C.J. Mahaney Steps Down as President of Sovereign Grace Ministries

The past couple years years have seen a great deal of criticism and allegations about Sovereign Grace Ministries (SGM), with a number of churches breaking away from the organization, and a lawsuit charging leaders with covering up child physical and sexual abuse in the 1980s and 1990s. Last Friday came the news that SGM founder C.J. Mahaney was stepping down as president, but remaining as pastor of his new SGM church plant in Louisville, Kentucky.

For more information on the SGM controversy,  here is my weekend news post  at WORLD Magazine on Mahaney’s resignation. I also  wrote on the controversy for WORLD  [subscription wall] in November 2012.

Other links for becoming familiar with the SGM issues, and responses to them:

C.J. Mahaney,  “A Word of Thanks from C.J. Mahaney”  (regarding his resignation)

Peter Smith,  “Sovereign Grace Denomination President Resigns,”   Louisville Courier-Journal

Jeremy Weber, “ C. J. Mahaney Leaves Leadership of Sovereign Grace Ministries ,”  Christianity Today

Tim Challies, “ Thinking Biblically About C.J. Mahaney and Sovereign Grace Ministries ” , and Rachel Held Evans’ response to Challies, “ How [Not To] Respond to Abuse Allegations: Christians and Sovereign Grace Ministries ”

There are many other posts and perspectives available – including many other responses to Tim Challies – but these should serve as a short introduction to this disturbing story.

( Cross-post )