May 3, 2024
DULUTH, Ga. – One of the nation’s leading experts on sexual abuse will lead a webinar in Georgia on April 21 to train ministers to children and youth.
Greg Love, managing partner of the Texas-based law firm Love & Norris, will target the training to ministers working with the next generation.
The Georgia Baptist Mission Board is sponsoring the webinar.
“Years ago most churches would have told you that they were completely safe when it came to protecting children and teenagers because they did background checks on anyone who wanted to volunteer with minors,” said Chris Trent, the state Mission Board’s Next Gen catalyst. “Unfortunately, we’ve learned that background checks alone are not enough. We’ve heard too many stories of abuse taking place.”
Trent said that’s why the Mission Board has taken a leading role in educating church leaders about ways to protect children and teens.
“We live in a dark world that often seems like it’s getting darker,” he said. “It is sad to think that there are some that would seek positions in the church for the purpose of taking advantage and abusing the children and teenagers they’ve been entrusted with. It’s more important than ever for the local church to equip itself with tools that will help protect children and teenagers. While it would be great if we lived in a world where the church didn’t have to learn about these things, the fact is that we will continue to need to educate ourselves to recognize threats to our children and teenagers.”
Trent will join Love with the Ministry Safe training, which begins at 10 a.m. Love will discuss sexual abuse risks children and teens face and provide steps churches can take to protect them.
“We know that we will never accidentally get this right,” Trent said. “In fact, we will struggle and fail if we do not intentionally take steps to understand the risk of sexual abuse, recognize the grooming process of the offender, implement a prevention strategy based on the risk, and consistently report incidents of abuse internally and to the appropriate authorities.”
The state Mission Board has been partnering with Love to provide sexual abuse training for churches in Georgia for the past decade.
“We’ve equipped hundreds of Georgia Baptist churches and trained tens of thousands of ministry leaders,” Love said. “We’ve done a lot, but, of course, there’s a lot more to do.”
Georgia Baptist Convention President has appointed a Special Committee on the Prevention of Sexual Abuse, a select committee that will “make recommendations for developing programs, best practices, and policy guidelines for preventing sexual abuse.”
Love’s upcoming webinar is only the latest effort by the state Mission Board to combat sexual abuse.
“There is no doubt that protecting our children and students should be a top priority in our churches,” said Mike Griffin, public affairs representative for the Mission Board. “This workshop will be a great opportunity for church leaders to understand the risks and know the importance of having policies and procedures in place to create a safe environment for our young people and those who serve them.”
Griffin called Love “a recognized expert” in protecting children from sexual abuse.
“His unique perspective provides valuable counsel to ministry concerns of our day,” Griffin said.
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To register, go to https://gabaptist.org/events/nextgen-ministrysafe/
