A woman has come forward, claiming John MacArthur’s Grace Community Church (GCC) wrongly disciplined and shamed her when she sought separation from her husband.
The church disciplined Lorraine Zielinski during a July communion service at the Sun Valley, California Church, The Christian Post (CP) reported. Church leaders reportedly announced Zielinski had been put under church discipline for issues concerning her separation from her husband.
No recording of this service can be found on the church’s website or YouTube page.
The next month, Zielinski emailed Grace leaders disputing the church’s actions, according to an email obtained by CP. She claimed that GCC “sadly defamed me and subjected me to church discipline in an inappropriate way.”
On GCC’s website, it states: “When a professing believer refuses to repent, the church is to treat him as if he were outside of the fellowship. They are not to let him associate and participate in the blessings and benefits of the Christian assembly.”
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However, Zielinski said her discipline came after church leaders unfairly sided with her husband over her during their separation. She wrote that the church accepted her husband’s statements as true while dismissing hers.
Additionally, Zielinski contests the discipling was both “invalid” as she had previously resigned her membership from GCC in December 2023.
Church leaders “bullied and talked down to” Zielinski
Zielinski told CP that her unequal treatment first started while she and her husband received marriage counseling at GCC. Zielinski explained that she was open to reconciling with her husband “under the right circumstances” and was the one who suggested marriage counseling in the first place.
But during sessions, she reportedly said she “often felt bullied and talked down to” by GCC leaders. She added that “what I had said was not taken into consideration and was usually dismissed.”
“I was so stressed by these meetings that my doctor, who has been treating me for brain lesions, advised me to the best of my ability and if it was in my power, to not enter into any stressful situations, including meetings such as these,” she reportedly wrote.
“Sadly, every time I raised this point with the pastors, it was completely ignored and unaddressed in what seemed like a shocking display of lack of care for my physical health. I came to notice that this became a pattern of those I would be in counseling with.”
Though Zielinski’s lawyer recommended that she file for divorce, Zielinski filed for separation. Soon after, Zielinski’s husband filed for divorce because he planned to marry another woman, Zielinski’s email said. Her husband then moved out of their house.
When GCC leaders learned of his plans to divorce, they made her husband “amend his divorce filing,” according to the email. One leader also “insisted” that Zielinksi’s husband move back “with absolutely no regard for the safety of me and my daughter,” Zielinski wrote.
At the end of her email, Zielinski concluded that at GCC: “Men were believed and their statements were accepted as true, women were often disbelieved or ignored or dismissed as less discerning and more gullible, and there was never any meaningful accountability for the men.”
Zielinski told CP she remains separated from her husband.
GCC’s policy on divorce is that all Christians “should hate divorce as God does and pursue it only when there is no other recourse,” according to its website.
“With God’s help a marriage can survive the worst sins,” the website adds, “The only New Testament grounds for divorce are sexual sin or desertion by an unbeliever.”
GCC’s culture of shame-inducing counseling
GCC has been embroiled in controversy the last few years due to investigations by The Roys Report (TRR), exposing the church’s pattern of protecting abusers while punishing or ignoring victims.
GCC’s counseling practices were first revealed in an exclusive TRR investigation in March 2022. The investigation exposed how MacArthur and GCC excommunicated and shamed Eileen Gray for refusing to get back together with her child-abusing husband, David Gray, in 2002.
Eileen explained to TRR that she went to GCC elders, hoping they would protect her and her children and provide David with professional help. Instead, the church subjected her to spiritually abusive counseling and used church discipline to try and coerce her to take David back.
In 2005, David Gray was convicted of child molestation and abuse. Despite this, the church continued to support David and scorn Eileen, TRR reported.
Other women have shared similar stories about the church’s abusive counseling and culture.
One woman said GCC told her to return to her husband, despite evidence he searched the internet for incest porn and behaved inappropriately with the couple’s daughter. Eight women have reported that GCC urged them not to report their abusive husbands and fathers to authorities, but to forgive and submit to their abusers.
Just last year, Bill Shannon, the GCC Pastor who oversees the church’s biblical counseling ministry, was removed as an approved counselor by the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors.
A woman also shared with TRR that MacArthur covered up the sexual abuse of her father, GCC Pastor Paul Guay, for decades. This was after Guay had reportedly confessed his abuse directly to MacArthur.
Despite the alleged confession, Guay continued to work at GCC for three more years. Decades later, MacArthur encouraged the woman to forgive her father, who was still pastoring, and to drop her “obsession” to hold her father accountable.
MacArthur’s church regularly fills its 3,500-seat auditorium during its two Sunday morning services, GCC’s website said. MacArthur, who also hosts the Christian radio program Grace to You, has gained a reputation as “the world’s premier expository preacher.”
Liz Lykins is a correspondent covering religion news for The Roys Report, WORLD Magazine, and other publications.
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30 Responses
Matt 18:17 seems clear; “And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.” The word/idea “ostracized from the fellowship” is not in the text. Christ had friendly interaction with “sinners and tax-collectors.” (Matthew 9:10-17,Mark 2:15-22,Luke 5:29-39). The direction to Christians in dealing with disobedient Believers for personal individual offenses is to treat them as bad spiritual investments. Love them. Pray for them. Be courteous. But it doesn’t mean kick them out of the church. Teachable Christians are good spiritual investments (called disciples). To teach unteachable Believers is a poor investment. Limited time & limited resources require Christians to wisely entrust spiritual truth to faithful persons (2 Tm 2:2); like Jesus did with only a handful of men, later called Apostles. Here is a Hebrew term Mr. MacArthur might want to consider regarding this nonbiblical policy – nabal.
What should we do with heathens and unbelievers? Evangelize them. Call them back to the gospel.
Not shame and ostracize them.
This lady was neither a sinner nor an unbeliever. She was a mother protecting her children from an abusive father. She should have been supported by the church, and the matter turned over to authorities who had the means to investigate without church bias.
All to often I have seen, heard and even experienced shame from the Church Counsellor, a Pastor who made assesments and gave dangerous advice based on their human understanding instead of seeking to understand the victim’s real life story. More, concerning. not seeking Counsel from God’s Word and Holy Spirit discernment in the situation.
How tragic they would suggest that they reconcile when she felt unsafe with her husband. Jesus knew things like this would happen and He does permit divorce under abusive behavior. Divorce, but it gives neither of them permission to remarry. It seems the husband wanted out of the marriage so he could marry another women. In the sight of God this will be considered adultry, a SIN.
I do not know what it is with John MacArthur but Father has put a “check” in my spirit concerning him. Something is just not right. I’m not a regular listener of what he says nor his sermons. Sooner or later I will find out why Father has put a WARNING tag on this pastor.
Thank you for publishing articles like these so we can be aware of troublesome lives. I can pray more effectively knowing there are many hurting people out there. It seems a lot comes from within the body of Christ. We should be a place of restoration, healing, encouragement, unity. But it seems the opposite is the case here lately with leaders dropping like dominoes on a daily basis.
Blessings to you
But in the minds of JMac and his cultists, it is all the wife’s fault. As an aside, nowhere in Scriptures does it say that a spouse who is biblically divorced cannot remarry. As for abusive behavior, I would consider that to be abandonment and it is no different than a non-believer leaving a marriage that has a believer. In which case, the believer is free to remarry.
What?
Of course it says in several places in Scripture that “remarriage” is never permissible and is simply adultery (eg Mark 10, 1st Corinthians 7, Romans 7:3).
There’s not one verse in the Bible that condones “remarriage”. Not one example of a Godly person in the New Testament “remarrying”.
Christians follow Christ and his words on the matter (echoed by the Apostle Paul) especially in Mark 10, are as clear as day.
Charles, Matt 5:32 and 19:9 says remarriage after either party for any divorce without categorization is a sin. And 19:9 is even one of those biblical permissions so clearly that legitimate category is in view. But I do concur with your view on abuse and abandonment.
What I don’t see here in this article is firm evidence that is the case. All we know is she claims to feel unsafe. However, I do think there is enough evidence from previous cases and seeing some bias from other evangelical churches (even the Village), we can safely conclude they did not consider all sides equally nor validate all claims such as the husband pursuing another woman.
I totally agree with the lady. The church should have never, ever supported. This man who should have been kicked out of the church right there. The fact that the lady’s comments and concerns were completely disregarded by the staff. But grace community church, that’s alarming to me. I’m not really sure if I wanna be affiliated with somebody who would condone. These type of charges as a person who is abused and went through several foster homes as a child. This is something that’s really close to my heart and you know what? No woman. You should be in a marriage where an individual’s doing that to children and then have the church. Turn around and defend that that’s ridiculous!
It no longer suprises me that professional Christian counseling services reccomend against approaching pastors and elders first in the midst of family crisis. Look at this response— and what sort of threatening example does it set for those in the congregation quietly experiencing their own family problems? This is dangerous and so distorted that the heart of Christ is unrecognizable here. I’m sorry, GCC, but I think your lamp has gone out.
Is there a statute of limitations in California concerning the failure to report sexual abuse on minors? If GCC has failed to do so, could pastors, elders, counsellors be at risk for criminal charges? (One would think GCC has inquired into the legalities based on David Gray’s conviction?)
These scenarios are appalling and hypocritical and should have resulted in radio praise stations cancelling Mac Arthur’s program.
Re God ‘hating divorce.’ Using that scripture to bash (more selectively women it appears!!) is a poor translation and out of context. The correct context is God hates abuse of wives leading to divorce, NOT the other way around. Some of the contemporary translations in Malachi translates that passage as “God hates divorce”. It doesn’t take a theologian to figure that God is not keen on divorce but not THE point of this passage.
I had very similar things happen when I worked at GCC 25 years ago. They support divorce and remarriage by simply stating the wife that tries to get free from abuse was an unbeliever all along therefore the abuser husband is free to remarry and of course there is always a woman waiting in the wings.
Well that’s convenient, the wife was never a believer. So, the offending husband is free to remarry.
Don’t worry. As soon as John MacArthur dies, his cult will disappear. I am reminded of a quote mis-attributed to Mark Twain in regards to John MacArthur.
A radio host commented the other day how strange it is that we are always speaking of “so and so’s church”. Perhaps that’s the crux of the problem. Perhaps the reason certain churches feel free to jettison members who report family problems is because “so and so’s” ego is so invested in the notion that their church is perfect.
This says absolutely nothing about why she felt she needed to separate from her husband.
Well… the article says the husband filed for divorce with the clear intention of marrying another woman. Tells us quite a bit right there don’t you think?
Also, let’s show some compassion shall we? Perhaps this woman is not ready to discuss with Internet strangers the details of her unsafe marriage which could have included any number of painful things like marital rape, fits of rage, verbal abuse of wife and daughter, etc. We don’t know and frankly we don’t need to. The point of this article is to let the wider Body of Christ know that women continue to be unheard when they are in martial distress and then publicly shamed at John MacArthurs church.
Why do we need to know? Because this man believes himself to be the worlds premier Bible expository preacher. The hubris of that in the face of such legalistic unkind behavior to a woman and child in distress is stunning and disturbing.
Saeng, fully agreed. Why do we think WE get to be the arbiter of whether she had a “valid reason” or not? Why can we not just believe women when they say “this is unsafe”? We have plenty of clues that she had tried all the things, and she was not the one who initiated divorce, but separation- but still she is the one that is shamed, publicly, and put out of fellowship.
this is the point here.
Extreme spiritual misogyny on display.
There really aren’t enough details in this report to make an informed decision. Church discipline, by nature is difficult, humbling and unpleasant for the person it is directed towards. That being said, if a church is to obey Jesus, it must be enacted when necessary for obedience to God’s Word. No Biblical reason for the separation was listed in the article. That doesn’t mean there wasn’t one, but it wasn’t shared. We don’t know enough to make an informed decision. Ms. Roys is not helping this case by broadcasting it to the general public IMO.
She’s helping tremendously. We know to stay away from this church’s ministries since they are bearing rotten fruit. Did you miss the part where this woman’s husband divorced her so he could marry another woman. Does it bother you one bit he apparently was dating another woman while still married? So he has not faithful, a biblical reason for divorce. Happy now? Approve now?
The church may well be wrong here. I’m uncertain, because I’ve not heard their side. Yes, it’s possible to harm someone by trying to be faithful to the Bible’s commands for the church. We’re human. We won’t get every case right. However, it’s IMPOSSIBLE to serve the Lord when we read the scripture out loud, and then begin an elaborate explanation as to why the scripture has to be wrong.
“On GCC’s website, it states: “When a professing believer refuses to repent, the church is to treat him as if he were outside of the fellowship. They are not to let him associate and participate in the blessings and benefits of the Christian assembly.’” That’s a biblical statement (Matthew 18).
Second, when the article states that Lorraine Zielinski will receive counseling on her terms “under the right circumstances”. What circumstances. My brother & his wife are currently separated. Both are sinful. She has the perspective of dictating the right circumstances. My brother wrote a letter of resignation to not undergo church discipline. Elders are to care for one’s soul. Membership is not a convenient contract, but heartfelt commitment to a group of believers. Resignation doesn’t disqualify one from church discipline.
GCC’s statements on their website are based on almost word for word commentary on the Bible. That should be noted. Maybe GCC is like the church at Ephesus in Revelation. Right Doctrine, but left their first love. This speculative on JMAC, GCC and Mr. Zielinski’s. Just calling balls and strikes.
Clearly, facts prove you wrong
The husband divorced this woman to marry another. So while he was still married and the church was apparently trying to push for reconciliation, the husband as out looking for his next wife. There is no alternative view to this. Open and shut case.
Sort of off topic but my question is this. Where would Grace Community Church be without John MacArthur. I think most of us know the answer to that question. Hence the problem.
What in the world does it mean when they say she was under church discipline? Is this a cult where they control all aspects of her life? Why can’t she tell them to stuff it and just walk away? If her friends at Grace reject her then does she really want them as friends? What am I missing?
Not missing much, Bill. She told them to stuff it by previously withdrawing her membership from GCC. This “ritual” probably to send the message that Lorraine isn’t welcome at GCC anymore, and to let members/congregants know that it is okay to cut off all contact with Lorraine, should they choose to do that. Also, depending on how authoritarian church leadership is, maybe this sends the message that they may not be too happy about continued contact or friendship between members and the excommunicated party.
I’m reading an interesting book, Ministers of Propaganda by Scott M. Coley, a PhD in “Analytical Philosophy”. He lays out some of the foundational elements undergirding the thinking that results in such outcomes as repeatedly evidenced in GCC. Maybe Julie Roys would be interested in having Scott on her podcast sometime soon :).
GCC is one of the best church in the World and John MacArthur one of the best Bible teacher on the World.
I find this a curious comment, given the information presented. Are you saying you approve of shaming and excommunicating women for not taking men who abuse their children back into their home to abuse again?