Churches and Church Events Among Pedophile Targets

By Dan VanVeen
Reprint Courtesy of A/G News

Recently, Jason Noble from the Assemblies of God National Children's Ministries Agency, traveled to the state of Washington to conduct an event and speak at an AG church. Although the event was a success, Noble came back with an education that still leaves him shaking his head.

Through conversations with his brother-in-law, Nick Hawkins, children's pastor at Viewcrest Assembly of God in Mount Vernon (Washington) AG, and local police, Noble learned that pedophiles are actively targeting churches and church outreach events to gain access to children.

"The police had notified Viewcrest Assembly of God that pictures of their church and their Easter outreach were pictured on a known pedophile blog [Internet discussion pages that approved people can post their thoughts on concerning the topic]," Noble says. "They had the street address of the church, the date of the event and pictures all posted online for other pedophiles to read, view and be aware of."

"Our church realizes today that we are ministering in a different climate than ever before," states Viewcrest AG senior Pastor Dennis Noble, Jason's father. "To protect our children we are going to have to take extreme measures. These measures may be uncomfortable and difficult, but the safety of our children has got to be our higher priority."

Jason Noble says that the police warned that it's difficult to know who is a pedophile, and that's why vigilance can never be left to chance.

"They [police] said that pedophiles are often people you'd think you'd love to have as volunteers," he says. "They're frequently young, athletic, energetic, fun - kid magnets. They also could be 'trusted' people held in high regard by the community."

The point being, Jason Noble explains, never risk a child's innocence to assumption - such as assuming you "know" someone, that an event is safe because it's a church event or that a pedophile wouldn't know about or attend your event. "This is a real wake-up call," he says.

Richard Hammar, the legal counsel for the General Council of the Assemblies of God, is widely viewed as the foremost expert on sexual abuse in churches. He advises churches take this very evident threat to children's safety seriously.

"I just concluded my research on church litigation that occurred in 2005," states Hammar. "The number one reason that churches were in court involved sexual misconduct of a minor. This is not an issue that is going away. Sadly, my research demonstrates that no more than a third of the churches in this country are doing any screening of volunteer youth workers. Churches that continue to ignore this problem are exposing themselves, and the most vulnerable members of their congregation, to an unacceptable level of risk."

Some of the safety precautions recommended to Noble included: check-in/check-out procedures, clearly identified security personnel moving about the area, parent I.D. tags, surveillance cameras, and staff being aware of individuals who seem unattached to their own children or out of place at a children's event.

Jason Noble adds that Viewcrest Assembly was not the only site targeted by the pedophiles. Other churches, fairs, school plays, parks and festivals were just a few of the many other sites and events receiving pedophile reviews and evaluations concerning the access to children. There were also other cities that were being targeted by this Web site that basically represents a network of pedophiles.

"Although this is a definite warning to our Fellowship to exercise extreme care in regards to children's safety," Jason Noble says, "it's also a warning to parents that pedophiles regularly target children and family events - you cannot trust your child's safety to chance."