Woman files $1 million lawsuit against Flower Mound megachurch, alleging neglect in sexual assault

[TexasTowelie]

Woman files $1 million lawsuit against Flower Mound megachurch, alleging neglect in sexual assault case


In a $1 million lawsuit alleging "grossly or willfully negligent" conduct, a woman has accused a Dallas-Fort Worth megachurch of not doing enough to pursue justice when she was molested as a child by a former church pastor.

The woman, referred to as Jane Doe in the lawsuit that was filed Friday, claims officials at Flower Mound-based The Village Church "acted with conscious indifference or reckless disregard" for her safety after a 2012 incident at a youth camp in Cedar Hill when she was 11 years old.

Matthew Tonne of Lewisville was arrested Jan. 9 on charges of indecency with a child stemming from the incident. He was removed from the church staff last year and is awaiting trial.

According to the lawsuit, Tonne entered the room where the teenager slept, approached her bed and sexually assaulted her. He ran off after someone turned on a light in a nearby bathroom.

Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/courts/2019/07/27/woman-files-1-million-lawsuit-flower-mound-megachurch-alleging-neglect-sexual-assault-case

[bobbieinok]

1. Village Church and its head pastor Matt Chandler are super biggies in Evangelical world

A yr or so ago they refused to permit a woman member to divorce her husband who had child porn videos on his computer. They said marriage was sacred and she must go to counseling.

There were several posts on that story at the blog thewartburgwatch.com. The posts contained links.

[TexasTowelie]

2. Thanks.

It appears that you have the scoop on them. I learn quite a bit from other DUers.

[bobbieinok]

3. IIRC Chandler was officer in group that worked closely with Mark Driscoll

Driscoll is the disgraced former pastor of the Mars Hill church in Seattle. He claimed the OT book the Song of Songs advocated oral and anal sex. He preached a notorious sermon claiming Esther, Jewish heroine of OT, was a prostitute.

Driscoll was finally kicked out of his job because he used offerings to buy books he wrote so that he would be known as a NYT bestseller author.

Driscoll said too many men in Christian circles were 'pussies' and that the church needed to be super masculine. Said he could understand why guys wouldn't want anything to do with a savior like Jesus is usually portrayed.

[TexasTowelie]

4. Stories like that make me glad that I haven't gone to church lately.

I remember when church was about singing hymns and preaching about living a good, moral life to get into heaven.