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Board of Overseers, church leaders at Aug. 14 Town Hall |
Following two additional investigations into clergy sexual abuse and misconduct, The Meeting House has confirmed three more substantiated allegations against its former pastor, Bruxy Cavey.
That news was shared at an August 14 public town hall meeting held by the church.
That brings to four the number of substantiated allegations against Cavey, who resigned from the church in March following the announcement of the first substantiated allegation.
One of the new allegations involved someone who was under the age of 18 when the abuse occurred, the church reported.
The church also announced a substantiated allegation of sexual abuse or misconduct against another former pastor, Tim Day.
The claims were substantiated by an independent investigator with experience in the field of sexual abuse and misconduct, the church said.
“In all cases, the victims suffered great harm,” said Jennifer Hryniw, a member of the church’s Board of Overseers, at the meeting.
While Cavey was involved in the additional investigations, Day chose not to participate although he was “provided multiple opportunities” to do so.
Hryniw went on to say The Meeting House had decided to clarify its language around the allegations, calling what happened “sexual abuse by a church leader”—a term it adopted from Mennonite Central Committee.
According to that definition, sexual abuse by a church leader is “any sexualized behavior that occurs within the church context where one party has more power than the other,” she said.
This marks a change from the first investigation, when The Meeting House referred to Cavey’s actions as sexual misconduct or harassment.
At the time, the church thought its language—taken directly from the first investigator’s report—was “strong enough to convey the seriousness” of the situation, Hryniw said.
By not calling it sexual abuse, some felt the church was “downplaying the harm done,” she noted.
“That was never our intention . . . we have learned a lot since then,” she said.
Hryniw went on to commend the bravery of the first victim, who “endured so much” and “deeply apologized” on behalf of the church for taking so long to name what she had experienced.
During a question-and-answer time, Bruce Miller, a member of the Board of Overseers, acknowledged the church’s decision to provide financial support to Cavey and his family after his resignation elicited some “very strong opinions.”
That compensation, he said, “has now come to an end,” he said, adding that Day has not received any compensation.
Some victims are receiving financial support for counselling, he said.
When asked if the police have been informed about the new substantiated allegations, Miller said they have been “made aware.”
When pressed for more details about the abuse, and whether they were just “inappropriate” comments or behaviours, church leaders declined to go into specifics out of consideration for the victims and to prevent their identities from being revealed.
Hryniw clarified that none of the cases of abuse involved “misunderstood comments.”
“We had a robust investigation that was detailed and thorough . . . the victims were credible, the claims were substantiated,” she said.
When asked why Cavey had not been given a chance to speak to the congregation, Hryniw replied “unless someone fully admits and fully repents, we are not giving an opportunity to speak to our community.”
For Nour Aziz, another member of the Board of Overseers, hearing stories from victims was “heartbreaking, disappointing, inexcusable . . . we need to name it for what it is.”
Power in a church “should never be top down,” she went on to say, adding “we want to move forward in a way that doesn’t hurt people anymore.”
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