Is there an ongoing cover-up of child sex abuse at Prestonwood Baptist Church?

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CapitalAddict@reddit

Yes absolutely. There are other crazy cover ups going on at Prestonwood too. Jack Graham is holding on to his job there to protect his incompetent children who are all employed by the church in some way or form. These kids have all failed to earn anything for their families out in the real world, so they cling to their famous pastor daddy for income therefor he has to cling to his role even though he is WAY past his prime.

As a result of the pastor hanging on too long, people are taking advantage of him and there are ever increasing cover ups of all kinds of shady stuff. There are numerous people who have spoken out about it and the church tries to silence them and threaten them. The Dallas Morning News is looking into it now and interviewing many victims. More news is coming.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

You seem to know things. Go on. :-)

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CapitalAddict@reddit

How Jack Graham's children are milking Prestonwood for financial survival:

Jason Graham - Failed attorney now working as the COO of PowerPoint Ministries (which appears to just be a slush fund non profit for Jack Graham to pull donations from all over the world for literally nothing other than paying himself more than the church can justify paying him). It's a way for his donor buddies to funnel money directly to him without going through the financial oversight of the church. Jason is essentially harmless. He's a raging alcoholic that has grossly emberassed the pastor over the years. They have to keep him close for obvious reasons.

Josh Graham - This guy is a bumbling moron. Has never had a real job. Somehow he was recently promoted to "Associate Executive Pastor" - BUT this title was recently removed because so many actual ministers and lay people who are genuine real believers, pushed back on Jack. So, that title was removed from the PBC website recently. Literally nobody at the church respects this kid. As soon as Jack is gone, this guy is on the street.

Kelley Graham Flores - Do not cross this person. She is the de facto militant leader of the whole clan. Her day to day job is running the church bookstore. Somehow, running a small church bookstore has made her a miillionaire. Wonder how small the millionaire baptist church bookstore club is? It's small. Nothing at the church, or the school happens with out Kelly's involvement. She's been known to send menacing and threatening texts to people who have voiced concern about how things operate. At one point a couple of years ago there was an "Independent Parnets Council" that formed at the school (PCA). That group was trying to voice concerns about how the school was governed (no board, no oversight, just all-powerful Jack making every bad decision). Kelly asked around and found out who the people were anonymously coordinating this effort to voice concerns, and she started threatning people with FAFO comments such as "play stupid games and win stupid prizes" which she sent to people who she thought were close to this anonymous group that held its group meetings at Gleneagles Country Club in Plano.

If you spent any amount of time with any of these people you'd realize very quickly that they are un-hirable bafoons. These people couldn't get a job paying anything near what they make, out there in the real world. Daddy Jack is their only ticket to an upper middle class existence. Without Daddy Jack and the non-profit money flowing into the church, the school and PowerPoint.... there's no 6 figure income for any of these kids. The closest any of them came to a real income was Jason Graham when he was a lawyer, but he failed in that industry and had to run home to Daddy to make ends meet.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

Sounds a LOT like the Robert Morris and Olen Griffing family grifts at Gateway!

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CapitalAddict@reddit

Remember when Mike Buster, the executive paster at Prestonwood quit suddenly back in June 2024? Do you think it could possibly have something to do with his associations with known fraudsters? I'm not sure, but here's what I found via publicly available sources.

Here are some facts about Mike Buster's business dealings based on the website www.corporationwiki.com where you can lookup who is associated with companies and LLCs.

On that website, I found at least 13 different LLCs that this pastor is involved with. They aren't all listed under the same spelling of his name. In fact, he has LLCs listed under at least these spellings (which I found odd):

Michael Buster
Michael R Buster
Michael R Buster Mike
Mike Buster

Of the dozen plus LLCs, I found this one to be very interesting...

H.I.S. Bridgebuilders LLC - This nonprofit was formed in 1995 with the leader (President) being a person by the name of Kevin Kyser. Mike Buster is listed as a "Director" of this organization. In 2014 the President of H.I.S. Bridgebuilders was found guilty of cooking the books as the CFO of a public company.

This was no small issue. It was reported on by the WALL STREET JOURNAL here: www.wsj.com/articles/BL-CFOB-6351

According to Corporate Wiki's website - this LLC is still active.

So, this begs some serious questions about who is in charge at Prestonwood and exactly why Mike Buster suddenly quit in the summer of 2024.

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txholdup@reddit

Church. child molestation and coverup are what the Catholics (I used to be one) are famous for but they are hardly the only ones. Churches rarely ever contact authorities because they don't want the publicity and even more so, the liability.

Surprise, surprise, it's all about money, not the kids, not justice, not healing, just money.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

Former Catholic here too. Our church in Arlington was devastated by it.

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OiGuvnuh@reddit

This may sound insensitive, but, good. The catholic church is institutionally corrupt to its core. The consequences of that are supposed to be devastating, though they very often aren’t.

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jesuisunvampir@reddit

Like the southern Baptist or Methodist Church isn't molesting children and covering it up..

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

Boy Scouts...

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Superb-Elk-8010@reddit

My parents are ministers, I’m now Catholic, and I’ve been involved in churches my entire life. Still to this day. 95% of clergy are great people.

Oh, I was sexually abused as a teenager. Where? My public middle school, our athletic director was a predator.

You’re more likely to be abused at a public school than at a church. The stats bear this out.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

I'm not doubting you, but do you have those stats?

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Superb-Elk-8010@reddit

Last time I had this discussion, I had the stats at the ready. There’s a Wiki article with links to many studies about it, and right now I can’t find it. Will keep trying and if you reaaaaally wanna dig into my post history from, say, 3-4 months ago, I think I linked things then.

4% or less of all Catholic priests clearly committed child sex abuse. During that time, the percentage of public school teachers who did the same was harder to pin down but was, conservatively, above 6%. The truly shocking statistic was that roughly one in four public school children had been sexually abused by an authority figure at their school. That does seem high, but I don’t think anywhere near one in four Catholic kids were abused.

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blonderaider21@reddit

You think…all the pedo priests are admitting that they’re doing this? I’m sure it’s much deeper than we even know. Those are just the stats based on what’s been reported.

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erybody_wants2b_acat@reddit

I’m glad you had that experience with church and never experienced abuse, but there are THOUSANDS of children who HAVE been abused by those in church leadership. While there are certainly predators in schools as well, the statistics will never match because the abuse in churches is rarely ever reported to authorities and the abusers are simply moved to a different location. Take a look at any of the documentaries that are exposing exactly this kind of abuse. Shiny Happy People is a good start.

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Superb-Elk-8010@reddit

This is a very low-level analysis of the situation based far more on emotion than facts.

“The abuse in churches is rarely ever reported.”

Link? Source? Evidence? Anything except you mouthing off on Reddit?

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erybody_wants2b_acat@reddit

No, it’s well documented that abuse is covered up if you look at Hillsong, Southern Baptist Convention, IBLP, IFB and that’s the short list. Victims are speaking out.

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jesuisunvampir@reddit

Schools too.. predators are everywhere

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

Yeah...so sad. Youth sports... Ugh, now I'm even more depressed.

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jesuisunvampir@reddit

Family too.. high percentage there too :(

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BikerCow@reddit

I served two terms on the Grand jury for Dallas County and families are, far and away, the number one place for child abuse. Most seemingly rando molestors actually came out of homes where they were either molested or otherwise exposed to that behavior.

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Superb-Elk-8010@reddit

r/im14andthisisdeep

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

I catch your drift.

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Dontplaythatish@reddit

This doesn’t just happen at a Catholic Church, this happens at any church. I’ve know of several “Christian” pastors who have molested kids and have faced no consequences. Or they’re obviously stealing from their congregation by saying they need money to “build a new sanctuary” and instead are buying themselves new cars, building houses or going on vacations. And some are killing their own spouses or having sex with different women of the church. Every religion has its demons

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Existing-Mistake-112@reddit

Tax the shit out of all religious property and land in the USA.

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Flimsy-Firefighter47@reddit

And you know this about all the churches by ?????If you are going to accuse, should you have absolute truth, what churches Besidea child them Catholic that everyone knows about It is not cool if you are just gossipingnto make a cha Only churches Eheeat nge What about the Boy Scouts of Amarica? That'sr proof and the teachers at schools that have molested young boys. Two women minded narrow haveo been prosecuted this year. That's proof. Unfortunately, it is very onevinced we everywhere. But if you need to have facts and know there are so many places besides nameless churches, the home is actually number one .That's a fact. Please dont be so narrow-minded over one church 🙏 Let's have a factual talk. This subject is very close to home for many, including me, and I know a lot of good churches that help victims and take care of the community. That's a fact

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jilseng4@reddit

The Catholic Church just keeps better records and details surrounding accusations are simply easier to corroborate.

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TheOvercusser@reddit

Believing ridiculous shit, taking advantage of people who believe ridiculous shit, and abusing people who believe in ridiculous shit because of the authority they believe you have all go hand in hand in hand.

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TexInQuebec@reddit

My mother and brother attend this church. My Southern Baptist uncle molested me while babysitting me as a child ; my mother groomed me and then shut me up when I tried to speak out about it. I think my brother may be a pedophile and she enables him like crazy - he is 37 and has never lived on his own. They present as good, Bible-thumping Christians and have waged a smear campaign against me to portray me as mentally ill and abusive. And churches wonder why younger generations don't attend

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

I’m sorry for life experiences. Thank you for sharing. Peace.

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TexInQuebec@reddit

Thanks. In the end, we only have ourselves to rely on. God is a lie, and so is loving community. Life is savage.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

Does this happen to involve Prestonwood Church in Dallas?

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TexInQuebec@reddit

Well as I said in my comment, my mother and brother attend Prestonwood Baptist.

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TexInQuebec@reddit

In Dallas, to be clear.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

Prestonwood sure seems disfunctional. https://watchkeep.org/2024/07/a-former-prestonwood-member-comes-forward-to-tell-her-story-and-wants-jack-graham-held-accountable/

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TexInQuebec@reddit

They fired my mom’s friend when they found out she has cancer. Gotta love those good Christian values 🤮

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IAmSoUncomfortable@reddit

I don’t have to read any of this to answer your question: yeah, probably.

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Dontplaythatish@reddit

Probably?! You mean MOST DEFINITELY

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Tasty_Two4260@reddit

Why limit the scope of the question to a singular church. Or religion. Just scan the news or Twitter/X.

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healwar@reddit

Why limit the scope of discussion to a singular institution. Don't forget boy scouts, gymnastics and other sports, Hollywood, detention centers, orphanages, residential care homes, children's own homes, online predators, public and private schools.

This is a human problem, not a religious problem. Unfortunately, wherever there are humans, there are also sometimes pedophiles.

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deliascatalog@reddit

The exact answer that came to me , probably

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inarius1984@reddit

Exactly. The real question here is: Were there, or will there ever be, any actual consequences?

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Razor1834@reddit

There have been some recent actions against known pedophiles.

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barrettgpeck@reddit

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say no.

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inarius1984@reddit

Agreed, sadly.

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gr0uchyMofo@reddit

Great analysis. I guess.

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Educational-Winner10@reddit

All Democrats are pedophiles, I’m sure this is another fake Democrat church, only for show ..

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

WRONG. But nice projection. https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/ken-paxton-texas-attorney-general-first-two-years/

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invisiblemuke@reddit

The most ironic part about this is that I used to work in their preschool program (we started going there when I was in the fourth grade). One of the trainings that we had to do every year was one that told us that SA can happen in church setting, and to be on the lookout for the signs of grooming and children who had already been victimized.

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_whythefucknot_@reddit

not only are they going to cover it up but they'll let it happen again then blame the victims.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

Southern Baptists Refused to Act on Abuse, Despite Secret List of Pastors - Christianity Today

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doopiemcwordsworth@reddit

I kept copying parts of the article that were horrific and then would find a new part to copy and then …

As a former member of a SBC, I am sadly not surprised at all. It’s a bunch of men, victim blaming and covering up tons of abuse and saying that each church is independent so the SBC is not held accountable.

They all deserve to be torn to the ground.

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gptop@reddit

Pedophiles in a church!?!?!? Say it it ain't so.

These are the people we should keep an I eye for.

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Aggravating_Concept@reddit

oh absolutely. I grew up in close proximity to prestonwood (prestonworld, as we called it when I was a kid) and there was definitely some shady stuff happening over there. sex abuse is bound to be one of MANY.

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CriticalRich@reddit

Jesus Vs. Satan Show Down

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Admirable_Struggle_2@reddit

My mom always referred to it as six flags over jesus lmao

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drmanhattannfriends@reddit

Fort God

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happyklam@reddit

Six Flags Over Jesus or the Baptidome

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ArtegallTheLame@reddit

Former Prestonwood member here

Oh the stories I could tell...

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Complex_Leading5260@reddit

Post up in the /ama subreddit!!!!

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ArtegallTheLame@reddit

O.O

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swinglinepilot@reddit

Guess who's a member of this church?

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Aggravating_Concept@reddit

gross. I knew Ken was…arguably one of the worst people alive, but didn’t know he was a member of prestonwood. wish I was surprised. thank you for the info!

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yesitsyourmom@reddit

We refer to it as Jesadome

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Pabi_tx@reddit

Is there an ongoing cover-up of child sex abuse at _____ church?

Is it a large Baptist church or a nondenominational "megachurch"?

Then yes.

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drmanhattannfriends@reddit

Kinda the Catholics too

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ExitTheHandbasket@reddit

An "ongoing cover-up" of something that happened 35 years ago and which Pastor Graham has spoken openly about, as mentioned in your post? That's neither ongoing nor being covered up.

What I think you're asking is whether Prestonwood and Graham can ever be trusted again because of this. That's for each individual to decide for themselves.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

When/where did he speak openly about John Langworthy? I seem to have missed that.

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ExitTheHandbasket@reddit

I misread, it was another pastor Langworthy (not Graham) who was quoted, saying he wished it had been handled differently.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

The whole thing is confusing!

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TopFishing5094@reddit

If you have to question it, yes

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jilseng4@reddit

Was forced to go there between 1986 and 1995, and when I say go there, we were there every Wednesday night, Sunday morning, and Sunday night, in addition to ALL youth group programming in between. Wouldn't be suprised, that church is a cesspool of the worst that xtians have to offer, they care more about $$$ and politics than moral vs immoral, and at the age of 12, I knew enough not to trust any of their shady church "leaders." Notably, they never disclosed this information to the church, and while I'm a bit suprised to hear this, I'm also not suprised. Fuck that church, fuck their cult school, and fuck their congregation of racist, xenophobic, sexist, money grubbing, maga sychophants and pedos.

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Pidder_Paddy@reddit

Child abusers gravitate towards positions that put them in an authority role over children that are not under their parents supervision.

Couple that with religious organizations wanting to avoid scandal/parents wanting to avoid “shame” it becomes the perfect hunting ground for these folks.

So to answer your question, yeah probably.

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USMCLee@reddit

Google is failing me but I seem to recall something about Prestonwood about 2 years ago.

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

Prestonwood appears in the Guidepost SBC Sexual Abuse Report.

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OppositeControl4623@reddit

Must be run by senile boomers. It takes just one to blow the cover. Why is nobody reporting them to FBI

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214txdude@reddit

When it comes to churches covering up sexual abuse, it is not a question of whether it is happening, more like how long has it been happening?

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EtherealChica311@reddit

Wtf man, I’m glad all these bitches are getting exposed

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RentAdministrative73@reddit

Is that a church run by drag queens?

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IWantSealsPlz@reddit

Without a doubt

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thephotoman@reddit

Oh, we know there is one, and we know that Ken Paxton would make any charges go away because he’s a member there.

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badlyagingmillenial@reddit

It's a baptist Church, you could pick 1000 random ones across America and 999 of them have had child abuse at one point.

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bstrauss3@reddit

The 1000th is only financially sketchy!

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badlyagingmillenial@reddit

The 1000th one just opened 3 hours ago.

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tasteitshane@reddit

Are they affiliated with the SBC? Then probably. They were rife with cover ups.

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-alexisrose-@reddit

Yes, they are affiliated. Jack Graham has been president of the SBC

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swinglinepilot@reddit

Our very own AG is SB as well

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bstrauss3@reddit

Well you KNOW he's corrupt. You are only guessing if he's a serial predator.

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OiGuvnuh@reddit

Less “affiliated,” and more “a core component of” the SBC.

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FluidFisherman6843@reddit

Well seeing as they are SBC and the SBC was literally founded as a PRO-SLAVERY organization, crimes against the powerless are baked into their DNA.

my guess is 100% yes

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TrollularDystrophy@reddit

I'd genuinely be amazed if there wasn't.

I view religion sort of in the same vein as modern law enforcement; it attracts a certain type of person, and when there's enough evidence in the news weekly to support the stereotypes, they're no longer really stereotypes, are they?

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ViscountDeVesci@reddit

Well, it’s a church. So probably.

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New_Lingonberry_5239@reddit

The pattern of cover-ups is sadly not surprising anymore, but it's crucial to keep shedding light on these cases to ensure justice prevails, regardless of institution or affiliation.

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ApprehensiveAnswer5@reddit

Probably. I think there is an ongoing cover up of abuses by most closed organizations. Not just child predators, but sexual predators of any sort, financial abuse, domestic violence, etc.

Anytime you have an organization that places high emphasis on keeping things close to the vest and within the organization, where there is no transparency, and members are discouraged from speaking about their experiences, you’re going to have ongoing cover-ups of misdeeds.

This isnt exclusive to churches or religious orgs.

Boy Scouts, YMCA, Kanakuk Kamps, other orgs that have had issues uncovered.

It’s important to talk to your kids about body autonomy. About what is and isn’t appropriate for people to ask of you, and to trust your gut and feelings if something feels not right.

This is why it tends to be prevalent in certain circles. It’s the same people who don’t believe in developmentally appropriate and comprehensive sexual education. They don’t believe in bodily autonomy and having discussions with their kids about it. Telling little Jenny that her hoo-ha is just for God and her husband is not helpful. That still lets Pastor Andy come in and say that as God’s representative, he needs to see her hoo-ha and that it’s ok because they’re in the Lord’s house. Is it any surprise that Jenny goes along with that?

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mgbgtv8@reddit (OP)

Yup. A toxic combination of the opportunity to do evil and the need for organization to cover up evil.

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