Overview:
Multiple women have come forward with allegations of abuse against the pastor of New Life Christian Church.
While abuse scandals involving evangelical megachurch leaders such as Matt Chandler may garner international headlines, other stories of pastoral abuses often get under reported.
Take the case of John B. Lowe, II, the pastor of New Life Christian Church (Warsaw, IN). He resigned during a church service on May 22, 2022, where he confessed his sin of adultery. According to Lowe’s account, his adulterous sin took place over twenty years ago and involved a 16-year old woman. Following Lowe’s confession and prayerful embrace by some in the congregation, Bobi Gephart grabbed a microphone and confronted Lowe. She accused him of grooming her as a teenager over a seven year period, taking her virginity, and sexually abusing her. In her estimation, Lowe’s actions began well before she was of the age of consent.
In an interview with local news station ABC21, Gephart explained what motivated her to go public, “If I feel like my voice can help other girls to come out — not just even this situation, but others — that were like me, to speak out? Then I want to help.”
Since Lowe’s resignation, multiple women have since come forward to describe their experiences of gaslighting by both the church and local law enforcement when they tried to report their experiences of abuse at the hands of Lowe, his son Jeremiah Lowe and other church leaders.
Complaints to Law Enforcement and Child Protective Services about these abuses were not pursued initially. Currently, the Kosciusko County Prosecutor’s Office and Indiana State Police are investigating the charges against John Lowe. Dylan Houser, the leader of the church’s security team is currently serving prison time after being convicted of felony counts of sexual misconduct with a minor. The status of any current complaints registered against Jeremiah Lowe remains unclear though he does have a prior criminal record for other offenses.