Mountain View Community Church, a Virginia multisite church affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), is coming under scrutiny for employing a man convicted of child sex abuse. Joshua Bowen, who serves as director of the church’s Orange campus, was convicted in 2005 of the statutory rape of a 14-year-old.
At the time of the offense, Bowen was a 24-year-old teacher, and the victim was a student. Bowen pleaded guilty to second-degree statutory sex offense in exchange for several other charges being dropped.
According to court documents obtained by The Roys Report (TRR), Bowen was sentenced to 48-67 months and was credited with time served for “confinement…while awaiting disposition in this matter.”
RELATED: Critics Push Back on SBC’s ‘Road to Orlando’ Feature of David Uth Over LGBTQ+ Ministry Stance
Court documents indicate that the fact that Bowen “voluntarily acknowledged wrongdoing…at an early stage of the criminal process” was a factor in his sentencing, as well as his “good character,” “good reputation,” and “positive employment history.”
In a testimony given at MVCC in 2019, Bowen admitted to going to prison for “having sex with a former student who was in high school.”
“As dark as things seemed in that moment, as far as I’d pushed God away and run, he still chased me down and found me,” said Bowen.
In Bowen’s profile on MVCC’s website, he writes, “When at my lowest, I was introduced to Jesus, truly hearing the redemptive message of the Gospel for the first time. That day began a radical transformation from the inside out.”
At the time of this article, Bowen is still listed as the church’s Orange campus director. According to TRR, Bowen’s responsibilities at the church involve pastoral care, including premarital counseling.
RELATED: Trial Date Set for Former SBC Pastor Charged With Producing and Possessing CSAM
The SBC has for several years been embroiled in controversy regarding proposed reforms to address clergy sex abuse. While the denomination voted to create an online registry of pastors and church leaders who have been convicted or credibly accused of sexual abuse, efforts to implement the database have been indefinitely put on ice.
