SOUTHLAKE, Texas — Gateway Church founder and senior pastor Robert Morris resigned Tuesday amid allegations he sexually abused a woman in the ‘80s, starting when she was 12 years old.
The Gateway Church Board of Elders said they accepted Morris’ resignation Tuesday and hired the law firm Haynes and Boone to investigate the allegations.
Cindy Clemishire, the accuser, told WFAA the abuse continued until 1987 when she told a friend what had happened.
After the allegations were made public, on Sunday, Morris admitted he was "involved in inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady," though he did not make reference to the girl's age.
Following Morris' resignation, Clemishire issued a statement, saying: "Though I am grateful that he is no longer a pastor at Gateway, I am disappointed that the Board of Elders allowed him to resign. He should have been terminated."
“Regretfully, prior to Friday, June 14, the elders did not have all the facts of the inappropriate relationship between Morris and the victim, including her age at the time and the length of the abuse,” the Gateway Church board of elders said in a statement Tuesday. “The elders’ prior understanding was that Morris’ extramarital relationship, which he had discussed many times throughout his ministry, was with a ‘young lady’ and not abuse of a 12-year-old child. Even though it occurred many years before Gateway was established, as leaders of the church, we regret we did not have the information that we now have.”
The board said in the statement they’re “heartbroken and appalled by what has come to light over the past few days, and we express our deep sympathy to the victim and her family.”
Clemishire told WFAA she'd told her story for years and tried to sue Morris in 2005, but her actions did not generate much attention.
"The leadership at Gateway received actual notice of this crime in 2005 when I sent an email directly to Robert Morris' Gateway email address," Clemishire said in a statement. Former Gateway elder, Tom Lane, received and responded to my email, acknowledging that the sexual abuse began on December 25, 1982, when I was 12 years old. Gateway had the information but intentionally decided to embrace the false narrative Robert Morris wanted them to believe," Clemishire said in a statement.
In a July 3 statement, the church confirmed all future radio and television broadcast ministry from Pastor Robert Morris Ministries has been canceled.
Texas State Rep. Nate Schatzline, a Republican from Fort Worth, issued a statement on the matter in which he condemned Morris' actions and any attempt at "covering them up."
Schatzline acknowledged Gateway, a sending church for Mercy Culture Church, supported Mercy Culture over the past several years, but said "pastors should be held to a higher standard."
Texas State Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, wrote in a statement that Clemishire is owed justice and "Morris needs to be held accountable for his actions. His confession of criminal activity and moral failure is shocking and unacceptable,” he wrote.
The allegations came to light after Clemishire posted her account Friday on The Wartburg Watch, a blog that calls attention to instances of alleged sexual abuse in the church on the advice of a pastor.
"This is just the beginning. I wholeheartedly and sadly believe I am not the only victim. I encourage anyone who has been sexually victimized by a leader at Gateway Church to take the bold step forward and say something. Now is the time," Clemishire said in her statement.
In a statement sent to WFAA on Friday, June 21 the Gateway Church Board of Elders said it "retained the law firm Haynes and Boone, LLP to conduct a thorough and independent" investigation.
"Having this inquiry done by an independent and unbiased outside law firm is best practice. This review has begun, and the Board of Elders pledges its full cooperation," the statement reads.
The statement went on to say over the next few weeks, the church will have a rotation of guest leaders to minister to the congregation. Pastor Joakim Lundqvist will preach this upcoming Sunday.
Morris founded Gateway Church with his wife in 2000 and it currently has more than 100,000 active attendees. Morris also has a TV program that airs in 190 countries, and a radio program called Worship & the Word with Pastor Robert, that airs in more than 6,800 cities. On YouTube, his sermons and videos have gained 7.1 million views.
He also serves as chancellor of The King’s University in Southlake.
It’s not immediately clear what his resignation from Gateway means for the future of his TV and radio program or his role with the university.
Morris had already announced plans to turn over church leadership to his son, James Morris, in spring 2025 prior to the allegations being made public. The board of elders didn't address who will take over from Morris in their statement.