What the ACNA Can Do NOW To Become Safer
Shut Down the Trojan Horses
Fair disclosure: I attend an ACNA church (Anglican Church of North America).
Compared with the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), culturally it is a breath of fresh air: they major in the majors while being theologically conservative. The congregation that I am part of, has a very joyful, loving culture. It is conservative without being an All Culture Wars All The Time church. It’s a refreshing culture.
But institutionally, the ACNA has a massive vulnerability to Trojan horses, as several of them--in the form of frauds and sexual predators--have infiltrated the ranks.
The Mark Rivera case should have been the clarion call for reform. Rivera, a lay leader in an upper-Midwest church, took sexual license with several children and youth. Making matters worse, when parents tried to report him, the Diocese initially stalled and even sided with Rivera. Ultimately, Rivera was convicted and sentenced to prison. And while the ACNA leadership’s response was better than the SBC’s, it still left a lot of room for improvement, as it revealed a lack of cohesiveness in terms of the culture.
More recently, Frank Gough, a priest of an ACNA church in Florida, was arrested for possession of Child Sexual Assault Materials (CSAM, commonly known as “child porn”). He allegedly confessed to police that he struggled with viewing images involving minors. But making matters worse, Gough had a 1977 violent felony conviction in which he was sentenced to 5 years to life. And yet he was still ordained as a priest in a denomination that will not ordain a divorcee.
Making matters worse, we have the case of J. Brandon Meeks. He had built up quite the social media following for his theological takes, with the handle “NoJesuitTricks”. He even had a self-published book. He fashioned himself as a PhD from the University of Aberdeen, a very prestigious an impressive accomplishment. He often tweeted about that. Brian Mattson, an Aberdeen alum, was impressed with Meeks, and sought to learn more from him. But as he made some otherwise innocuous checks on his past at Aberdeen—where the two would have been contemporaries—they didn’t check. Even worse, Meeks had been recently convicted of a sex offense. You can read about how it all went down here.
All of this is indicative a cultural problem at the ANCA: we have major failures of due diligence. And those due diligence failures have allowed Trojan horses into the city, where they have done massive damage.
The ACNA must confront this blind spot, and quickly. Here's what I recommend coming out of the gate.
(1) Anyone interested in a service role--lay or clergy--must be subject to a criminal background check. Convicted violent felons--and that includes sex offenders--should not be allowed into those roles. Does that mean they aren't saved? No. But we need to protect the sheep. Being regenerate does not mean you are a suitable fit for particular roles in church life.
(2) Anyone being considered for a role of influence--academic contributor, theologian, administrative duties--must have credentials vetted AND must be subject to a criminal background check.
If one claims a degree that was not earned, that should be a deal-breaker. This is "stolen valor." In the academic world, that kind of credential falsification is an immediate firing offense. It often means your academic career is over, as it is a major breach of integrity.
Any violent felonies--including sex offenses--should also be deal-breakers.
(3) Anyone seeking to work with children or adolescents, and anyone seeking an ordained role--priest, bishop, etc.--must be subject to a psycho-sexual assessment. If they come up as risks for pedophilia or ephebophilia, that should be a deal-breaker, even if they have not offended.
Why do I say this?
If someone has those kinds of deviant arousal patterns, they are a risk to children and youth. And considering the recent case of Frank Gough, it would be better to screen folks like him out before they get a chance to offend while in an office of church leadership.
(4) Anyone seeking an ordained position must be screened for Dark Triad personality disorders: narcissism, Machiavellianism, and sociopathy/psychopathy. Screening them out would go a long way toward preventing a toxic and hostile leadership culture.
Dark Triads are going to act with entitlement, which is the last thing you want in a minister. Entitled people will abuse other people, will abuse finances, and will often commit various sexual indiscretions.
Jesus said that a would-be leader must be the “servant to all”. That means no entitlement. We need a “feed my lambs” culture, not a “feast on the lambs” culture. Screening out the Dark Triads be a great step in that direction.
Should we take a "zero defects" approach to church office? Of course not. If we did that, no one would be qualified. At the same time, some issues are more egregious than others.
Flipping off the driver who cuts you off is bad form, but it's not going to do the same damage as a sexual predator who takes license with parishioners, or the theologian who becomes a major player in your world, but is shown to be a fraud.
I was a Southern Baptist for over 30 years, but left that world in 2022. Why did I eject from the SBC? I came to the realization that the SBC is safe only if you are a predator. In that world, calling out the predators only gets you marginalized.
And that's exactly what the ACNA needs to avoid: becoming a safe place for predators. Right now, they are wide-open for Trojan horses, as several have infiltrated. They need to learn the lessons of the SBC and right the ship.
Yes, there are other things they would need to do to ensure the right culture. And to be fair, the ACNA has a lot that is right about them. But they need to close their vulnerability gaps. And stat!
What I'm suggesting here would go a long way towards transforming the ACNA from a promising conservative denomination with severe vulnerabilities, to the safest Christian haven for women and children.