In the nearly 300-page report of an independent investigation, the first correlative study of the immense Protestant sect of Southern Baptists, several top clergy members were found to have minimized, ignored, and even vilified sex abuse survivors who came forward for help.
On January 20, the city school district of Lebanon, Ohio, released a statement in response to a group of parents concerned over the After-School Satan Club meeting. According to a school official, the club’s organizers were able to complete the “required application, the facility use agreement, and provided the necessary documentation, and were approved.”
On December, 9; the Roman Catholic Diocese of Noto posted an apology for Bishop Antonio Stagliano's comment saying Santa Clause is not real. The apology came after the parents of the children were outraged at the bishop's statement.
Esther Callejas, a 24-year old mother of two from Arizona, fatally shot her two children in the morning of September 27, 2021. Phoenix police Sgt. Ann Justus said in a statement that Callejas shot her children because she wanted them “to go to heaven.”
A wide range of religious organizations in the UK was subject to an inquiry investigation regarding child abuse. The inquiry revealed “shocking failures” and “blatant hypocrisies” in how these religions handle abuse allegations. Children are subjected to abuse of power and victim-blaming by religious leaders and, as a result, are often not reported.
In 1965, Jean Fields, aged 15 at that time, married a man in his 20’s. She went on to have three children by the time she was 21. Fields, along with Judy Wiegand of Kentucky, are one of the few people invited by lobbyists in North Carolina to help convince the state’s congress to address the increasing cases of underage marriage. The International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) and Unchained at Last are among the groups that have pressured the state’s legislators to fix the gruesome age of consent for marriage.
From the 19th to 20th centuries, Canadian churches operated at least 150 boarding schools for children of aboriginal tribes. Officials have exposed hundreds of unmarked graves on the surrounding properties. Approximately 150,000 native children attended these schools for more than a century. Sadly, the National Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Canada determined 3,201 native children died due to unsatisfactory conditions, malnourishment, and abuse.
A 46-year old mother from Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia, was sentenced to 18 months in jail for child endangerment after claiming God would protect her child. The mother, whose name was withheld by the Toowoomba District Court, was charged with gross negligence in 2019 and was sentenced on July 15, 2021. The jury took just over an hour to reach a verdict.
A Texas federal court received a petition from Braidwood Management, Inc. to provide a religious exemption that will allow them to discriminate against LGBTQ+ staff.
NBC News interviewed a handful of former students (or ex-interns) regarding a Christian leadership training program at Bethany Church in Baton Rouge, LA. These ex-interns attested that the program was abnormally brutal. They described their disturbing experiences.
