Arkansas Pastor Resigns After Mishandling Abuse Allegations
Since abuse allegations against former children’s ministry worker surfaced, attendance has shrunk significantly
An Arkansas pastor has resigned after admitting he failed to properly handle sexual abuse allegations against a former church staff member.
Pastor Steven Smith on Dec. 10, 2023 / Video screenshot
Steven Smith of Immanuel Baptist Church in Little Rock has been at the center of controversy since last year. In December, he apologized to his congregation for failing to inform them of sexual abuse allegations made against a former children’s ministry worker.
The alleged abuse was reported to have occurred in 2015 when Patrick Stephen Miller worked as Immanuel Baptist’s assistant director of children’s ministry. Miller left that position in January 2016, a year before Smith was hired as lead pastor. Smith acknowledged in his December apology that the church had taken proper steps to inform law enforcement, but for the 5 years that Smith knew of the abuse, he chose not to disclose the allegations to the church.
Miller was arrested in December 2018 and charged in January 2019 with a felony of second-degree sexual assault. In January 2022, he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of misdemeanor harassment and was given a one-year suspended sentence and was not placed on the sex offender registry.
Immanuel Baptist is one of the state’s largest congregations, but since the sex-abuse controversy surfaced late last year, its attendance has shrunk significantly. Still, as recently as early March, Smith indicated he believed God still wanted him to serve at Immanuel.
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Somewhere along the line, he changed his mind, and this month Smith released a letter of resignation to members of Immanuel.
“It is hard to describe how much our family loves the Immanuel family. You have loved us, cared for us, and nurtured us in so many ways. Our children have flourished here. Our friendships here are very real, and we owe an incredible debt to those who have poured into us,” the letter reads. “Every family experiences tension, and our church family tension has been very real and very public in recent months. To feel this tension as we walk through the halls and as we worship together has been disheartening. Unfortunately, at present we do not see this abating, but only increasing.”
Smith said he and his wife “have spent considerable time thinking and praying about what is best for the church.” In the end, Smith chose to resign.
He says he is “not stepping into another ministry, but stepping aside to let the healing process begin.”
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