"The meeting he claimed happened between me, him and Nancy, " this one: "And so Nancy and I met with her immediately in the spirit of Matthew 18, I apologized to her from the heart, we talked things through together, after which, to our knowledge, everything was good between us." Well, it NEVER happened. The idea that he apologized to me in this meeting is a complete fabrication. The only meeting the three of us had about any inappropriate behavior was when I found the 'confession' he wrote about another woman! I confronted him about this and that is when he asked me to meet with him and Nancy. It had nothing to do with his "foolish and irresponsible" behavior toward me but with his sensual relationship with another woman, who I assumed was groomed as well. Note: what I read was written in his handwriting. There is no reason for me to believe that the things he attributed to the other woman were actually said by her. I believe that she was a victim. That is the only meeting ever to take place between us three!!!" - Sarah Monk
I cannot stress enough that if her assertion is true, this is devastating for Dr. Brown. Let's put side by side the assertions from Dr. Brown and now Sarah Monk:
"Nancy and I did have a relationship with the woman in question and considered her to be like a family member, and she conducted herself as one who viewed our relationship the same way. But she was not a family member, and aspects of my interaction with her, although totally non-sexual in every way, reflected a definite lack of judgment on my part. Before she relocated to another state in August 2002, she informed me that our interaction months earlier had made her uncomfortable. And so Nancy and I met with her immediately in the spirit of Matthew 18, I apologized to her from the heart, we talked things through together, after which, to our knowledge, everything was good between us." - Dr. Michael Brown Statement
"The meeting he claimed happened between me, him and Nancy - Well, it NEVER happened. The idea that he apologized to me in this meeting is a complete fabrication. The only meeting the three of us had about any inappropriate behavior was when I found the 'confession' he wrote about another woman! I confronted him about this and that is when he asked me to meet with him and Nancy. It had nothing to do with his "foolish and irresponsible" behavior toward me but with his sensual relationship with another woman, who I assumed was groomed as well. Note: what I read was written in his handwriting. There is no reason for me to believe that the things he attributed to the other woman were actually said by her. I believe that she was a victim. That is the only meeting ever to take place between us three!!!" - Sarah Monk Statement
Beloved, these are not congruent statements in the slightest. Dr. Brown asserted that he met with Erin as soon as he found out she was "uncomfortable." That he apologized to her with all of his heart and that they talked through the issues to the point that Brown thought it was a biblically settled matter. Sarah now is saying that NONE of this is true. None of it! That they only met once but that had nothing to do with their issue and was instead about the first woman Brown references. Please do not lose sight of this connection. Brown's statement was to deflect this story and his entire premise is, "hey I took care of this biblically, so sorry you were still feeling bad about it." Except Sarah says no, the one meeting they had was not even about their issue at all and there was no apology to her! That would explain why she never felt this was ever resolved. Beloved, public ministries deserve public scrutiny, especially when the sheep are at stake. There are three glaring lies that Sarah has now accused Dr. Brown of that he must answer for. Why did he say that this was all because he viewed her as a daughter and that it was just a public lack of judgment? Where was the truth about the in private violations? More importantly is this revelation that the alleged Matthew 18 meeting was nothing of the sort and he never even apologized to her true. I might add, that Sarah refers to the confessed relationship as sensual, while Dr. Brown maintains nothing sexual ever happened. This seems to be a glaring discrepancy that Brown needs to provide clarity on. Dare I say, moral clarity.
"He has lied, and I lied for him for two decades, protecting him and his ministry. For that, PLEASE FORGIVE ME. For allowing a physical relationship to happen, PLEASE FORGIVE ME. For not speaking up before I moved, PLEASE FORGIVE ME. PLEASE FORGIVE ME, for all my wrong and sinful ways in this situation. I truly want healing to come from this"-not just for me, but for EVERYONE involved, all who have been hurt. Michael Brown wrote in his official statement: "If it's true that for 23 years she has carried this pain and I am responsible for it, I am beyond mortified and would plead forgiveness and the opportunity to bring healing and restoration. Her wellbeing remains our priority." If my well-being had been your priority 23 years ago, you would've never laid a hand on me. You were thinking about yourself. Instead of hiding behind your creative wordsmithing, simply tell the truth. I am so thankful for Amber, Londa, Rachel, Katherine, Gregg, Kris, and Ron for standing by me through this. Without their support and guidance, I would not have said a word to The Roys Report. I learned to just ignore it, not think about it, and pretend it didn't happen. It was easy to do back then because when I moved home, no one reached out to me, and I didn't reach out to anyone. I wanted to forget everything from Pensacola. I did just that! But there is a time for everything (Eccl. 3:1-8). Now is the time to speak out and help those who are hurting find the healing they need. I have read the heartbreaking stories that many of you posted (this was originally posted in a private Facebook group for graduates and former faculty of BRSM/FIRE, were many or sharing their own stories). I am genuinely sorry for all the hurt and shame you all have felt for years. No one should be hurt the way you all were by ANYONE, especially a nationally known spiritual leader, holiness preacher, and revivalist. Your compassionate responses to "Erin" have been life to me. Thank you. Again, please FORGIVE me for my role in the situation and the lies I told to cover it up." - Sarah Monk
It is just soul crushing to hear the sorrow from this woman, begging for forgiveness, for potentially being abused by her spiritual leader and mentor. This subject brings me no joy beloved. There is a political truism that says the coverup is often worse than the crime and that is how it appears here. The actions from Dr. Brown 23 years ago were "bad" but an honest approach would have gone a long way. Instead of saying that he used Matthew 18 and thought it was resolved, he could have just said that he never addressed it and is sorry. Perhaps he could have received more understanding if he had not tried as all the other fallen leaders have tried, to cover it up. To deflect with excellent wordsmithing as Sarah so aptly describes. It is sloppy and lazy but more importantly it is just arrogant. Unless Sarah is lying here, these revelations are absolutely devastating to the decades long brand of the voice of moral clarity. There is no moral clarity is claiming you met with Sarah to apologize for your butt slapping, lip kissing, handholding ways but you really did not meet with her or apologize at all. Perhaps there is still time to do the right thing. As the key verse teaches us, much is required from whom much is given. What is required now from Dr. Brown is the truth. Save us the bottom of your heart apologies as long as the fundamental arguments you make are simply untrue. Answer these three charges and stop trying to parry it off to "there's an investigation." It is flimsy and transparent. Answer why your associates tried to bully Sarah and why you sent out a fundraising email accusing her of working with Satan. Much is required Dr. Brown. Start by telling the truth please. For the good of Sarah Long, who is obviously still spiritually tortured right now because of you, and for the good of the body of Christ.
