution for the rest of his life. He has chosen a different field of work. So an individual who preys on the sheep (who belong to Jesus) is disqualified from pastoral ministry. Other ministry options could be available in the future, dependent on a significant time of restoration. Go get a “secular” job.

    2. It’s a matter of subtlety, Mark. Have you read the details of this case? There is rich New Testament backing for a differential approach to sin; I’m thinking of millstones and such. Some people cannot even be restored to open community–they need to be in jail. God’s forgiveness is vast but public trust is simply a separate issue. Why should ministers be held to lower standards than physicians? Docs who use their patients sexually are simply done, professionally. Please help me understand your qualm with disqualification of this particular minister, who is accustomed to forcing himself on his parishioners.

      1. Thank you Ellie Bel for making a case for Courson’s permanent disqualification. Good grief, this situation is so simple and straightforward: this man abused those in his charge, abused trust, abused power, abused the Gospel. Do people really believe the body of Christ is so desperate for leaders we must recycle a wolf?

    3. Yes mark that’s exactly what is meant. Stop thinking the church had any Law enforcement responsibilities. Read all the articles just written about grace church and there band of deviant. Pretend this was your daughters and they worked at target. Would you be so forgiving and think, it’s all okay for my daughters to work with them? The church has become a haven for the alleged “repentance”. It’s one and done. he is a predator. Predators don’t get fixed. They just hide it better and the church has no spine for letting these godless things back in a position of any power and need to start saying, god forgives you, let him find you a new job. Think of what he did. And with what power he used. And this nepotism in church’s is right out of the days of old.

    4. Mark, every situation is unique. This one is about Ben Courson and his sexual addiction/abuse, his misuse of power/title. Repentant? What does that mean? He said “sorry” publicly? There are deeper issues here than “sexual misconduct”. Has Ben sought treatment for what seems to be far worse than “oops, I made a mistake”.
      To your question, I have to say a hard yes! No, this man should NOT be given any leadership position. His issues are chronic & deep.

      1. Britney Spears has the perfect song for Benny

        OOPS ???? I DID IT AGAIN! And did it in daddy’s pulpit too ! Yikes ????

    5. Courson is anything but repentant, so the question is moot in his case.

      More generally, a truly repentant minster wouldn’t be seeking to remain in their powerful and privileged position. They would understand that they had deservedly been disqualified from their position of trust and authority and not only seek to make full amends, but to humbly seek other ways in which they can serve in ministry. There are countless ways in which people can minister to others that don’t require them to be a pastor of a megachurch.

      Also, if there’s a pattern of abusive behavior (including abuse of power) then there has to be a very long road back, if there’s any at all. A quick round of apologies and soul baring won’t cut it and typically only serves to make them a little more careful not to get caught next time. Of course, what typically happens if you do that to someone like Courson, he’s simply leave and start his own church with a bunch of his supporters and sycophants.

      That’s the dilemma. The very people who most deserve a second chance are those who most accept they don’t deserve it.

    6. I suppose the possibility can’t be ruled out, but I would at bare minimum require a showing of the fruits of repentance over an extended period of time. This guy is returning to ministry after only a few weeks or months and that’s just not nearly enough time.

      1. No, this case is analogous to physicians who rape patients, and not to lawyers who steal cash. Permanent exclusion from the profession is the only acceptable answer when a minister has (repeatedly) FORCED HIMSELF on his parishioners.

    7. Yep! That’s right ! The Bible is detailed of strict requirements

      Totally disqualified for the pulpit but not disqualified from fellowship or forgiveness !

      Jesus said let there not be many teachers for they are held to the strictest of standards

    8. No. If truly repentant they would humbly leave and never be trusted at the pulpit again. But unfortunately the membership in the evangelical industrial complex requires you to know your more important than what Jesus and Paul had to say about the wolves in sheep clothing. Because it’s about you and not god. Remember mega churches are fiefdoms and the pastor is king. And nobody challenges the king. And in the good old days those that challenged the kings or the pope or some other head of the state’s sponsored religious order, are usually burned at the stake for be a heretic. Ahhhh the good old day’s solving those who questions the kings message that definitely came from god.

    9. The answer is yes ! But they are restored to fellowship as a parishioner under a faithful shepherd

    10. Seriously. Who is perfect. There would be no pastors or church leaders! No consequence for women who step into a man’s house alone? And then go back again? You who throw stones — enjoy your sinless lives.

  5. 1 Timothy 3:1–7 (ESV): “The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. 2 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.”

  6. It seems Ben is right on schedule……

    Below is what I wrote 6 months ago when TRR wrote about Ben Courson’s many sexual issues with women in his church…

    So much of church leadership in evangelical churches are Machiavellian in their approach towards ministry.

    So here is the plan:

    1. Have junior step away from ministry for six months.
    2. Shut down any push back by members who might have an issue e.g. (You are free to leave the church… but with a smile…)
    3. Highlight members who are faithful to the church and current leadership.
    4. Emphasize how much grace that the church body is exhibiting to leadership…
    5. In 3 or 4 months have a sermon series on King David and start discussing the idea of Restoration.
    6. After six months, re-introduce junior to full ministry and have junior say how much he has grown……..
    7. Junior will then give a sermon series on the importance of transparency and integrity in the life of the church.

    This church is a complete joke.

    Yup …. Ben is right on schedule……

  7. The question is not, can this person return to ministry? A sexual predator who has been masquerading as a pastor is permanently disqualified from ministry. The only question in a situation like this is, is this person repentant and may they be restored to the fellowship of the church? To be a repentant member of the church, able to receive communion, is more than any of us sinners deserve anyway. There are many ways to make a living in this world but the pulpit is for men who are “above reproach”.

  8. Harvest Bible Chapel, during James MacDonald’s time, had strict rules regarding pastors and women. These rules were designed to prevent pastoral abuse. I bet Harvest would be willing to share these if anyone is interested.

    1. If the dude won’t obey the Biblical commands to care for the sheep and treat women with honor as sister in Christ, what makes you think he’d follow rules made up by some modern church (which also had a horrible pastor, btw)?!?

  9. There are certainly things that could be done to help shut this kind of thing down. 1) Don’t attend any of the events where he is speaking and let those who are sponsoring him know the reason. 2) Don’t financially support anything that is connected with him.

  10. Being a former police officer who was trained in investigating sex offenses, studies show that two characteristics of all sexual offenders is to manipulate and deny. This seems to be consistent with Ben. Sadly, he wasn’t criminally prosecuted not because he didn’t do the deed but that there was insufficient physical evidence to prosecute. The victims may have a civil case against Ben and, possibly, ACF. In civil cases the burden of proof is the preponderance of the evidence which is less than in criminal trial which is beyond a reasonable doubt.

  11. What does the Bible say about wolves to the sheep!

    Mark them , warn others , sharply rebuke them after 1 or 2 reprimands and then SEPERATE from the WOLVES!

    The sin as well is upon the sheep ! For they have not done what is instructed and these wolves roam freely!

    Worst off them all Big MAUL BEAR!
    PAPA JON!

    Time to flee from these fleece bags ! As Paul said they will fleece you and make merchandise of you !

    The sheep are the slaves to these blind guides !

  12. This kind of behavior is becoming more common. Egocentrism disguised in the name of pastoral ministry. Even sadder is that most of his 150k+ IG followers are fake. I mean you don’t have that many followers get 2 comments a post. God opposes the proud and this guy is a prime example of it.

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