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SBT Seminary: Paige Patterson Lied to Us About Covering Up a Student Rape

SBT Seminary: Paige Patterson Lied to Us About Covering Up a Student Rape

The chairman of the board of trustees at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary has released another explosive statement related to the firing of its former President Paige Patterson.

Along with making several inappropriate comments about domestic violence and the appearance of a teenage girl, he had also been accused of covering up the rape of a female student while he was the president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in the early 2000s.

Now, Chairman of the Board Kevin Ueckert says Patterson misled them about it:

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We confirmed this week through a student record, made available to me with permission, that an allegation of rape was indeed made by a female student at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2003. This information contradicts a statement previously provided by Dr. Patterson in response to a direct question by a Board member regarding the incident referenced in our May 30 statement. The 2003 rape allegation was never reported to local law enforcement. SWBTS will not release the student record to the public without additional appropriate permissions. 

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They also revealed disturbing details about how he treated a female student at Southwestern who reported that she’d been raped:

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In connection with that allegation of rape, Dr. Patterson sent an email (the contents of which were shared with the Board on May 22) to the Chief of Campus Security in which Dr. Patterson discussed meeting with the student alone so that he could “break her down” and that he preferred no officials be present. The attitude expressed by Dr. Patterson in that email is antithetical to the core values of our faith and to SWBTS.

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They also said that the wife of Patterson’s chief of staff posted documents related to Patterson’s tenure at the school “without the permission of the students referenced in the documents or appropriate leadership.” He said, “I believe this was inappropriate and unethical.”

Initially, Patterson was removed from his role of acting president, but was given another leadership role and salary. However, in light of the most recent revelations, he has been fired.

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