Texas megachurch pastor Robert Morris sent a chilling email to his sex abuse accuser 20 years before he made the shocking confession, a report says.
Morris, 62, the founder and senior pastor of Gateway Church in Southlake — one of the nation’s largest megachurches — faced accusations from former family friend Cindy Clemishire, now 54, who said he sexually abused her in the 1980s when she was 12.
On Tuesday, Morris resigned from the megachurch after admitting to abusing Clemishire, who made her allegations public in a blog post on The Wartburg Watch, a website dedicated to exposing abuse in churches.
Newly released emails, shared with NBC Newswould reveal the shocking interactions between the disgraced preacher and Clemishire in 2005.
“Twenty-three years after you began destroying my life, I am still dealing with the pain and damage you caused,” Clemishire, then 35, allegedly wrote to Morris. “I want some form of restitution. Pray about it and call me.”
Newly surfaced emails between former Gateway Church Pastor Robert Morris, 62, and his sex abuse accuser, Cindy Clemishire, now 54, revealed their exchange years after the alleged child sexual abuse
“Twenty-three years after you began destroying my life, I still deal with the pain and damage you caused,” Clemishire, then 35, wrote to Morris
Two weeks later, Morris, Donald Trump’s former spiritual adviser, reportedly told Clemishire that he and his wife, Debbie Morris, cared about her.
“Debbie and I truly care about you and we sincerely want God’s best for you,” he told Clemishire.
He then allegedly told her that he had previously confessed his sins to Clemishire’s father, and that he was under the impression that he had obtained the forgiveness of her and her family.
“My lawyer advises that if I pay you money under threat of exposure, you could face criminal charges and Debbie and I don’t want that,” Morris was quoted as saying in response.
“If you need more information, please have your attorney contact mine.”
The two families — including Morris’ wife and son — became close, and Clemishire alleged that Morris’ abuse began when he stayed at her family home in Tulsa on Christmas 1982.
She describes a scene in which Morris asked her to come to his room and talk to him, and asked her to lie on his bed.
Morris began touching her inappropriately, with Clemishire claiming he touched her stomach, then her chest and then under her pants.
‘I vividly remember everything I wore and what the pajamas felt like. They were light pink, and it was a top with bloomers, and I had underwear on and bloomers and the top and a robe that shot over it,” she said.
Clemishire added that after the alleged abuse occurred, Morris “told me I could never tell anyone because it would ruin everything.”
On Tuesday, Morris resigned from the megachurch (pictured) after admitting to abusing Clemishire, who went public with her allegations
The two families — including Morris’ wife and son — became close, and Clemishire alleged that Morris’ abuse began when he stayed at her family home in Tulsa on Christmas 1982.
She said he would continue to isolate and abuse her for the next four and a half years before she finally spoke up, first to a family friend and then to her parents.
Clemishire’s father demanded Morris be removed from office and she claimed he did so for two years to undergo “restoration.” In 1989 he returned to preaching.
In another email to Morris, Clemishire allegedly said: “Men who have more than 100 cases of child abuse go to jail.”
“Men who staff churches where there are more than 100 cases of child abuse go to jail and pay restitution. You didn’t have to do anything either.’
According to the alleged emails, Tom Lane, a former Gateway elder, knew Clemishire had contacted Morris seeking compensation. It is unclear whether he knew she accused the former pastor of child sexual abuse.
On Friday, Lane, who has since left the church, told NBC News that he “did not fully understand the severity and specificity of the sexual abuse she experienced, nor did I know that she was 12 years old when the abuse began.” ‘
Richard Harmer, a spokesman for Lane, said he believed Clemishire was under 18 but still old enough to consent to a sexual relationship.
In the state of Oklahoma, where the abuse allegedly took place, the age of consent is 16.
In April 2005, Lane contacted Clemishire on Morris’s behalf, but she wanted to speak directly to the former pastor.
Lane explained to her that Morris “was completely open with the elders of Gateway Church about his past and specifically about his indiscretion with you.”
He added that although Morris and his wife treated her with “caring care,” they “didn’t bring the healing you were looking for.”
“The ‘Blessed Life’ that Robert writes about in his book and that you refer to in your email is not one of perfection, but one of submission and obedience to God, something he has worked diligently to cultivate. walking, both in failure and failure. success, for more than twenty years,” Lane wrote to Clemishire.
Morris, Donald Trump’s former spiritual adviser, told Clemishire in the emails that he and his wife, Debbie Morris (pictured), cared about her
According to the emails, Clemishire tried again and again to talk to Morris on the phone about the allegations, but that never happened.
“Robert and Debbie did what they could to help you heal. Our church believes in healing, forgiveness and restoration of all individuals. We want to help you find that healing for your life.”
Just five months after Lane wrote to Clemishire, she is said to have sent a message directly to Morris.
“I’m giving you one last chance to call me. You really have no idea how devastating it will be if you don’t. I don’t want Tom or anyone else to contact me. This is your problem, not his,” she said.
Morris then asked Clemishire what she wanted from him, but she insisted he call her to discuss further.
“I have suffered almost my entire life from the emotional damage you have caused me. If you want to know what I want, call me,” she replied.
Although he never called her, Clemishire said Morris’ attorney contacted her to schedule a meeting with Morris, but that never happened.
In a final message to her, Morris said: “You see the blessings God has poured out on my life and conclude that it is because I have hidden my past.”
‘That’s not how God works. He will not be mocked with deceit.”
“I am deeply saddened by the pain Cindy Clemishire has endured and by the recent revelations about Pastor Robert Morris,” Lane said in a recent statement.
“My deepest condolences go out to Cindy, and I pray that her suffering is fully recognized and validated.”
Gateway Church’s Council of Elders sent a statement Tuesday confirming their acceptance of Morris’ resignation. Morris has not made any public statement.
The church previously supported Morris, saying he had been “open and forthright about a moral failing he suffered more than 35 years ago,” but now calls the behavior unacceptable in their statement after the victim’s age was discovered.
Gateway elders admitted they knew of Morris’ relationship with a “young lady” when he was in his 20s.
This week, the council of elders announced that it has hired a law firm to investigate. Morris has never been criminally charged and the statute of limitations for such a case has long since expired
“The elders’ previous understanding was that Morris’ extramarital affair, which he had discussed many times during his ministry, involved ‘a young lady’ and not abuse of a 12-year-old child,” church leaders said in a statement. .
This week, the council of elders announced that it has hired a law firm to investigate. DailyMail.com contacted Gateway Church and Morris for comment.
Clemishire has hired Boz Tchividjian to represent her in another potential lawsuit WFAA. Tchividjian is the grandson of evangelist Billy Graham.
“It appears that it would be preferable for them to simply accept his vague story rather than seek the truth about a sexual crime committed against a minor,” Tchividjian said.
“Gateway’s leaders had a responsibility to find out what happened and not blindly accept his words.”
Morris has never been criminally charged and the statute of limitations for such a case has long since expired.