Byron Copeland, the chief pastor at Cross Timbers Church in North Texas, has resigned lower than a month after lead pastor Josiah Anthony stepped down amid allegations of inappropriate conduct that was sexual in nature.
Copeland was appointed because the interim lead pastor in late July following Anthony’s resignation. He served as the chief pastor at Cross Timbers starting in November 2023 after serving over 19 years as the chief pastor at Gateway Church in Southlake, which has confronted its personal management disaster after sexual abuse allegations in opposition to founding pastor Robert Morris led to his resignation earlier this yr.
In a letter to the Cross Timbers group this week, Copeland supplied his resignation to pursue a “fresh season of life.”
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“I have felt the heavy weight of our recent hurt at Cross Timbers Church. But, I am thankful that this is a place of healing and hope,” Copeland mentioned within the message.
“Though this period has been exceptionally challenging, walking through this with the staff has enriched my life,” Copeland added. “I have met so many incredible people who have inspired my faith. But I sense that God is calling me to a fresh season of life. So, it is with a thankful heart that I have decided to resign from my position.”
The church’s founding pastor, Toby Slough, has been known as again as interim lead pastor.
“Especially with Toby Slough’s willingness to return to steady the ship, I am as confident and optimistic about the future of this church as I’ve ever been,” Copeland wrote in his message to the congregation.
“As I transition, I am very confident for you as a congregation. I continue to be impressed by the character and sincerity of the Cross Timbers Elders and Staff. You are in great hands, and I believe your best days are ahead. We wish nothing but goodness and blessings for Cross Timbers Church.”
After the church introduced Anthony’s resignation in July, it was later revealed that he despatched “inappropriate comments made in text messages and through social media that were sexual in nature.” The church beforehand introduced he engaged in “inappropriate and hurtful” actions that weren’t sexual however clarified that Anthony was not “forthcoming or transparent” and engaged in a sample of inappropriate communications with girls.
Anthony has been part of the ministry since 2011 and served in numerous capacities at Cross Timbers, together with as a pupil minister and campus pastor.
The church initially turned conscious of the problems simply earlier than Anthony went on his annual sabbatical when elders obtained a report of inappropriate communication with a feminine former church member.
Additional investigations revealed one other communication with a former staffer that, whereas not sexual, was deemed “excessively personal and overly familiar,” resulting in his resignation.
John Chalk, essentially the most senior member of the church’s elder board, mentioned on the time that Anthony’s battle together with his emotional and psychological well being had occurred over a “prolonged” interval that resulted in “events and circumstances” over numerous years which they solely realized about previously month.
Chalk, addressing the congregation, mentioned that Anthony was not clear together with his struggles, finally resulting in his incapability to proceed serving as lead pastor.
“Once all of this came to light over the last few weeks, it became evident that Josiah could not continue to serve as our lead pastor,” Chalk said.
A number of days later, elders mentioned they found Anthony engaged in conduct that was sexual in nature and have been bracing for extra allegations to return.
“After announcing Josiah’s resignation to our congregation, we then learned about additional inappropriate comments he made in text messages and through social media that were sexual in nature,” the elders mentioned in a message to congregants revealed by survivor advocate Amy Smith.
“We want to be very clear; we do not consider any of these instances to be emotional affairs. Because the power dynamic of these interactions were never equal, we do not consider these to be consensual. This behavior will not be tolerated at our church.”
Copeland’s previous can be not with out controversy.
In 2023, he was named in a lawsuit in opposition to Gateway Church alleging civil rights violations, the place he allegedly “backed [the plaintiff] into a corner of the room they were in and threatened to fire her if she didn’t shut up and stop stirring up drama.” Court docket paperwork state that Copeland later apologized to the worker on Slack that day.
“Well bless their hearts.”
