Editor’s Note: A man hired to handle odd jobs at an Oklahoma City church was arrested last week and charged with raping a church employee. The man’s background included two prior convictions for burglary, and two prior violations of protective orders, according to KOCO, a local television station.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victim and the church during this difficult time.
Churches must think through possible vulnerabilities, whether it’s the screening of employees, vendors, and contractors, or situations in which a staff member can become isolated, such as a church office. Below is “Strategic Security,” a free article that first published in Your Church and now appears on our sister site ChurchSafety.com. It can help church leaders identify and address vulnerabilities before those vulnerabilities are exploited:
A pastor and passengers riding in a car in Fullerton, California, were attacked by gang members, who pursued them into the church and held them at bay by hurling rocks.
Thieves took $1,800 worth of food for the needy from a Menlo Park, California, church.
A church fire in Orangeburg, South Carolina, was ruled arson.
A rash of break-ins hit churches in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Iowa.
A former trustee of a Philadelphia church was charged with defrauding the congregation.
In former days, churches were considered sanctuaries from the depredations of the outside world. Today, any crime that can happen at a home or business can also occur at a church, including the offenses cited above, which makes up only a partial list of incidents that occurred in February 2009.
“The threat is very real,” says Michael Hodge, president and owner of Michael A. Hodge and Associates, a Washington, D.C. security management consulting firm. READ MORE
