There have been reports of spiritual abuse and abuse of power at Bethlehem Baptist Church,

the church John Piper pastored for over 30 years. Three pastors have resigned. Hundreds of members have left,

but why? Welcome to the Roy's Report, a podcast dedicated to reporting the truth and restoring the church. I'm Julie

Roy's. And joining me today is a couple, Steve and Jeanette Takata, who unwittingly found themselves

at the epicenter of the storm at Bethlehem. Steve Takata is a longtime member who had attended

Bethlehem Baptist since grade school and whose father sits on the elder board. Jeanette has been attending Bethlehem since 2003 when she moved to Minneapolis to complete an internship.

For many years, the Takadas enjoyed rich fellowship and teaching at the church.

But over the past few years, they had become increasingly concerned about the church's handling of race issues,

its treatment of women, and the relationship between the church's handling of race issues, its treatment of women,

and the relationship between the church and its associated ministries, especially Bethlehem

College and Seminary. But the Takadas were not alone in their concerns. Unbeknownst to them,

there had been two investigations the previous summer. One involved allegations of a toxic

environment at Bethlehem College and

Seminary. Those allegations were dismissed when the investigation found no evidence of any unlawful

actions by the College and Seminary. Another investigation involved allegations of spiritual abuse

by Bethlehem College and Seminary Professor Andy Nasselli, who's also an elder at

Bethlehem Baptist. That investigation also ended in the school dismissing the allegations

against Niselli. According to my guest, none of these developments were announced to the church,

so with these issues and others you'll hear about in just a moment, simmering beneath the surface,

the Takadas proposed

two motions at a church meeting on January 31st of last year. And boom, it was like a bomb

went off. You'll hear what happened in just a moment. But first, I'd like to thank the sponsors

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