Rachael Denhollander Calls Out Church Leaders for Only Speaking Out When It’s Easy
Following Zacharias’ death last May, many were shocked as claims surfaced that he had been a co-owner and patron of two spas in Georgia where he sexually abused the employees. Many came to Zacharias’ defense; few wanted to believe that the accusations were true.
In a lengthy Twitter thread on Feb. 12, Denhollander addressed “every leader who has written a blog post, tweeted, commented on, the steps being taken by RZIM, how good they are, how important the truth is, or how to prevent this,” but who were silent before now. These leaders, she said, are “years too late” and are only exacerbating the victims’ grief.
For every leader who has written a blog post, tweeted, commented on, the steps being taken by RZIM, how good they are, how important the truth is, or how to prevent this, please hear the grief you are compounding:
— Rachael Denhollander (@R_Denhollander) February 13, 2021
“You applaud the independent investigation, but never pressed for it when it needed to be done,” said Denhollander.
When your voice was desperately needed in 2017 and all the years that followed, you were silent. You left the victims alone, your silence a deafening testament that you did not care. You praise accountability but as far as I can see, have never ONCE demanded it of anyone you labor alongside. Not SGC. Not Ravi. Not Paige Patterson, or Jerry Vines, or any other leader accused of abuse or enabling…You had nothing to say until the work was done and it cost you nothing.
It is not the time for leaders to applaud the very actions they were unwilling to take when it mattered most, said Denhollander.
Do not act as if this matters to you when you do not care enough when it would cost. Stop applauding this step. Start urging those who have refused this step, to take it. Do it publicly….Use your voice and platform to point to the work they have done, the price they paid, the cost of not listening earlier. Point people to the wise counsel purchased at great cost. Wait to speak until you have faithfully spoken when it would cost.
