The senior pastor of Gateway Church, Robert Morris, was 21, according to Cindy Clemishire, when he started sexually abusing her when she was 12. Morris has now resigned and claims to have “walked in purity.”
A Dallas megachurch pastor announced his resignation on Tuesday, two days after acknowledging that he had engaged in “inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady” 35 years prior. The “young lady” in question was twelve years old, and her description of the “behavior” would constitute criminal sexual abuse.
Former Gateway Church pastor Robert Morris, who once served as a spiritual counselor to former president Donald Trump, was lecturing to a congregation of over 100,000 members. Four days after 54-year-old Cindy Clemishire made public her claims that Morris began abusing her when she was 12 and he was 21, Morris resigned. On Tuesday, Clemishire told that she was no longer terrified.
In a statement to the local Dallas television station WFAA-TV on Sunday, Morris, 62, said, “It was kissing and petting and not intercourse, but it was wrong.” The following several years saw multiple instances of this behavior… I have walked with integrity and responsibility in this area ever since.”
The church first supported Morris, but after a backlash, they announced his departure.
The church’s board of elders stated in a statement to the media that they previously believed Morris had a “extramarital relationship” with a “young lady,” quoting the pastor as saying this was “not abuse of a 12-year-old child.”
The statement, which CBS News and NBC News were able to receive, said, “We are heartbroken and appalled by what has come to light over the past few days, and we express our deep sympathy to the victim and her family.”
Cindy Clemishire says Robert Morris sexually abused her at age 12
After Clemishire initially told her experience to the Wartburg Watch, a blog concerning sexual abuse within the church, allegations against Morris became public on Friday.
In the blog post, Clemishire stated that when Morris was 20 and she was 11, they had first met at a youth revival in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Morris and his spouse, Debbie, were itinerant preachers.
On Sundays, Morris preached at Clemishire’s church, and occasionally, he, Debbie, and their son would spend the night at her parents’ house. He was “safe and friendly,” in her opinion.
Morris persuaded 12-year-old Clemishire to “visit him in his room that night,” and that night, on Christmas in 1982, things changed. At the time, she didn’t think anything of it, she said in the article. He allegedly sexually assaulted her in his room, and she was told to “never tell anyone about this because it will ruin everything.”
She claimed that up until 1987, abuse persisted in Oklahoma and Texas.
Following her disclosure of the assault to her parents and a close friend, Morris “reportedly stepped down from ministry for two years,” Clemishire informed the blog.
Church’s initial support precedes Morris’ resignation
Morris was still identified as the senior pastor on Gateway Church’s website on Tuesday, despite the church having made a statement about his resignation. Morris and his wife Debbie have been married for 44 years, and the couple has three children together.
Morris’s biography on the Gateway Church website states that he has a radio program that airs in more than 6,800 places and a television program that airs in over 190 nations. Among the videos on Morris’ 80,000-subscriber YouTube page are “Freedom Through Forgiveness” and “Did You Know You’re Made Perfect By God’s Grace?”
Previously, the church told WFAA-TV that Morris has been “open and forthright about a moral failure he had over 35 years ago” and that “there have been no other moral failures.”
Morris made the following claim in his own statement to the source on Sunday: “This situation was brought to light, and it was confessed and repented of.”
“I submitted myself to the Elders of Shady Grove Church and the young lady’s father,” he stated. “They asked me to stop out of ministry and receive counseling and freedom ministry, which I did.”
The church leaders expressed sorrow in their most recent statement, saying, “We regret that we did not have the information that we now have.”
“For the sake of the victim, we are thankful this situation has been exposed,” they continued. “We are deeply sorry, we recognize that this has touched a great number of people, and we realize you are in pain. We hope and pray that everyone impacted can eventually find healing.”
Morris served on Trump’s spiritual advisory group both before and after the 2016 election. Morris “does not have a role with the 2024 campaign,” according to Steven Cheung, the current campaign spokesperson for Trump, who told NBC News that the former president was unaware of the accusations.
‘Any and all victims, come forward’
Was informed by Clemishire prior to Morris’ departure on Tuesday that she was “disappointed that they’re basically lying and minimizing the crime.”
Usually, does not identify victims of sexual abuse, but Clemishire stated that she felt it was crucial.
Morris remained in ministry and on the pulpit, she claimed, despite having shared her experience for decades with leaders of “very large and high-profile” churches and organizations. In order to inspire other people who might be victims to share their experiences, Clemishire made the decision to go public, according to her.
“All victims, please come forward. I simply don’t think I’m the only one,” she remarked.
Claiming to have “different confidence and a different understanding” at 54, Clemishire stated she is no longer “feeling intimidated.”
She remarked, “The courage is there.” “I just couldn’t stay silent anymore.”
Because Clemishire has “no shame,” she also included her name in the Wartburg Watch blog.
Regarding Morris, “I’ve always just trusted that God’s timing would take it wherever it needed to go,” she remarked. “Why hide?”
Can Robert Morris be charged criminally?
Morris cannot be prosecuted for the abuse either criminally or civilly, according to Boz Tchividjian, Clemishire’s attorney, telling on Tuesday. This is because the statute of limitations was “fairly short” when it was implemented in the late 1980s.
For sexual offenses involving minors, Oklahoma has had a statute of limitations that lasts until the accuser turns 45 since 2017. Prior to 2017, the accuser’s age was the trigger for the statute of limitations, which was 12 years.
“This just demonstrates the absolute importance of statute of limitations reform, both in criminal and civil cases,” Tchvidijian stated. “When somebody is traumatized as a child, for many it takes decades to process that trauma to even be ready to speak out or do something about it.”
Tchividjian is a supporter of “look-back windows,” which let states extend the time for reopening statutes of limitations that have already passed so that “survivors can now file their lawsuits.”
It is “currently evaluating all options” for Clemishire and Tchividjian to pursue legal action against Morris.
