EDITOR’S NOTE: This story has been edited to clarify actions by Riverbend Community Church after the arrest of a lay pastor on child pornography charges.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (BP) — A Florida church said it is committed to transparency, safety and truth after removing from office a lay pastor who was arrested on 30 felony counts of possessing child pornography.
Riverbend Community Church in Ormond Beach, Fla., relieved John Robert Griffin II of all of his pastoral duties Jan. 6, the same day he was arrested by Daytona Beach Police Department. Police alleged they had found more than 200 sexually explicit photos of children at Griffin’s home. In a statement, the church said Griffin had served nearly two years as a nonvocational, nonpaid elder at the church, teaching and ministering to senior adults. He had no duties involving children.
“As soon as we found out about the arrest, we immediately removed him as an elder and he was relieved of all of his responsibilities,” Brian Giaquinto, a Riverbend elder who is pastor of finance and administration, told Baptist Press today (Jan. 11).
After Griffin’s arrest, vocational elder and teaching pastor Scott Menez told the congregation the church is committed to transparency, truth and the safety of children and others under its care.
“Our goal is transparency with everything. We as elders would never, never cover up something that we would know. We seek to know the truth, and we will do our own investigation in time. We will get to John,” Menez said in a video posted on the church’s website Jan. 6.
Sunday (Jan. 10), Menez told the congregation: “We love our children, and we are extremely protective of them. We work very hard so the children down these hallways are safe.”
Giaquinto told Baptist Press there were no allegations against Griffin by church members or in connection with his role at Riverbend Community Church.
“We’ve encouraged those to speak to us, and so far, today,” Giaquinto said, “we haven’t had anyone bring an accusation against him.”
Griffin was released Friday (Jan. 8) from the Volusia County Jail on $150,000 bond. He faces arraignment Feb. 10, according to Volusia County Courthouse records. Bail was reduced from an original $300,000.
In a news release, Daytona Beach police said they began investigating Griffin in October 2020 after receiving a tip that he had been sharing child pornography through various telephone apps. Officers seized computers and phones from his home containing the pornographic images, and may file additional charges as equipment is searched. The Daytona Beach News-Journal reported the images depicted girls ages 3 to 7 years old and 9 to 14 years old involved in sexual acts with men.
Giaquinto said the church has spoken with Griffin and has begun a process of church discipline while respecting the investigation by law enforcement officials. He said they have not made any determinations regarding Griffin’s guilt. Griffin did not have a physical office at the church, and none of the equipment police seized was church property, according to Giaquinto.
“If Griffin engaged in pornography in any form he would never be restored to church leadership,” Giaquinto said, adding: “We would have to walk carefully before we did anything about restoring Griffin if it was determined that Griffin was innocent of the charges and was not involved in pornography.”
Giaquinto said while the investigation is underway, “we’ve focused on shepherding our congregation.”Giaquinto said Riverbend is also ministering to Griffin’s wife, adding: “Our primary role is focusing on her care.”
While each Southern Baptist church is autonomous, messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention’s 2019 Annual Meeting in Birmingham, Alabama, approved SBC bylaw and constitutional changes aimed at preventing sex abuse among congregations. SBC President J.D. Greear commissioned a Sexual Abuse Advisory Study Group that, in cooperation with the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and LifeWay Christian Resources, released the free training resource “Becoming a Church That Cares Well” to help churches prevent predatory behavior.
Among two constitutional changes approved in Birmingham, the SBC can declare churches “not in friendly cooperation” based on sexual abuse, but the change has to be approved at two successive annual meetings before taking effect. The 2020 SBC Annual Meeting was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the next meeting is set for June of 2021.
