Category: Uncategorized

Tedd Tripp: Documents Added

I added the following documents to Tedd Tripp’s Page. 

#13 Pre-trial Testimony by Harriet Edson and Connie A. Laver (5/5/2017)

This document is pre-trial testimony given by Harriet Edson and Connie A. Laver (mothers of victims Joseph Edson and Daniel Laver).  Names of the victims redacted or changed to pseudonyms.

Q (SEARS): Okay.  And you didn’t go to the police.  Somebody beat your child so severely that it left

bruises and blisters, you say, blisters?

A (C L): Yes.

Q (SEARS): Okay.  And you didn’t go to the police?

A (C L): I should have.

Q (SEARS): And you didn’t go to the police?

A (C L): I should have.  I did not.  I thought we could handle it internally within the church.

Q (SEAR: Okay.

A (C L): We were promised he would never pastor again.

Q (SEARS): Well, that promise is no where in writing, is it?

A (C L): I guess not, but I never saw the final document.  I, to this day, have not seen the final

document. [page 35, lines 9-22]

#14 Transcript of Day 7 of the First Trial (8/2/2018)

This is a transcript of Day 7 of Tom Chantry’s first trial (8/2/2018).  Some quotes of interest (names of the victims redacted or changed to pseudonyms):

Q (Eazer): After the church council came back and spoke to – we heard that they spoke to the children, some of the parents, other members of the congregation.  Do you remember any of the families being told that Tom Chantry was not going to be pastoring again?

A (Howe): During this process?

Q (Eazer): During or at the end of it.

A (Howe): At the end.  Yes.  I think at the conclusion it was made clear from the council that that would be their recommendation.

Q (Eazer): Do you think the families were assured that the defendant wasn’t going to be a pastor anywhere in the future?

A (Howe): Yes.

Q (Eazer): And did that seem to be something that they wanted assurance for?

A (Howe): Yes. [page 88, lines 1-17]

Q (Eazer): After the church council and this formal investigation was done, were you left with the sense that Tom Chantry wasn’t going to be a pastor anymore?

A (Connie S Laver): Yes. [page 227, lines 8-11]

Q (Eazer): Was it your belief that he wasn’t going to be a pastor anywhere?

A (Owens): Yes.

Q (Eazer): Do you believe that that belief was extended to the parents or they were given some assurances that that wasn’t likely going to happen?

A (Owens): I believe that. [page 257, lines 2-8]

#15 Transcript of Day 8 of the First Trial (8/8/2018)

This is a transcript of Day 8 of Tom Chantry’s first trial (8/8/2018).  Some quotes of interest (names of the victims redacted or changed to pseudonyms):

Q (Eazer): Okay, but I guess what I was getting to is were you and your wife assured that he was not going to be pastoring any further?

A (Tyler Walsh): Yes. [page 177, lines 6-9]

Q (Eazer): All right.  Was there much discussion at the time about whether or not anyone would make a report to the police if you recall?

A (Tyler Walsh): There was – basically there was discussion if we did see that we needed to go to the police, that we could, but that they would handle this as a church matter and if we were good with that, that’s how they would like to handle it. [page 177, lines 10-17]

#16 Transcript of Tom Chantry’s Sentencing (7/19/2019)

This is the transcript from Tom Chantry’s sentencing on 7/19/2019.  Some quotes of interest; all are Judge Astrowsky addressing Tom Chantry:

“The church council was ill-equipped to do this type of investigation. They should have involved the police at that time, as should have others. Unfortunately, that didn’t occur.” [Page 68, lines 2-5]

“The defendant took advantage of his position of trust and authority. He used his role as pastor – he knew that Mark came from a strict religious family — to convince the child that he deserved the abuse; it was God’s will and the child would suffer eternally if he resisted and/or told anyone. The defendant manipulated the victim’s parents so that he could be alone with the child.” [Page 73, lines 8-15]

FBC Clinton, LA’s Charges & Men in Leadership when They Took Place

I have added FBC Clinton, LA’s charges and the men in leadership in ARBCA during the time those charges took place to the ARBCA and Tom Chantry Document Walk-through.  I have included the title and item number and initial description for clarity. 

#43 First Baptist Church of Clinton, LA Resignation (9/27/2019)

This document is the resignation that First Baptist Church of Clinton, LA posted on their website (http://fbcclintonla.com/about-arbca.html or https://web.archive.org/web/20200426203323/http://fbcclintonla.com/about-arbca.html).  It contains their list of charges and Timeline of Actions Taken by FBC to Address ARBCA’s Mishandling of the Tom Chantry Matter. 

Here is their list of charges with men in leadership during the time those charges took place:

1. In 2000 and beyond, ARBCA’s officials failed to protect the children abused by Tom Chantry and failed to aid them in obtaining the justice due to them (Ps 103:6). In 2019, ARBCA’s GA failed to reach out to those abused by Tom Chantry, to acknowledge the wrongdoing of the ARBCA council, to ask forgiveness from the victims, and to seek to make amends in any way possible (2 Sam 21:3; Lk 19:8).

2019 GA Delegates: Not named by ARBCA

2. Recently discovered documents in July of 2019 prove that ARBCA’s 2000 Informal Council knew of Tom Chantry’s child abuse and failed to report it to law enforcement (Rom 13:1). This failure to report to the authorities had the effect of exposing more children to danger and denying justice to Chantry’s victims (Ps 82:3-4; Is 1:17).

3. ARBCA’s 2000 Informal Council failed to recommend that Miller Valley Baptist Church discipline Tom Chantry, which is what the Scriptures require (Matt 18:15-20), and instead resorted to a biased and unbiblical program of restoration so that Chantry’s ministry could be preserved (1 Tim 5:20-21).

4. The formation of the 2000 ARBCA Informal Council by Walt Chantry, Bob Selph, and ARBCA’s 2000 Administrative Council was both unbiblical and contrary to ARBCA’s confession of faith, which does not permit “informal councils” (Acts 15:2, 4, 6, 22-25; 2LCF 26.15).

5. The allowance of “sealed reports” facilitated the cover-up of a crime. Sealed reports from an ARBCA council are a violation of Scripture and ARBCA’s confession of faith, which requires that all advice given by church councils “be reported to all the churches” (Acts 15:2, 4, 6, 22-25; 2LCF 26.15).

2000/2001 AC Members: Bob Selph, Larry Vincent, Earl Blackburn, Steve Martin, Don Lindblad, John Giarrizzo, David Dykstra, Dale Smith, Mike McKnight, Bruce Kronheim, Tom Green, Jamie Howell, and Tom Lutz. [Photograph]

2001/2002 AC Members: Bob Selph, Tedd Tripp, Earl Blackburn, Steve Martin, Don Lindblad, John Giarrizzo, David Dykstra, Dale Smith, Mike McKnight, Bruce Kronheim, Tom Green, Jamie Howell, and Tom Lutz. [Photograph]

6. ARBCA’s 2016 Administrative Council wrongly recommended Christ Reformed Baptist Church of Hales Corners, WI, the church where Tom Chantry was a pastor, for membership in ARBCA (Jas 2:9). But the AC withheld crucial facts from the General Assembly. They wrongly led the General Assembly to vote in favor of CRBC’s membership without sufficient knowledge (Col 3:9), though they knew Tom Chantry was under investigation for child molestation and that Miller Valley Baptist Church of Prescott, AZ objected to CRBC’s membership (Prov 6:19).

2015/2016 Membership Committee Members: Steve Marquedant (Chairman until around 9/2015), Jeff Massey (Chairman from around 9/2015), Larry Vincent, David Dykstra, and Jason Walter. [Attachments for Part I, attachment 6]

2015/2016 AC Members: John Giarrizzo (Coordinator), Douglas VanderMuelen (Chairman), Ron Baines (Vice Chairman), Brandon Smith (Secretary), Jeff Oliver (Treasurer), Steve Marquedant, Fred Pugh. [Spring 2015 ARBCA Update] Note: According to the 3/1/2016 AC Council Meeting Minutes, Douglas VanderMuelen and Jeff Oliver resigned and the new AC members were: John Giarrizzo (Interim Coordinator), Steve Martin (Chairman), Jeff Massey (Vice Chair), Brandon Smith (Secretary), Ron Baines, Rob Cosby, Brandon Smith, and Larry Vincent.  Glenn Woods (deacon of Heritage Baptist in Mansfield, TX) was made Treasurer. [Attachments for Part I, attachment 16]  Around Sept 2015, Steve Marquedant term limited off of the AC and Jeff Massey joined the AC [Attachments for Part I, attachment 6]

7. ARBCA’s current failure to make an open and truthful statement denouncing these past wrongs has been a violation of the 9th commandment (Ex 20:16), bearing false witness to the churches of the Lord Jesus and to the watching world. None of the essential facts are in dispute. The problem is that ARBCA will not condemn ARBCA’s past violations of Scripture and its own confession of faith, which led to the victimization of children and others.

8. We believe the failure to tell the truth about the above matters, to condemn past wrongs, and to try to make things right with all wronged parties is schismatic, and breaks covenant with the churches of the association, which is our ground of withdrawal (Rom 16:17).

Members of the Ad Hoc Committee that drafted AC Reports Part I and Part II: Steve Marquedant (Chairman), Bob Curley, Dale Crawford, and Jeff Massey. [Email from Jason Walter dated Sept 6, 2018 cited above in item #31]

Members of the 2018/2019 AC that reviewed, edited, and approved the reports: Brandon Smith (Chairman), Jeff Massey (Vice Chairman), Rob Cosby (Treasurer), Jason Walter (Secretary), Bob Adams, Bob Curley, Dale Crawford, Jack Daniels, Steve Marquedant, and Micah Renihan. [Email from Jason Walter dated Sept 6, 2018 cited above in item #31]

2019/2020 AC Members: Jeff Massey (Chairman), Matt Vincent (Vice Chairman), Jason Walter (Secretary, Bob Adams (Treasurer), Fred Pugh (Coordinator), Jason Montgomery, David Shiflet, and Bob Curley. [Spring 2019 ARBCA Update for all but Bob Curley; FBC Clinton Resignation page 4, paragraph 3 for Bob Curley]

Additions to the SCARBC, ARBCA, and Tom Chantry Document Walk-through

I have added the following document, quotes, and text to the SCARBC, ARBCA, and Tom Chantry Document Walk-through.  I have included the titles and item numbers for clarity.  All sections that were added are in italics.

#9 ARBCA’s AC Part I Report (9/5/2018) and Email from Jason Walter dated 9/6/2018

This report was written by an Ad Hoc Committee.  The men on this committee were: STEVE MARQUEDANT (chairman), JEFF MASSEY, Bob Curley, and Dale Crawford.  The Membership Committee being investigated consisted of: STEVE MARQUEDANT, JEFF MASSEY, Jason Walter, David Dykstra, and Larry Vincent. [Email from Jason Walter dated Sept 6, 2018]  Why are two of the men who are being investigated on the committee writing the reports?  How can this be understood as anything other than a conflict of interest?

The men on the 2018/2019 AC who reviewed, edited, and approved the reports were: Brandon Smith (Chairman), Jeff Massey (Vice Chairman), Rob Cosby (Treasurer), Jason Walter (Secretary), Bob Adams, Bob Curley, Dale Crawford, Jack Daniels, Steve Marquedant, and Micah Renihan. Men on the AC who recused themselves: David Dykstra, Al Huber, and Steve Martin. [Email from Jason Walter dated Sept 6, 2018]  Why didn’t Jason Walter, Jeff Massey, and Steve Marquedant recuse themselves since they were members of the MC in question in Report Part I?  How can this be understood as anything other than a conflict of interest?

This is the email that is cited above.  It has been redacted to remove the names and email addresses of the church members it was sent to.  It is the only source I have that states who was on the Ad Hoc Committee and the members of the AC that reviewed, edited, and approved the reports.  Why wasn’t this information included in the reports?

#28 First Baptist Church of Clinton, LA Resignation (9/27/2019)

This document is the resignation that First Baptist Church of Clinton, LA posted on their website

(http://fbcclintonla.com/about-arbca.html).  It contains their list of charges and Timeline of Actions Taken by FBC to Address ARBCA’s Mishandling of the Tom Chantry Matter.  Quotes of interest:

“6. ARBCA’s 2016 Administrative Council wrongly recommended Christ Reformed Baptist Church of Hales Corners, WI, the church where Tom Chantry was a pastor, for membership in ARBCA (Jas 2:9). But the AC withheld crucial facts from the General Assembly. They wrongly led the General Assembly to vote in favor of CRBC’s membership without sufficient knowledge (Col 3:9), though they knew Tom Chantry was under investigation for child molestation and that Miller Valley Baptist Church of Prescott, AZ objected to CRBC’s membership (Prov 6:19).”

2015/2016 Membership Committee Members: Steve Marquedant (Chairman until around 9/2015), Jeff Massey (Chairman from around 9/2015), Larry Vincent, David Dykstra, and Jason Walter. [Attachments for Part I, attachment 6]

 2015/2016 AC Members: John Giarrizzo (Coordinator), Douglas VanderMuelen (Chairman), Ron Baines (Vice Chairman), Brandon Smith (Secretary), Jeff Oliver (Treasurer), Steve Marquedant, Fred Pugh. [Spring 2015 ARBCA Update] Note: According to the 3/1/2016 AC Council Meeting Minutes Douglas VanderMuelen and Jeff Oliver resigned and the new AC members were: John Giarrizzo (Interim Coordinator), Steve Martin (Chairman), Jeff Massey (Vice Chair), Brandon Smith (Secretary), Ron Baines, Rob Cosby, Brandon Smith, and Larry Vincent.  Glenn Woods (deacon of Heritage Baptist in Mansfield, TX) was made Treasurer. [Attachments for Part I, attachment 16]  Around Sept 2015, Steve Marquedant term limited off of the AC and Jeff Massey joined the AC [Attachments for Part I, attachment 6]

“7. ARBCA’s current failure to make an open and truthful statement denouncing these past wrongs has been a violation of the 9th commandment (Ex 20:16), bearing false witness to the churches of the Lord Jesus and to the watching world. None of the essential facts are in dispute. The problem is that ARBCA will not condemn ARBCA’s past violations of Scripture and its own confession of faith, which led to the victimization of children and others.”

Members of the Ad Hoc Committee that drafted AC Reports Part I and Part II: Steve Marquedant (Chairman), Bob Curley, Dale Crawford, and Jeff Massey. [Email from Jason Walter dated Sept 6, 2018 cited above in item #9]

Members of the 2018/2019 AC that reviewed, edited, and approved the reports: Brandon Smith (Chairman), Jeff Massey (Vice Chairman), Rob Cosby (Treasurer), Jason Walter (Secretary), Bob Adams, Bob Curley, Dale Crawford, Jack Daniels, Steve Marquedant, and Micah Renihan. [Email from Jason Walter dated Sept 6, 2018 cited above in item #9]

2019/2020 AC Members: Jeff Massey (Chairman), Matt Vincent (Vice Chairman), Jason Walter (Secretary, Bob Adams (Treasurer), Fred Pugh (Coordinator), Jason Montgomery, David Shiflet, and Bob Curley. [Spring 2019 ARBCA Update for all but Bob Curley; FBC Clinton Resignation page 4, paragraph 3 for Bob Curley]

The entire SCARBC page can be viewed here:

https://ephesians511.home.blog/scarbc-arbca-and-tom-chantry-document-walk-through/

SCARBC, ARBCA, and Tom Chantry

SCARBC (Southern California Association of Reformed Baptist Churches) is a local association of churches.  Pastors of three of the churches in SCARBC were in leadership positions and involved when Tom Chantry and his church were brought into ARBCA and involved in writing, reviewing, editing, and approving the reports released by ARBCA.

Steve Marquedant, Jeff Massey, and Jason Walter were on the Membership Committee that recommended Tom Chantry and his church at the 2016 GA.  Steve Marquedant and Jeff Massey were on the Ad Hoc Committee that wrote the reports released by ARBCA in 2018.  Jason Walter was on the 2018 AC that reviewed, edited, and approved those reports.

The members of the churches in SCARBC have the right and duty to understand how these pastors of member churches were involved.  To that end, I have created pages for each of these men.  They can be viewed by clicking the links below.

Steve Marquedant Pastor of Sovereign Grace Baptist Church in Ontario, CA.

Jeff Massey Pastor of Redeemer Reformed Baptist Church in San Bernardino, CA and was Chairman of the 2019/2020 Administrative Council until his church left ARBCA in November 2019.

Jason Walter Pastor of Christ Reformed Baptist Church in Vista, CA, Secretary of the 2019/2020 Administrative Council, and likely remains a Trustee at IRBS Theological Seminary (IRBSTS removed the Trustee page from their website and no longer lists the Trustees on their website).

Why I Started a Blog, and Why it’s about ARBCA and Tom Chantry

I’ve never had a blog and never thought I would ever have a blog. I enjoy being helpful but am a behind the scenes kind of person. So, what motivated me to step out of my comfort zone and begin a blog? Well, in short, I felt that it was the right thing to do.

In July 2018, we began to see documents from Tom Chantry’s first criminal case on the internet. As members of an ARBCA church, we were shocked and dismayed by what we saw in these documents and were determined to discover the truth. The last 11 months have been a roller coaster ride with many high hills, sharp curves, and loops…often in places we least expected them.

We collected every document we could find, reading through hundreds of pages.  To say that it can be a daunting task is an understatement.  In order to organize information from the many documents and piece them together into a single document, I created a document that I call ARBCA & Timeline of Events.  It tracks what happened, who knew what, and when they knew it by citing the currently available documents.  We also “critiqued” documents released by ARBCA using these documents.

Convicted that we need to uphold the 9th commandment by promoting truth, we needed to find a way to make available what we had learned in a way that was accessible and easy to navigate.  I began to post them on Facebook in small chunks and in an order that I felt made the most sense.  In order to make this “walk-through” available in one place for reference and sharing, I created a blog. 

I pray that this blog will be helpful to those seeking truth regarding ARBCA and Tom Chantry.  The “ARBCA and Tom Chantry Walk-through” will remain on the Home page of my blog.  It will be updated as additional documents become available.  I will post on the Blog page to give a heads up when this happens or when there is some other important update.  I don’t anticipate doing a lot of posting on the blog, but I never thought I would have a blog so we’ll see what happens.

If you have family or friends who are members of an ARBCA church or local association that contains ARBCA churches, please consider forwarding this site to them.