Protests Erupt After Pastor Brady Boyd Resigns from New Life Church
In a dramatic turn of events, New Life Church in Colorado Springs witnessed significant demonstrations by its members who were vocally opposing the resignation of their Senior Pastor, Brady Boyd. The protests were sparked a week after church elders announced Boyd’s departure due to allegations related to his knowledge of past sexual abuse incidents involving Gateway Church’s founder, Robert Morris.
Angie Ragsdale, a long-time member of the church, expressed her dissatisfaction with the decision to remove Boyd, stating to KKTV that Boyd was unfairly dismissed due to allegations linked to someone else’s past actions. “He’s been the pastor of New Life for the past 18 years, and he’s a beautiful, wonderful, upstanding man of God,” Ragsdale explained.
Support for Boyd was echoed by Joan Mills, another protestor, who acknowledged Boyd’s misplaced trust in Morris but argued that it should not have resulted in his resignation. “He knows he did wrong putting trust in Pastor Morris, but I just feel like it was wrong what was done,” Mills said.
The controversy began when New Life Church elders disclosed on June 22 that Boyd had resigned on June 18, paving the way for Daniel Grothe to become the new senior pastor. Boyd’s appointment to New Life Church had followed the resignation of Ted Haggard in 2006 after Haggard admitted to engaging in “sexual immorality” with a male escort and illicit drug use.
During Boyd’s consideration for the senior pastor role, the church’s pastoral search committee was informed of Morris’ alleged sexual abuse of Cindy Clemishire, which occurred when she was 12 years old and Morris was in his early twenties. Boyd had previously served at Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas, overlapping with Morris’ tenure.
New Life Church elders stated, “To report what they had heard and inquire further regarding the allegations of abuse, New Life representatives contacted the Board of Elders of Gateway. Our church was informed that Morris’ past abuse was known to Ms. Clemishire’s family, Gateway elders, news media, and legal counsel.”
Boyd reportedly claimed he was unaware of certain details about Clemishire’s abuse, which the church elders found inaccurate, leading them to request his resignation. “Brady had nothing at all to do with Robert Morris’ past abuse. Still, we believe that trust is the currency of leadership,” the elders said.
Dean Miles, a former member of Boyd’s security team, voiced his perspective on social media, branding Boyd as a “master manipulator” and alleging that he often distorted the truth during his tenure. Miles stated, “Leadership is earned in truth, not preserved in spin.”
Meanwhile, Cindy Clemishire has taken legal action against Gateway Church and Morris, filing a defamation lawsuit alleging that the abuse she suffered was mischaracterized as a consensual relationship. The lawsuit, led by Clemishire and her father, seeks over $1 million in damages.
This article was originally written by www.christianpost.com
