Biblical Mennonite Alliance and credential removal of past abusers

[GelassenheitBnksi]

1Timothy you mention sexual assaults which are crimes. Trudy mentions that she received reports on the organization over the last several years. What information did she receive and did the proper reporting occur?

[I Timothy]

1Timothy you mention sexual assaults which are crimes. Trudy mentions that she received reports on the organization over the last several years. What information did she receive and did the proper reporting occur?

I do not speak for Trudy. I have no idea what information she received or what she may have reported. Those are questions for Trudy.

Given how aggressively she pursues these situations, I hope that after reviewing whatever information she has, she concludes that BMA acted appropriately. Others have already stated that BMA fumbled this situation.

J Mark Horst and Jason Groff resigned from BMA executive positions within days of the children's removal from LOH. The timing is really suspicious, this is not just random keyboard warriors who have raised concerns.

[Neto]

Regarding how 'personal funds" are used in mission work:
I do not know how BMA mission financial standards are worded as a whole, but many mission organizations are called 'faith missions', where each worker raises their own funding, and DNI (Destinations International, the BMA mission organization) is the same as WBT, through whom we served.

Our 'support quota' was set under the assumption that we funded our entire personal and missionary operation out of that amount. We didn't provide food for the people on a regular basis, but we did sometimes put on a feast, like at Resurrection Sunday. We also gave out 'care packages' at times, and all medical supplies and even flights to extract the seriously ill or those with broken bones, and also medical operations, ALL of that came out of our own funding. (We also funded the printing costs for Scripture books we distributed.)

I know that not all mission agencies operate that way, but I will suggest that most volunteers who go for more than a week or so are funded by their own congregations, friends, and family in much the same manner. (In our congregation even those really short term 'mission trips' are also generously funded by the church mission fund.)

[Judas Maccabeus]

Regarding how 'personal funds" are used in mission work:
I do not know how BMA mission financial standards are worded as a whole, but many mission organizations are called 'faith missions', where each worker raises their own funding, and DNI (Destinations International, the BMA mission organization) is the same as WBT, through whom we served.

Our 'support quota' was set under the assumption that we funded our entire personal and missionary operation out of that amount. We didn't provide food for the people on a regular basis, but we did sometimes put on a feast, like at Resurrection Sunday. We also gave out 'care packages' at times, and all medical supplies and even flights to extract the seriously ill or those with broken bones, and also medical operations, ALL of that came out of our own funding. (We also funded the printing costs for Scripture books we distributed.)

I know that not all mission agencies operate that way, but I will suggest that most volunteers who go for more than a week or so are funded by their own congregations, friends, and family in much the same manner. (In our congregation even those really short term 'mission trips' are also generously funded by the church mission fund.)

Ours worked the same way. TEAM did exactly the same thing. For tax purposes, ministry accounts were not taxable, but you had to provide receipts for what you spent. Personal funds (Salary) were taxable; no receipts.

[Judas Maccabeus]

If you want an impartial inquiry, an "advocate" is the last person who should be leading it.

[joshuabgood]

If you want an impartial inquiry, an "advocate" is the last person who should be leading it.

Who should lead it?

[GelassenheitBnksi]

An outside inquiry is very unlikely. Generally speaking, Anabaptists are entrenched in a mindset of exceptionalism that runs counter to the idea of hiring someone from the outside to provide perspective. Very necessary, but that would mean we don’t have all the answers.

We’re special, exceptional, and can’t we just get busy doing the work of the Lord, right?

CAM couldn’t bring themselves to do one, my guess is that BMA will take the same route.

[joshuabgood]

An outside inquiry is very unlikely. Generally speaking, Anabaptists are entrenched in a mindset of exceptionalism that runs counter to the idea of hiring someone from the outside to provide perspective. Very necessary, but that would mean we don’t have all the answers.

We’re special, exceptional, and can’t we just get busy doing the work of the Lord, right?

CAM couldn’t bring themselves to do one, my guess is that BMA will take the same route.

In 2024, a BMA founding church, United Bethel, did use GRACE for an outside investigation, and the final report was made public and can be found online.

[Judas Maccabeus]

If you want an impartial inquiry, an "advocate" is the last person who should be leading it.

Who should lead it?

I was thinking of GRACE, but hesitant to make an actual endorsement. You could try to get Boz Tchividjian to give advice, but it is almost certain he would point to GRACE. You might try Dee "Wartburg Watch" Parsons for a suggestion.

[Neto]

If you want an impartial inquiry, an "advocate" is the last person who should be leading it.

Why? (I confess that I know very little of what being an "advocate" entails.)

So, rather than be totally ignorant, I posed the following question on Google:

Should an abuse advocate be involved as a supervisor in an investigation of sexual abuse accusations?

(Normally I do not ask questions there that I don't already have an idea of the correct answer. In this case, I will depend on others here to correct the AI overview below. Some of the statements below - like legal nondisclosure 'rights' of counselors - make sense to me, but mostly I simply do not know.)

AI Overview
An abuse advocate should not serve as an active supervisor over the technical operations or outcome decisions of a sexual abuse investigation. Their standard operational role is structurally separate from law enforcement or corporate chain-of-command management to ensure an objective fact-finding process.
However, advocates frequently interact with investigative supervisors within structured multidisciplinary teams or independent audit capacities.
Core Boundary Conflicts
Evidentiary Neutrality: Investigative supervisors must review case files, evaluate evidence, and make determinations strictly on objective facts. An advocate’s primary ethical mandate is to support and validate the victim. Mixing these roles compromises the perceived and actual impartiality of the final investigation.
Confidentiality Privileges: In many jurisdictions, communications between a victim and a sexual assault advocate are legally privileged or highly confidential. If an advocate acts as an investigative supervisor, that privilege is eroded.
The info they receive could become part of the discoverable evidence file.
Chain of Command: Formal investigations—whether conducted by police or human resources—require supervisors who possess specific legal or corporate authority to assign detectives, issue warrants, or implement disciplinary actions. External advocates lack this institutional authority.
Appropriate Collaborative Roles
Instead of supervising the active case files or direct evidence, advocates interface with the investigative framework in specific ways:
Support System Integration: Advocates assist survivors during medical forensic examinations and law enforcement interviews, acting as a buffer rather than a process commander.
System and Quality Audits: Many agencies designate independent groups, including victim advocates, to review closed sexual assault cases periodically. These audits analyze case dispositions, testing protocols, and overall compliance with trauma-informed standards, reporting directly to top-tier leadership.
Policy Consultation: Advocates routinely guide law enforcement and organizational leaders in designing trauma-informed reporting channels, ensuring the broader framework protects the safety and dignity of the victim.