Popular Pastor Returns After His Leave Over an ‘Inappropriate’ Relationship - The New York Times

U.S.|Popular Pastor Returns After Absence Over an ‘Inappropriate’ Online Relationship

FLOWER MOUND, Texas — The salient pastor of a Southern Baptist megachurch successful suburban Dallas received a lasting ovation arsenic helium returned to the pulpit connected Sunday, much than 3 months aft abruptly announcing an indefinite permission implicit an “inappropriate” online relationship.

Matt Chandler, the pb pastor of the Village Church, which attracts astir 4,500 attendees to its main field and has spun disconnected autarkic congregations successful the region, faced a packed sanctuary and apologized for vaguely defined online misbehavior helium repeatedly referred to arsenic “my foolishness.”

“I’m sorry, I failed you,” helium said. “The Lord met america and helium carried america through, and I don’t privation to suffer show of that.”

As helium took the signifier aboriginal successful the service, helium was greeted with cheers and whistles. Someone successful the congregation yelled out, “We emotion you, Matt!” arsenic helium appeared to conflict to incorporate his emotions.

Mr. Chandler, 48, a revered nationalist fig wrong evangelicalism who is known for his dynamic preaching style, had not fixed a sermon astatine the Village Church since helium tearfully told his congregation successful August that helium had been progressive successful a narration online with a pistillate who was not his wife. The narration was not “romantic oregon sexual” but “unguarded and unwise,” helium said then, and included “coarse and foolish joking that’s unbefitting of idiosyncratic successful my position.”

Mr. Chandler said successful August that a pistillate had approached him this twelvemonth successful the religion foyer to face him with concerns astir his nonstop messages connected Instagram with 1 of her friends. Mr. Chandler said helium instantly went to religion leaders, who commissioned a instrumentality steadfast to reappraisal his messaging past and aboriginal placed him connected a permission of lack that the religion said was some “disciplinary and developmental.” The religion has not publically released immoderate mentation of the investigation.

Mr. Chandler’s departure nether cloudy circumstances came astatine a infinitesimal of uncertainty for galore American evangelicals. Churches are struggling with persistently little attendance since the pandemic and are divided by taste and governmental conflicts that the Village Church has mostly tried to avoid. Many evangelicals are disillusioned implicit a bid of scandals involving salient leaders including the evangelist Ravi Zacharias and the megachurch person Bill Hybels.

The question of however rapidly and nether what circumstances a pastor should beryllium restored to ministry has been the taxable of wider statement among galore evangelicals implicit the past fewer weeks. In precocious November, a radical of 4 pastors who worked intimately with Johnny Hunt, a erstwhile president of the Southern Baptist Convention, said they considered him qualified to instrumentality to ministry aft a study published by the denomination successful May included what it said was a credible claim that Mr. Hunt had sexually assaulted a pistillate soon aft his presidency ended successful 2010. Mr. Hunt has said the brushwood was consensual. The existent president of the Southern Baptist Convention, Bart Barber, powerfully condemned the thought of Mr. Hunt’s instrumentality past week.

The scope of Mr. Chandler’s misbehavior is unclear, complicating issues of redemption and forgiveness. On Sunday, Mr. Chandler said that during his permission helium participated successful 2 “intensives,” which the religion described arsenic counseling sessions with professionals specializing successful Christian leadership, and a neurological exam. He was diagnosed with encephalon crab successful 2009 and underwent attraction that included surgery. A spokeswoman for the religion said determination was nary grounds that the crab had returned.

In an email past week to members, religion elders said Mr. Chandler “completed everything asked of him with submissiveness, steadfastness and humility, and we person received affirmative feedback from each involved.”

The church’s all-male committee of elders joined Mr. Chandler onstage connected Sunday morning, laying their hands connected him successful prayer. Josh Patterson, different pastor, described the radical arsenic unified successful restoring Mr. Chandler to leadership.

Mr. Patterson compared Mr. Chandler to an jock who has undergone country connected his genu and been cleared to play by his doctor, but whitethorn inactive consciousness timid astir utilizing it. “Your genu is good,” Mr. Patterson told Mr. Chandler, to different circular of sustained applause. “Run.”

The pistillate with whom Mr. Chandler had the online narration has not been publically identified. The church’s email to members past week did not notation to her, nor did anyone notation to her from the signifier connected Sunday morning.

Acts 29, the church-planting web of which Mr. Chandler was president, said successful August that it had asked him to temporarily measurement distant from speaking engagements. He is presently listed connected its website arsenic enforcement president of the board; the group’s erstwhile enforcement director, Brian Howard, is present listed arsenic president. A spokesperson for Acts 29 said successful an email that the men were fixed titles that “more accurately bespeak the duties of each of their roles.”

Friday was the 20th day of Mr. Chandler’s becoming the church’s pb pastor, and religion elders called the timing of his instrumentality a “beautiful coincidence” successful their email to religion members. Toward the extremity of the work connected Sunday, Mr. Chandler’s wife, their 3 children and his wife’s parents joined him onstage adjacent to a surface projection thanking him “for 2 decades of bold teaching, faithful enactment and authentic pastoring.”

The work fell 3 weeks earlier Christmas, and the Village Church’s windowless sanctuary was decorated with Christmas trees and vacation lights. As Mr. Chandler near the signifier aft his archetypal affectional appearance, the set began to play a modern mentation of a Christmas carol, starting midsong with words that were besides emblazoned connected a banner connected the church’s facade: “O come, fto america adore him.”