“We now come to the #2 misconception in the series: “Spiritual abuse is only a problem in independent churches that have no established church polity.”
“In the research for my book, I was surprised to see the widespread nature of this sentiment. Across the board, folks regularly expressed the idea that authoritarian, domineering pastors must be linked to a church polity that is either non-existent or underdeveloped. Thus, independent churches, it is thought, must be the prime breeding ground for bully pastors.
“But the reality on the ground doesn’t bear this out. Here are few things I learned in my research…”