My Abuser is Returning to Ministry

Guest Bios Show Transcript Three years ago, he reportedly groomed and lured a married student under his care at a Christian seminary into a sexual relationship. Now, he’s moved to another state and is relaunching his ministry. But his victim is speaking out. On this episode of The Roys Report, Julie speaks with Katie Roberts, who was once the director of the Women’s Training Network for The Gospel Coalition (TGC). But Roberts resigned that position in 2018. And according to a statement by TGC at the time, Roberts resigned because she had confessed to an "adulterous relationship." But as you’ll hear in this podcast, that relationship was not an adulterous affair; it was abuse. According to Roberts, it was a situation where a highly-respected Christian professor—Dr. Art Azurdia—used his position of power to prey on Katie, an unsuspecting student.  Until now, the alleged abusive nature of Dr. Azurdia’s relationship with Robers has never been made public. And in June, Azurdia is speaking at a Christian conference. He's also become an instructor at a Christian academy for college-aged students and reportedly is being considered for pastoral positions. Katie's story is a ominous tale, showing how even an adult can be groomed and abused, and then how that abuser can return to ministry. To read Katie Roberts' full statement about Dr. Azurdia's abuse, click here.  This Weeks Guests Katie Roberts Katie, who is married to Richard and has three children, is a speaker, writer, and teacher. She has a MABTS (Masters of Arts in Biblical and Theological Studies) from Western Seminary. Katie currently utilizes her training to teach the Bible to women in her local church, and she also serves as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) for abused and neglected children. She wants the Lord to use the insight and hope she gained through her experience of God’s rescue from adult clergy abuse to help others. You can find her at katieroberts.org.  Transcript KATIE ROBERTS, JULIE ROYS This transcript has been edited slightly for continuity. JULIE ROYS 00:04 Three years ago, he groomed and lured a married student under his care at a Christian seminary into a sexual relationship. Now he’s moved to another state and is relaunching his ministry. But today his victim is speaking out. Welcome to The Roys Report, a podcast dedicated to reporting the truth and restoring the church. I’m Julie Roys. And today I’m going to be speaking with Katie Roberts. Katie once was the director of the Women’s Training Network for The Gospel Coalition. But she resigned that position in 2018. And according to a statement by The Gospel Coalition at the time, Katie resigned because she had confessed to an adulterous relationship. But as you’ll hear today that relationship was not an adulterous affair. According to Katie, it was abuse. It was a case of a highly respected Christian professor Dr. Art Azurdia using his position of power to prey on an unsuspecting student. And sadly, before today, the abusive nature of Dr. Azurdia’s relationship with Katie has never been made public. And even though Dr. Azurdia has not reconciled with Katie, and many of those he’s hurt, he’s apparently been restored to ministry and he’s not only speaking at an upcoming Christian conference, but he’s actually become an instructor at an academy for college aged students. And reportedly, he’s being considered for pastoral positions. That’s why Katie Roberts is speaking out. Her story is such a powerful tale; how even as an adult, someone can be groomed and abused, and how, even after abusing someone, a man can return to ministry when he should be disqualified. I’m very eager to speak with Katie but before I introduce her, I just want to take a minute to thank the sponsors of this podcast, Judson University and Marquardt of Barrington. Judson is a top ranked Christian university providing a caring community and an excellent college experience. Plus, the school offers more than 60 m