Letter from a Father of a Ruben Mata Survivor
I have sat back for the last three months and watched the lack of love and understanding by those in the ministry.
It is time to put a little history into the predatory activity within the ministry. I first became aware in the 70's with the Bob Ingram situation- Bob's predatory lifestyle was revealed by several of the young sisters. Bob was eventually removed from the ministry- this created a large division in Alaska. What should be mentioned is that these younger sisters had been following orders from older sisters- info provided by those in the work at that time.
In the 80's the situation around Steve Rohs became a little more public - again information by those in the ministry. What isn't mentioned is that there were those who were struggling with their sexual urges- some left the ministry and married- many are now elders. There were those who sought therapy to help with these urges- the common therapy was chemical castration. It is my understanding that therapy is still being used today.
Thru the 90's there were accusations, and these were handled quietly- they weren't to be mentioned again. The common practice was to ship the predator to other states or countries. Sometimes they were just moved to a new field.
In 2000, the very public case of Ruben Mata - Ruben was sent home to his mom. Ruben promised to change his life- several years later three brothers took Ruben to the authorities. Ruben was convicted and given a sentence of 35 years. It would appear this was because of his predator lifestyle after he left the ministry- he was allowed in meetings through part of this time.
Through 2000 to 2010's, predator activity would crop up and workers would be shuffled about, and silence was enforced.
In 2014, I was contacted by a family member- he was trying to sort out what happened to him in his youth at convention. We had two sisters staying with us and they explained more of the Ruben Mata situation. This young man was a victim. He was blessed to be in a very supportive environment. I will not go into further details.
These sisters arranged a meeting with Dale Shultz, Rob Newman, the sister workers, two elders, and ourselves. In the meeting no one was sure anything could be done- we pressed for a moral statement. The ministry responded that they couldn't make a moral statement due to their enemies- thru several correspondence they made a few changes on reporting CSA. We pressed for more to be done. In the spring, Rob Newman and Walter Pollock asked for a visit with us. The meeting lasted 20 minutes- we shared what we had found- they confirmed that the info was correct. Walter Pollock provided the closing statement- I don't know why these men are allowed to stay in the ministry.
In this time span Rob Newman was made overseer of California - we pressed again for change. He would get back to us he was going to Ireland for convention. One of the elders made the statement that new overseers are not given that privilege. When Rob Newman got back, he called us and told us that they would not be reports of sex crimes- not all countries had the same mandate. Also, nothing else would be done as the statute of limitations had expired.
We had requested a moral statement and that the elders and workers in each field would meet with each family- this would provide a voice to victims without a threat. Dale Shultz passed and said it wasn't that big of a deal.
My experience is these men are anything but Godly. The big question - is this ministry of God? Please read your Bible. Christ and Paul have much to say. Yes CSA/SA were a problem in the days of Christ.
The only request this young man has made is that no child ever experience the pain he had been thru. This was expressed a number of times to Rob Newman and Dale Shultz. Do not tell us you do not understand or were aware of the pain these folks have gone thru. The lies must stop and you need to take responsibility.
I will close with we left the fellowship in 2015- I was told God did not talk to us.
