The Latest Updates on the Robert Morris Scandal
For those who have been following the recent breakout of scandal surrounding Robert Morris of Gateway Church, here are a couple of updates worth noting.
In a document obtained by NBC News, a believed audio transcript from a phone call in 2005 between Morris and Clemishire discussed the price it would cost for Clemishire to stay quiet about the situation. The document was given to NBC by a previous staff member of Gateway Church.
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“Put a price on it,” the document records Morris saying.
“It is not a small number,” Clemishire responds. “Money doesn’t make you happy and I can understand that. So that is not what this is about.”
After being asked again, Clemishire responded by saying, “Two million dollars.”
The discovery of this transcript comes after leaked emails from the same time frame between Morris and Clemishire were reported on.
“Twenty-three years after you began destroying my life, I am still dealing with the pain and damage you caused,” Clemishire wrote in the email as noted by NBC. “I want some type of restitution. Pray about it and call me.”
In Morris’ reply, he noted that he and his wife, Debbie, “really do care for you and we sincerely want God’s best for you.” He also believed that he had already received her and her family’s forgiveness.
“My attorney advises that if I pay you any money under a threat of exposure, you could be criminally prosecuted and Debbie and I do not want that,” Morris continued.
In a new interview with CBN News, Clemishire says that what she experienced also included emotional and mental abuse.
“It’s every part of your being is manipulated during that kind of abuse,” Clemishire says.
She also states that she has been sharing her story for years, but that it was often not taken seriously.
“Anytime he would speak in a church that we were associated with or going to in any way, either I would or my parents or my sister would go and confront leadership and talk to them and explain to them what happened to our family,” Clemishire says. “Not once has any leadership stood up and said ‘This isn’t biblical. You shouldn’t be in leadership. Honestly, you should be gracious to this family that you’re not in prison.’ But no one has taken him out of leadership.”
Just days ago, Life Today founder, James Robison, also came out in a public statement, refuting discussions that he met with Clemishire and Morris.
James Robison Corrects the Record pic.twitter.com/g02nMNJ0xo
— James Robison (@revjamesrobison) June 21, 2024
“People have been asking questions about my relationship with Robert,” Robison said in a video on X. “I’d like to set the record straight because some people are claiming that I was present when Robert met with the victim’s family in 1987, that I knew the girl’s age when these events took place. This is false. It is not so. It is in fact a lie. The victim herself corrected the record after the initial news report came out.”
As more information continues to come to light in this situation, continue to pray for all those impacted by this devastating circumstance, including Gateway Church.
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Abby Trivett is content development editor for Charisma Media.
