In an unprecedented action, United Methodist Bishop Julius C. Trimble and the appointive cabinet of the Indiana Annual Conference issued a public apology July 17 for the hiring of a former school official with a criminal record to be pastor of a two-point charge in Anderson, Ind. The episode marked a rare, if not unique, instance in which the workings of United Methodist personnel matters were made public.
The controversy center on Jerry Hoss, who was hired by the Rev. Chris Nunley, superintendent of the conference’s North Central District, to serve as a lay supply pastor for a two-point charge including New Horizons United Methodist Church and Aroma United Methodist Church in Anderson. Mr. Hoss began his appointment June 23.
A former school principal in Frankton, Ind., Mr. Hoss was convicted in 2015 on a felony charge of official misconduct after sending inappropriate text messages to two female students. Because his charge was plea-bargained down to official misconduct, he was not required to register as a sex offender. The specifics of Mr. Hoss’ criminal record were publicized July 12 in an article in the Anderson Herald Bulletin.
After Mr. Hoss’ background became public, an ad hoc group formed by 16 clergywomen published an open letter July 14 addressed to Bishop Trimble and the Indiana cabinet. The letter demanded Mr. Hoss’ immediate removal, disciplinary action against District Superintendent Nunley, and radical revision of the conference’s procedures for vetting candidates for ministry.
Two requests met immediately
According to subsequent public statements, two of the group’s requests were met immediately. Mr. Hoss was removed from his assignment July 14, and Rev. Nunley has entered into “supervisory” consultation with Bishop Trimble and members of the cabinet.
Regarding the conference’s examination process, the open letter read in part:
“There must be systemic, procedural change in the Indiana Conference to ensure that this kind of misconduct can never happen again. These changes should include:
“— The development and implementation of clear guidelines for the Extended Cabinet, District leadership (Associate Superintendents, District Committees on Ministry, etc.), and all clergy in the Indiana Conference regarding background checks (including what it means to “pass” such a check), what information revealed in background checks or from other credible sources disqualifies someone from serving in specific leadership roles in our churches, and the established expectations for training on the Conference’s Behavioral Health Guidelines.
“— Required formal training in abuse awareness and prevention for all members of the Appointive Cabinet, and any others who are granted the power to assign or recommend someone for pastoral leadership (including Supply status) in a local church.
“— A thorough external review of all Conference policies and practices regarding the assignment of Lay Supply Pastors, with recommended changes presented as an update to the Annual Conference no later than October 2020 and a full plan of implementation presented no later than the 2021 Annual Conference session. Until this plan has been adopted, all current policies and practices regarding Lay Supply assignments must be followed consistently, including approval of Supply assignments by the Appointive Cabinet.”
The authors of the open letter have created a website, DoBetterINUMC.org, to document the ongoing process of revising Indiana’s clergy examination process. The original signatories to the open letter met July 16 via Zoom with Bishop Trimble and the Indiana extended cabinet “to discuss moving forward together,” the website stated.
The day after the July 16 discussion, Bishop Trimble issued a formal apology for the situation with a separate apology from Rev. Nunley. Bishop Trimble’s statement read in part:
“As your Residential Bishop, I want you to know that I believe the assignment of Jerry Hoss was a mistake we cannot afford to make. Because the office and work of Conference/District Superintendents are extensions of the office of Bishop, I feel it is right, responsible, and redemptive that I apologize. I am deeply sorry for this mistake and grieve the harm it has done.
“… I have read the open letter signed by our INUMC clergywomen and many others. I have read it numerous times and receive it as I believe it was intended. In it, the authors have spelled out the problem and called for steps of remediation. To quote a portion of that letter, ‘The Church bears a responsibility to ensure that we do not perpetuate the systems that allow such abuse to occur.’ That is right, and we must make whatever exists or does not exist in our process right so that integrity, safety, and accountability are never sacrificed for expediency. I applaud and commend the rapid response of so many clergy and laypersons and embrace the call and recommendations for accountability.”
Among remedial actions Bishop Trimble listed:
- “Special attention is being paid to offer repentance from leadership and to offer healing to those who have relived trauma during this time, especially within the Indiana Connection.
- “Superintendent accountability is the responsibility of the Bishop. Experts have been engaged from beyond our Conference to inform and strengthen continuing education, training, and review with a focus on abuse awareness and prevention.
- “Review is underway to implement necessary procedural changes that ensure all assignments of laity and clergy to local churches meet the highest standards of vetting for safety and success.”
In a separate message included with the bishop’s letter, the district superintendent, Rev. Nunley, apologized for his error in judgment:
“I am deeply sorry for the pain my actions have caused Aroma and New Horizons United Methodist Churches, my colleagues on the Appointive and Extended Cabinets, Bishop Julius C. Trimble, and my United Methodist sisters and brothers, both laity and clergy, whose trust I have broken. I also apologize for the harm that my decision-making process has caused to those who have experienced sexual abuse in their lives that they are now reliving as a result of this assignment.
“I regret the decision to assign Mr. Hoss to two local churches. While I reviewed some information with my colleagues on the Appointive Cabinet, I now realize that more information should have been shared in this process. It was my responsibility to assemble and share the information necessary to evaluate this assignment, and I failed in that regard. My colleagues did not have sufficient information to provide adequate counsel on this assignment.
“I seek forgiveness from you all from the very depth of my soul.”
On July 18, the Indiana Conference held a clergy session via Zoom to discuss next steps. The Rev. Mary Dicken, an ordained deacon, spoke on behalf of the open letter’s originators. Her full remarks are posted on the Do Better Indiana website.
“While I am the one speaking this morning, these words are not just my own,” she is quoted in the meeting minutes. “I am here as one of the original 16 signatories to the Open Letter to the INUMC Leadership, and these remarks are a collaborative effort by this group. Additionally, I stand before you cognizant of the nearly 1,000 United Methodists who co-signed that letter, including over 400 in Indiana alone. While I cannot claim to speak on behalf of all of these persons, I hope my words today reflect our collective concern and desire for meaningful change.
“This open letter was written in response to a violation of our covenant with one another, with our churches, with our communities, and — most importantly — with the most vulnerable among us whom we are called to protect. We were made aware of the assignment of a person with a history of sexual misconduct with minors to two of our congregations through an article in the Anderson newspaper earlier this week, and we were compelled to respond publicly. As Bishop Trimble said, an open letter is indeed meant to be a protest, admonition, and appeal. I would add that our specific appeal is, ‘Do better, INUMC.’
“Bishop Trimble and the Extended Cabinet invited us to meet with them on July 16. We welcomed the opportunity to have the hard conversations, ask the difficult questions, and begin the work of addressing the broken processes and systemic issues, alongside the Conference leadership. In that meeting the Bishop stated, ‘We want to change the entire culture.’ This is our shared goal.”
Rev. Dickson said that the “Do Better INUMC” website would document future developments in revising the examination process for Indiana clergy.
Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011.