http://thouarttheman.org/
Nathaniel Morales of Covenant Life Church Convicted of Sexually Abusing Young Boys
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Janet Mefferd interviews Brent Detwiler regarding the conviction of Nate Morales and how it ties in to Sovereign Grace Ministries.
From Jeremy Cook, one of the victims who testified against Morales:
All, I am trying hard to catch up on all the comments, as it has been a very busy 24 hours. But let me say thank you to you all for your words of encouragement. This has been a very long road, and the conviction today was vindication and also verification that from the legal aspect, this was all worth it, as this predator is and will remain off the streets where he cannot harm anyone else again.
But even more importantly, and in the midst of the attention and frenzy, my blessing through all of this is to serve God in hopefully inspiring others to speak up, tell their stories, and hopefully have their day too. The immense relief of facing my abuser, speaking the truth, and truly feeling that he had no power over me ever again, and that he cannot harm another again was one of the greatest feelings imaginable. Not that it has to be a day in court for every victim, but to stand up and speak the truth is a powerful thing, and an important step in healing.
The amazing opportunity that God has given me has been that I have already been able to encourage and empower others to speak up, and that was before I could speak so freely about this. This is an incredible blessing and proof of the amazing power of God to turn acts of evil into opportunities for good. I pray that anyone who has been a victim be empowered to step up and speak out. And I am thankful that God has carried me through these years to reach this day.
My goal is to help others take that step, and if I can help you with that, you can email me at another(dot)sgm(dot)survivor(at)gmail(dot)com.
“We cannot shrug our shoulders when children are sexually abused and our leaders in the church cover it up. It is evil to do so.
I’m a 5000 point Calvinist but the silence of neo-Calvinist leadership re: cover-up of sexual abuse under Mahaney’s watch is just awful.”
This story is taken from 7 ABC News in Washington D.C. and can be seen here.
ROCKVILLE, Md. (WJLA) – Nathaniel “Nate” Morales, a former church leader at the Covenant Life Church in Montgomery County, Md., was convicted Thursday of sexually abusing three young boys between 1983 to 1991.
A jury found Morales, 56, guilty on two counts of sexual offense in the second degree and three counts of sexual abuse of a minor.
Two hours after the verdict, victim Jeremy Cook was ecstatic:
“I started crying. It was just, it was overwhelming to know that the struggle, the fight, the 25 years of trying to bring this forward, was worth it.”
But Pam Palmer, whose daughter was reportedly molested by a teen church member back in the 1990’s, says Covenant Life Church is also to blame.
Palmer claims that the church’s pastoral team tried covering it up:
“How can you walk away from innocent children being abused and do nothing?”
In fact, during Morales’ trial this week, public defender Alan Drew asked Pastor Grant Layman: “Did you have an obligation to report the alleged abuse?”
Layman replied: “I believe so.”
Drew fired back: “And you didn’t?”
Layman answered: “No…we didn’t know.”
State’s Attorney John McCarthy says that his office cannot prosecute anyone unless crimes are reported – but that perhaps this is no longer the most effective method:
“I think we’ve come to realize that’s not the right way to deal with these matters…”
Cook adds: “Certainly I think there are people in Covenant Life Church that have a bit to answer for. They left this predator on the street when they had knowledge, and ultimately they’ll have to answer to that, whether it be to the courts, or whether it be to God.”
Morales is accused of “preying on” three young members of the church at group sleeoovers and in their homes. Representatives from the Maryland state attorney’s office said the youngest victim was 11 years old at the time, and that the abuse continued until he was 18 years old.
Officials said in a statement following the verdict Thursday that “the abuse was not reported until 2009, when Detective Sally Magee was informed, despite awareness of the abuse among the church leaders.”
“Sexually abusing boys who trust you because of your prominence in your faith community is unforgivable,” said Ramon Korionoff, spokesman for the state attorney’s office. “These grown men have shown a lot of courage to come forward in reporting these incidents of sexual abuse during their childhoods. It lets other victims of abuse in our community know that they can come forward and justice will be served.”
Morales faces up to 85 years in prison.
Authorities said he is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug.14.
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