MK forum

A new document was posted on the public Ethnos360 website on Feb. 7, 2020. It is buried quite deeply in the website, however, and I have not seen any alerts to its existence posted other places in the website, so I think it has gone largely unnoticed.

To find it, go first to Child Safety (under About), then click on "Find out more" (under Historical Reviews), then click on "Read more here", at the end of the first paragraph.

Here is the link:

https://ethnos360.org/downloads/Ethnos3 ... ontent=9PB

This document is highly significant, and well worth the time and effort it takes to find it and read it. It is long (15 pages), but much of what Brian Coombs has written here has never before been publicly said by NTM/Ethnos360. The most significant page is page 11, which contains a list of names - yes! names! finally! - of 16 former mission members who sexually abused children.

Ethnos360 and Child Safety, pg 2.

Forward

While this document is written primarily to our members, our first apology is rightly to the MKs who were victims of abuse and to their families.

To those who have been impacted by abuse as a result of the failures of individuals and our organization, we want to express our deepest sorrow. The things we have learned through the investigative reports, and those things we still may not know about, should never have happened to you or to any child or family. May we never forget the cost of these failures to our children, our members, and the God we endeavor to represent.


"... our first apology is rightly to the MKs who were victims of abuse and to their families.

To those who have been impacted by abuse as a result of the failures of individuals and our organization, we want to express our deepest sorrow."

Such nice words. They sound so sincere.

However, none of the MK abuse survivors or their parents who I contacted knew anything about the existence of this document, until I told them.

My own children were victims of abuse in NTM. This sorrowful apology from Ethnos360 appears to be directed at them, and at me, their mother.

Ethnos360 has my mailing address. They even have my e-mail address. But I have received nothing. No notification. No packet in the mail.

Is it understandable then, that to me, as a mother, these words feel empty? They look good. But if they were meant to be directed at me, then why weren't they really directed to me??

On Ethnos360 and Child Safety, pg 3, Brian Coombs writes:

We believe it is appropriate and right that the MKs have come forward with their stories, and we thank them for their bravery and tenacity.

Say it louder, for the people in the back.

We believe it is appropriate and right that the MKs have come forward with their stories, and we thank them for their bravery and tenacity.

Will this change the opinions of the many mission members, mission supporters, and even parents and families of MK abuse survivors who have, for the past decade, been critical of the efforts made to come forward and tell the stories of child abuse in NTM? So much courage has been demonstrated right here on Fanda Eagles, where victims have raised their voices and told their stories. Over 30,000 posts to date, many of them poignant, even unforgettable.

Will this official word from Ethnos360/NTM stop missionaries from "praying against" us, or claiming that we are a part of a spiritual warfare plot against the mission?

I doubt it. Especially since I am skeptical that many of the current members have even read Brian Coombs' document. Many who should be reading it are now retired from active service, and I don't even know if they are aware of the existence of this document, or of this sentence:

"We believe it is appropriate and right that the MKs have come forward with their stories, and we thank them for their bravery and tenacity."

From Ethnos360 and Child Safety, pg 4:

Often in U.S. culture and in our history, sexual abuse was looked at as a form of adultery. Because of this, it was often dealt with according to biblical principles regarding adultery without an understanding of the differences that needed to be accommodated when a child was involved. For example, when an offender was confronted about an act that would today be recognized as child sexual abuse, if the offender expressed remorse, they were then taken through steps of reconciliation and some form of restoration. There was not an understanding of the reality that some individuals were serial offenders, nor was there the ability to recognize and fully address the abuse, including that additional children might also have been abused. There was little to no understanding of the complex needs of a child after abuse.


The stark, raw truth of this entire paragraph just makes my skin crawl. The horror of it, viewed through my eyes today. I was an NTM MK who lived my childhood and adolescence during this period of time, and I know this is all too accurate.

"Often ... in our (NTM) history, sexual abuse was looked at as a form of adultery." Yes, really.

"... when an offender was confronted about an act that would today be recognized as child sexual abuse, if the offender expressed remorse, they were then taken through steps of reconciliation and some form of restoration." Meaning: they were often allowed to remain in the mission, and even in the same location.

"There was not an understanding of the reality that some individuals were serial offenders, nor was there the ability to recognize and fully address the abuse, including that additional children might also have been abused." Horrific.

"There was little to no understanding of the complex needs of a child after abuse." And because of this, life was expected to go back to normal, for everyone .... the perpetrator, and the victim/s. Is it any wonder that survivors of MK abuse in NTM are often alienated from their own families, do not feel believed, understood or supported, and have found no solace in the faith community in which they were raised?

From Ethnos360 and Child Safety, pg 6:

As we progressed through the first investigations with IHART, we came to realize that having an attorney at the helm of an investigative team, such as Mr. Boz Tchividjian with G.R.A.C.E., provided for better protection of the MKs’ stories. Thus, we shifted from Ms. Hendrix to Ms. Theresa Sidebotham in 2014.

For those of us who were closely following the unfolding changes in 2014, this explanation of the transition from Hendrix to Sidebotham comes across as disingenuous to the core! Putting an attorney who had a close friendship with Scott Ross, and already had a connection with NTM, at the helm of NTM's process called IHART was done primarily for the purpose of providing better protection of the MKs' stories???

Give me a break.

Let it not be forgotten that the first time most of us heard of Theresa Sidebotham, who is now the coordinator of IHART, a highly respected speaker at CSPN conferences, and is currently conducting yet another abuse investigation for yet another overseas school, Christian Academy of Japan, was when she published this article: "Are Protestant Ministries a New Market? Lessons Learned From the Catholic Sexual Abuse Scandal".

https://telioslaw.com/pdfversions/new-market.pdf

From Ethnos360 and Child Safety, pg 10:

... IHART will not be changing its position on releasing names.

However, this document will show a shift in the position of Ethnos360 on that practice.


These two contrasting sentences are confusing, especially to those who do understand IHART to be a process of Ethnos360, not a separate, independent group or company.

It is important to note that there will be no change in future IHART investigation/inquiry reports. "IHART (read Theresa Sidebotham) will not be changing its position on releasing names." There will be no names in the reports. Not even names of the most vile of sexual offenders.

What is being stated here is that Brian Coombs/Ethnos360 has decided to name some names (emphasis on SOME), which they do in this document. Whether they will continue to name names is anyone's guess. I think it is possible that the 16 names currently listed are all we will ever see. But only time will tell.

From Ethnos360 and Child Safety, pg 10:

With the recent public reminders that individuals who admit to committing atrocities against children are living freely in society and without legal recourse against them, we have determined that a public listing is appropriate of those who have violated (at a minimum) our organizational child safety standards regarding sexual abuse. Because of this, we are providing a listing of the names of those whose actions clearly violated our organizational definition of sexual abuse.


"The recent public reminders" ......

It is perfect that the Ethnos360 and Child Safety document was posted on the Ethnos360 website on February 7, 2020, exactly one year to the day after NBC broadcasted their piece about child abuse in NTM, highlighting the fact that "accused sexual predators are living freely in communities around the U.S., their sordid pasts known only to a few". That was the most public reminder ever dealt to NTM/Ethnos360 on this subject!

February 7, 2019:

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/religion/u ... ds-n967191