Pastor vs. Church:  Court to Determine the Future

Orginally published on Wednesday, December 19, 2007 at 9:11 AM
by Todd Rhoades

The Sunlight Church members packed into a district courtroom were clearly divided as they listened to testimony about whether their pastor, accused of misusing church funds and racking up $18,000 in credit card charges, could remain in the pulpit. The Rev. Curtis Gene Johnson, who has been the pastor at Sunlight about a year, is accused by some church members of using money from a non-profit account and a credit card for personal expenses. A hearing this week in Beaumont, TX was about whether a temporary injunction will further bar Johnson from his role as pastor until the case goes to trial. Currently, a restraining order is in place preventing Johnson from entering the church. He since has been conducting services for supporters elsewhere...

“If you don’t act now, the finances of this church will be totally squandered,” plaintiff’s attorney Langston Scott Adams told the judge in his opening statements. He is representing Curtis Levias, identified in court documents as deacon board chair, and others wishing to remove Johnson.

At the heart of the plaintiff’s case is a petition church members circulated asking Johnson to resign. If he would not, petition supporters said they intended to fire him.

Defense attorney Scott Crutchfield contends the language in the petition signed by 80 or 90 church members, which he read in court, calls for Johnson’s resignation and not termination.

He also argued that those calling for Johnson’s removal did not ensure all the names on the petition were of members in good standing, which means they attend regularly and tithe.

Petitioners say Johnson’s use of funds from the Lighthouse Ministry account and church credit card, which were established after he came on board, are one of the reasons for the ouster attempt.

Tiffany Nguyen, vice president of Texas State Bank where the church has two accounts, testified that the church’s Lighthouse Ministry account was established as a non-profit account and that all money in the account belongs to the church. The intent was “the advancement of God’s work.”

Every time Johnson was asked about the Lighthouse Ministry account, he referred to it as pastor’s aid, saying the account was set up for him to use at his discretion.

According to bank records, some checks apparently signed by Johnson were for $200 to Entergy, over $600 to himself, $455 to Ford Credit, $300 to Citifinancial, $100 to his mother, $170 for Kids Christian Learning Center for his goddaughter’s day care and $300 to pay for a party for his wife.

There also was a $125 check to Greater Zion Missionary Baptist Church among the bank records. According to testimony, that is where Johnson was pastor until church members circulated a petition and called police seeking his removal.

Sunlight Baptist secretary Betty Green, a Johnson supporter who has known him all his life, said that the purpose of the credit card was to pay for hotel rooms and other expenses incurred by visiting ministers and when attending conferences.

“When there was a need for something and there wasn’t a check to pay for it,” said Green, who later testified about various charges she had discussed with Johnson.

“There were some things on there that were personal ... We talked about it and he agreed there were some things he shouldn’t have done and he said he was going to pay for it,” Green said.

Johnson testified that church funds should be used to do “God’s work.”

“When I traveled, my meeting would be taken care of and it is for local entertainment. And when I traveled, I used the credit card for rooms and food so that I wouldn’t have to carry much money on the road,” Johnson said.

The card was canceled several months ago.

Johnson then agreed to repay the credit card debt. He wrote checks out of what he called the pastor’s aid account, according to his testimony.

Adams asked Johnson how much money from his personal account he paid on the $18,000 card debt.

After Adams suggested several figures, Johnson said it was less than $500.

Crutchfield said in his closing argument that once Johnson agreed to repay the credit card debt, it was no longer an issue because the church came together to reach a remedy.

Van Daniel Jr., who has been a member of the church for 55 years, said he joined the board of trustees and financial committee after Johnson took over from the late Rev. G.W. Daniels, long-time pastor and civil rights leader.

He spoke of the various negotiations regarding the pastor’s salary, which went up from the original proposal.

However, he said, “I feel, as a member, the pastor should have whatever he needs to do God’s work without hindrance, whether it be financial or whatever.”

Read more here from The Beaumont Enterprise.

This post has been viewed 1377 times so far.


 

Hi... I'm Todd Rhoades. I'm a Christ-follower, husband, father and I love to connect leaders with other leaders. Hopefully you'll find something here at MMI you like and will return often. If you want, you can find out more about me or follow my every step on Twitter.

MondayMorningInsight.com | PO Box 446 | Bryan, OH 43506 |