Hi, my name is Pete Gazzaro. I want to welcome you today to the emotionally healthy

leader podcast. Our theme today is the key to address our church scandal crisis part one. That is the key to address

our church scandal crisis part one. Now, I've been thinking about this potential podcast for over

a year and a half, making notes, wondering if perhaps I did have something to say about this

very large issue. It's been going

on for 45 plus years since I became a Christian. People often think it's happening much more so now.

That's actually not the case. And it's not just a United States issue or a Western church issue.

It's actually a global

issue. I purposely contacted, for example, some leaders from around the world, as well as

Christian study centers that study the global church and track it, and to go beyond mere

antidotes, to actually, you know, they've documented the terrible scandals that have done damage to the name of Jesus and the

mission of Jesus in churches in Asia and Africa and Latin America as well.

The unique feature, I think, in this historical moment is social media and global communications,

and news media and outlets that are able to communicate so

widely and rapidly, but also who are feasting on the glaring integrity gaps within us as

the church. We claim to be, of course, the temple of the Holy Spirit and speak for a holy God

and with a body of Christ. We claim to be a counterculture that that's the hope of the Holy Spirit and speak for a holy God and we're the body of Christ.

We claim to be a counterculture that that's the hope of the world.

And yet the breach of integrity that we don't live it, it's just great gossip for people.

And very easy, of course, to slander the name of Jesus.

Now, for some Christians, even leaders, that's fueled

a cynicism. Yeah, you can't trust the church as an institution. Others say, oh, well, that could never be

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